th year of Nero's Region who first of the Roman Emperours began open Persecution against Christians and put to death St. Peter and St. Paul In this time I say of Toleration under the Roman Empire which continued the space of 36 years the blessed Apostles and Disciples had preached one uniform Gospel and Faith throughout all the World as may appear by their Acts recorded and by the peculiar Testimony of St. Paul to the Romans Rom. 1. which thing being most miraculously done by the Divine Power and Virtue of Christ Bishops Pastors and Governours being ordained in every Country and Church for guiding and directing the same by themselves and their Successors in perpetuum this I say being once brought to pass then the blessed Apostles for preventing of new false Doctrines that might afterward arise most earnestly exhorted and with all vehemency called upon the people to stand fast in the Doctrine Documents and Traditions then received to hold firmly the Faith and Doctrine already delivered as a Depositum or Treasure committed to them to be safely kept till the last day And above all other things they forewarned them to beware of new fangled Teachers whom they called Hereticks who should break from the Unity of the Universal Body already made and knit together and should devise new Glosses Expositions and Interpretations of Scripture bringing in new Sences Doctrines Opinions and damnable Divisions to the utter renting of Christ's Church Kingdom City already builded and all this to the perdition of infinite Souls Hence it is that St. Paul Tim. 1. pronounceth peremptorily of a contentious and heretical Man that he is damned by the testimony of his own Judgment or Conscience for that he abandoned the common direct publick way which all Men might see devising particular Paths and pernicious Turnings to himself and the ancient Fathers of the Primitive Church disputing against the same kind of People defended always that their Error was of Malice and wilful Blindness and not at all of Ignorance for they will not behold the plain direct sure safe unerring and infallible way among Christians wherein no man can err tho' never so simple but only of blind wilful and obstinate malice Yet by promises of Christ himself in the Gospel we are absolutely ascertained that the same visible Congegation Body Common-wealth Church Kingdom and Government which was established by Christ and propagated by the blessed Apostles shall endure and continue by Succession of Followers in perpetuum and that no new Teacher of later Doctrines dissenting from the first shall ever prevail against it albeit divers Errors and Heresies have sprung up and made great blustering and disturbance for a time yet have they been repress'd and condemn'd by the same Church and her visible Pastors and Doctors in the end For Example-sake in the first Age there arose up certain seditious fellows among the Iews as Simon Magus Nicolaus Cerinthus Ebion Meander c. that were Hereticks against these stood in defence St. Peter who broke the Neck and Black Art of Simon Magus even by his Prayer And after him St. Martialis St. Dionysius Areopagita St. Ignatius Policarpus and others In the second Age rose up Basilides Cerdon Marchion Valentinus Tacianus Apelles Montanus and divers others against these stood in battel Iustin Martyr Dionysius Bishop of Corinth St. Ireneus Clemens Alexandrinus Tertullian with many others their equals And so all along downward from Age to Age unto cursed Luther's days whatsoever Heresie or new false Opinions hath been raised contrary to the general consent of Christ's universal Church it hath been check'd controul'd silenc'd and condemn'd by vigilant Pastors and Doctors chief Governours of the same Body by general Assemblies and Councils gathered from time to time as occasion serv'd in all Parts of the World Whereby it 's evidently most manifest that he who relieth upon this general consent of Christ's Church and the judgment thereof cannot err in matters of Belief but walketh in that sure secure and infallible Path wherein 't is said in Isaiah 35.8 That a very Fool cannot go amiss Hence one may be persuaded of the Churches perspicuity and infallibility in her Traditions and Doctrines through God's Divine Providence which did and will always preserve it from corruption having a warrant for it out of Scripture Isa. 59.21 My Spirit which is upon thee and the words which I have put into thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth nor out of the mouth of thy Seed nor out of the mouth of thy Seed's Seed from henceforth for ever And St. Austin said Ep. 118. That to dispute against a living multitude of the whole Church is insolent madness And to say she may err through ignorance wilfulness or negligence is most absurd and blasphemous she having Christ for her Head and the holy Ghost for her Guide and Spirit who was sent by our Saviour to teach it all Truth wherefore to tax that heavenly Government with errors in Faith is either to tax the holy Ghost with them or to blaspheme against Christ our blessed Redeemer by saying He has not kept his word and promise in sending the holy Ghost to teach his Church all truth for ever King IAMES in a publick Speech made in his Parliament acknowledged the Church of Rome to be our Mother-Church saying I acknowledge the Church of Rome to be our Mother-Church This you may find in Stow pag. 840. Sure the Sacred Blood of his glorious Mother Queen Mary the ever blessed Martyr ran in the Veins of this her Royal Son King Iames who would do wonderful things in favour of the Roman Catholick Church if it were not for the black contriving of the Gun-powder Plot by the Matchevilian Policy of crooked Cicil only for to hinder King Iames from favouring the Church of Christ Sanguis mantirum semen Ecclesiae See Osburn Sure there is no other certain Testimony to any prudent considering Man no firm Ground or Motive to believe that the Primitive Church received her Doctrine from the blessed Apostles these from Christ Christ from God the Father nor any way to bring it down from those times to these our days but only the Tradition of the Church from hand to hand For we may observe three properties of the Doctrine of Divine Faith to be true to be revealed of God to be preached and delivered by the Apostles The highest ground by which a Man is perswaded that his Faith is true is the Authority of God speaking and revealing it the highest proof by which a Man is assured that his Faith is revealed is the Authority of Christ and his blessed Apostles who delivered the same as descending from God but the highest ground that moveth a Man to believe that his Faith was preached by the blessed Apostles is the perpetual constant Tradition of the Church succeeding the blessed Apostles unto this day assuring him so much according to the saying of Tertul. depraes c. 21. 37. who made his Ladder
is Divine unerring revealed Faith. Now the Master and Author of that Doctrine we must believe the Instructor of the Actions we must perform and the promiser and performer of the final Happiness we may hope for is God himself who cannot deceive or be deceiv'd he being the prime Verity Via veritas vita So as Faith is not grounded upon our weak natural Judgment or Ratiocination but upon obedience to the Church Faith is a gift of God a supernatural Quality infused by God into our Souls by which we firmly believe all things revealed to us Without Faith its impossible to please God Heb. 11.6 And He that believed not shall be damned Mark ult v. 16. So as every one ought to know that there is a sovereign and blessed end viz. Eternal Glory then every one ought to love and heartily wish to attain to the same and earnestly seek out for those means and helps prescrib'd and ordain'd by God for the compassing it Then in the first place we must find out Divine Faith which partly proceeds from God as the source and Author thereof as Prima veritas And altho' those things we believe by Faith cannot be known by evident Demonstration yet because they are taught us by supernatural means we are more certain of their truth than of all other things because those things are deliver'd over to us by a more certainly infallible Teacher the Spirit of Truth the Holy Ghost Therefore enter I pray into a serious consideration of the End for which you and all were created viz. The Glory of God and your eternal Happiness and for the knowledge of the means to attain thereunto you may find by the consent of all Christians this cannot be gotten by clear and evident sight nor by human Discourse founded on the Principles of Reason nor by reliance upon Authority meerly human but only by Faith grounded on the Word of God revealing to Men things that are otherwise only known to his infinite Wisdom Now God sure revealed all these things to Jesus Christ and he to his blessed Apostles as he saith Iohn 15.15 All things which I have heard from my Father I have made known to you This partly by word of mouth but principally by the immediate teaching of the Holy Ghost to the end that they should deliver them after to Mankind to be received believed and obeyed over the whole World in perpetuum as it is said Matth. 28.19 Go teach all Nations Sure they did accordingly preach to all Nations as it 's said by St. Mark 16.20 They going forth did preach every where and so planted an universal Christian Company charging them to keep inviolable and to deliver to their Posterity what they have received from them as the first Messengers of the Gospel as St. Paul said to Timothy 2 Tim. 2.2 The things that thou hast heard of many Witnesses the same commit thou to faithful Men who may instruct others Now tho' the blessed Apostles and their Hearers be departed out of this Life yet still there remains a means now in the World by which all men may assuredly know what the Apostles preached and the Primitive Church received of them seeing the Church to the end must be built on the Apostles and believe nothing as matter of Faith beside that which was delivered of them as St. Paul said Ephes. 2.20 Are built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets Iesus Christ being the chief Corner Stone Scripture is a Light only to the Faithful because known from the Church's Tradition to be from the Apostles by the Apostles Authority confirmed by Miracles to be of God by God's supreme Verity who cannot deceive nor be deceived to be the truth So Scripture is a Light which must be shewed by a Superiour Light before it become light The Church therefore must guide us to know the truth of Scripture as St. Austin said Contra Epist. fundamenti c. 5. I would not believe the Gospel it self unless the Authority of the Church Catholick did move me The Word that is written tells us that all is not written as St. Paul 2. Thes. 2.15 exhorts us to keep both the written and unwritten saying Stand fast and keep Traditions which you have learned by word or by our Epistle It is manifest that the first Church of God from the Creation until Moses which was about 2000 years had no Word of God but what was unwritten which we call Tradition from hand to hand And we do not read that the Apostles were sent to write but to preach And S. Iohn denies that he had expressed in Writing all that he had to say saying Having more things to write to you I would not by Paper or Ink for I hope that I shall be with you and speak mouth to mouth that your Ioy may be full By which it is evident that the blessed Apostles beside their Writings did preach other things which were wanting to their faith And it 's manifest that what the Apostles did write was but accidental and upon particular occasions See Hooker Eccles. Pol. Lib. 1. Sect. 15. P. 87. For instance the Epistles of St. Peter Iames Iohn and Iude were written against certain Hereticks who misunderstanding St. Paul did teach that Faith only without Works sufficed to Salvation See St. Aug. de fide operib c. 14. And St. Iohn did not preach his Gospel till his last Age which was very long without writing and took occasion to write as St. Ierom de Scriptor Eccles. affirms by reason of the Heresie of Ebionites then broke out The like may be shewed of the rest And take what is worth observation That all Epistles were written to such persons only as were already converted to the Christian Faith therefore were written not so much to instruct as to confirm this Zuinglius also confesseth Tom. 2. lib. de Eccl. fol. 43. By all which its evident that the Apostles and Evangelists did write their Books not by Command of Christ but upon some accidental occasion moving them thereunto and very many were saved before any Scripture and that only by Tradition which was before Scripture for the invention of Printing was not in the World till about 230 years ago and the Bibles that were written being but few by reason of the great labour of writing them and those that were written not purchaseable but by few because of their great price nor legible but by very few because they were not printed but written by hand and sure God by his Providence did and will always preserve his Church from extinction and corruption having warrant for it out of Scripture and no warrant for the preservation of the Text the Church being a thing more easily known than Scripture and consisting of a living Multitude can express it self more plainly by the Mouth and Tradition of the Church Tradition being plain and easie Doctrine concerning the common capital and practical Articles of Christianity but Scripture full of high mysterious and
de Eucharistia And was adored with outward Gestures as the true Body of Christ in Concil Ephes. in Epist. and Nestor in Concil Nicaen c. 14. To give prime Honour and supreme to St. Peter Bishop of the first See as Universal Pastor and Vicegerent of Christ Concil Nicaen c. 15. Concil Chalced. Act. 4. 16. constit c. 5. To pray to Saints that they may intercede for us in Concil Chalced. Act. 11. Prayers for the Dead offered publickly and privately in St. Augustin's time August de cura pro mortuis In those days the Church held the Fast of Forty days of Lent as Apostolical Tradition St. Hier. ad Marcel Ep. 54. Fridays likewise Confession and priestly Absolution St. August Homil. 49. saith The Keys given to the Church is to some purpose sure We must not frustrate the words of Christ. So St. Basil Tertullian St. Clement c. And thus of all other Points in Controversy we may find Reason Authority Practice and uninterrupted Custom in all Ages as Napier in his Treatise on the Revelations pag. 145. confesseth saying After 300 years the Emperour Constantine subdued all Christian Churches to Pope Silvester from which time till these our days the Pope and his Clergy hath possess'd the outward and visible Church Protestants employment being not at all to convert Heathens but to pervert those already converted Tertul. praescr c. 42. And we may find in the Writings of Roman Catholick Authors Orthodox Fathers that the Doctrine now held by Protestants were condemned as Heretical in those Persons that then held them For Example The Protestant hold that the Church may err so did the Donatists who were condemned by St. Augustin Potestants deny unwritten Tradition and urge Scripture only so did the Arrians and were condemned by St. Augustin and Epiphanius Protestants teach that Priests may marry so did Vigilantius and condemned by St. Hierom contr Vigilant c. 1. Protestants deny Prayers for the Dead so did Arrius condemned by St. August haer 53. and St. Epiphan haer 75. Protestants deny invocation of Saints so did Vigilantius for which he was condemned by St. Hierom contra Vigilant c. 3. Protestants deny the Real Presence so did the Capernaits and Berengarius who reclaimed and did Penance Protestants deny confession of Sins to a Priest so the Novatian Hereticks did reproved and condemned by St. Ambros. lib. de penitent c. 7. So did the Montanists condemned by St. Hierom Epist. ad Marcel 54. I leave off an addition of many other Points which makes really the new-moulded Protestant Sect appear but a meer frippery or hodge-podge of old condemned Heresies Hence you may understand that the Doctrine of the Roman Church is this day as it was 1600 years ago still one Holy Catholick Apostolick and Unchang'd grounded on such a solid unshaken Foundation that it is never to be brought down by the Gates of Hell i. e. Heresie Schism Apostacy Wranglings foolish Fopperies Lyings Railings c. Now Sir if you are sufficiently toss'd and wearied out with variety of Disputes and desire to put an end to them now follow the guide and direction of the Roman Catholick Church in Faith Religion Sacraments Sacrifice and Doctrine all which are derived from Christ himself to his blessed Apostles from the Apostles down to us and is to continue in the same heavenly Channel of Succession unto the end of the World Which Roman Catholick Church hath obtain'd supreme Authority from the Apostolick See by a wonderous succession of Bishops by the judgment of the People by the gravity and authority of Councils and lastly by the Majesty of Miracles And not to submit to this Divine Authority sure is the height of Impiety and precipitant Arrogancy and not to Dotages of particular idle Intruders Now as Rebellion is the bane of Civil Government in Kingdoms and Peace and Concord the preservation of the same so is Schism Division and diversity of Faith the ruin and calamity of the Church and Unity Peace and Uniformity the special Blessing of God therein and in the Church above all Commonwealths because it is in all points a Monarchy tending every way to Unity there being but one God one Christ one Church one Faith one Hope one Head one Body one Baptism Christ's Church is a Society of those that God hath called to Salvation by the profession of the true Faith Religion dread Sacrifice the sincere Administration of Sacraments and the adherence to a lawful Pastor as Head which Description is so fitted and proportioned to the Church that it resembles the Nest of the Halcyon which according to Plutarch is of such a just and exact size for the measure of her Body that it can serve no other Bird either greater or lesser Since Christianity is a Doctrine of Faith a Doctrine whereof all Men are capable of and since the high virtue of Faith is in the humility of our Understanding and the merit thereof in the ready obedience to embrace it what madness it is for any Man to tire out his Soul to wast away his Spirits in tracing out all the thorny Paths of the main Controversies of these our backsliding days wherein to err is easie and dangerous what through the malice of Authors abusing him what through Sophistry beguiling him what through blind Passion and Prejudice transporting him and not rather betake himself to the right way of Truth whereunto Christ Reason Nature and Experience do all give witness and that is to associate himself to that Church established by Christ whereunto the custody of a heavenly and supernatural Truth hath been from Heaven it self committed to weigh and find out discreetly which is the true Church to receive it chearfully and discreetly without doubt or discussion whatsoever it delivers without any farther inquisition she having the warrant that he that hears her hears Christ and whosoever hears her not hath no better place with God than a Publican and Pagan And what folly is it now to receive Scriptures upon the credit of her Authority and not to receive the interpretation of them upon her Authority and Credit also Sure if God should not always protect his Church from Error and yet peremptorily commanding Men upon pain of Damnation to obey her always then had he made very slender provision for the Salvation of Mankind which conceit concerning God would render us very ungratefully impious These Considerations or Motives may very easily perswade Persons of Reason and Piety to embrace and maintain that which they know to be the Religion of their Fore-fathers before her Adversaries had a Name her Doctrine having had a very long continuance which cannot easily be supposed in the present possessors to be a Design since they have received it down from so many Ages and it is not likely that all Ages should have the same purposes or that the same Doctrine should serve the several different ends of divers Ages relying upon the Grounds to wit that Truth is more ancient than Falshood
saved and that they who believed not should be damn'd Math. 28.19 Mark 16.15 O Soveraign and Heavenly Promises Priviledges and Graces of the true Catholick Roman Churches Infallibility Add to this how the Apostles tell us that the Chuch of the living God is the Pillar and ground of truth 1 Tim 3.15 Sure we may securely rely upon her and they assure us that Christ gave his Son Apostles Prophets Evangelists Pastors and Teachers for the perfection of the Saints that henceforth we may be no more Children tossed to and fro c. Eph. 4. Are not these plain and wondrous texts of Scripture and cannot you see clearly an infallible assistance promised to the directing and guiding men that they should not be carried about with every wind of false Doctrine by the slght and wiles of men and cunning craftiness whereby some lie in wait for to deceive No other Congregation under the Sun but the Roman Catholick Church can stand up or pretend to these great Priviledges it follows that Protestants are as they aver fallible saying so they tell all the World an Infallible truth and thereupon we may be infallibly assured that they always are failable and fallible And hence it follows whilst Protestants themselve declare they are fallible they can no ways pretend to be the infallible Church of Christ For if the Word of God should have the first place and serve as a basis for the perpetuating of a Church infallible as it is most reasonable I incessantly challenge Ministers to shew but one only Text of Scripture express formal and irreprovable contrary to the Articles of the Roman Catholick Church sure this they could never yet perform for hitherto they have produc'd nothing but Semblances Stories Lyes and Railings for to delude weak inferior Judgments of the giddy Multitude being unable to make them good before considering and learned understanding Men And if a lawful Succession sacred Mission Character and real Consecration of true Pastors be required which is absolutely necessary for the establishment of an Ecclesiastical Hierarchy the Roman Church can shew that from the Apostles hitherward our Popes and other inferior Pastors do all to this day successively follow one another above two hundred and thirty Popes Magna est veritas prevalet If the Authority of Councils be requisite which are the Sinews Mouths and living Oracles of Religion in the Revolution of sixteen Ages all Councils will be found call'd for to confirm the Roman Church confute and condemn her Adversaries If the Interpretations of Holy Doctors who have been the Lights of their times Instruments of the Holy Ghost and Secretaries of the Divinity they all with one accord and consent speak for the Roman Church condemning loudly the Errors and Schism of new Sects If Miracles which were wrought in all Ages and in the sight of all Mankind with so much approbation that they have evicted Confession even from the most Incredulous and Reverence from the most Stupid Millions and unfeigned Miracles were and are daily wrought in confirmation of the verity of the Roman Catholick Religion So as that there is not a Country wherein the Roman Catholick Religion is profess'd which doth not produce Testimonies so prudently and evidently credible of true Super-natural Miracles that to deny them were to destroy all Humane Faith. Did not Simon Magus impiously boast by the Spirit of his private Fancy that he would do wonders as St. Peter did who provok'd by the said Simon Magus did prove that he had the Spirit of God by raising a Child from Death which the other with all his Black Magick Art could not do yet boldly challenging St. Peter to fly from the Capitol to Mount Aventin while he was doing so by the Prayer of St. Peter loe he came tumbling down and brake his Leg whereof he died soon after Even so that false Apostle Calvin for the credit of his new Damn'd Doctrine he would fain make a shew to the People of doing a Miracle hir'd one that was Sick to counterfeit himself Dead who when Calvin should speak certain words was to arise as it were from the Dead but he not stirring was found dead indeed Withall mark how that the Son of Calvin being bitten by a Mad Dog his Father not being able to cure him sent him to St. Hubert in Arden where the Body of that Saint is kept with Veneration and frequent Miracles wrought thereby where he was perfectly made whole whereupon abjur'd his Fathers Sect became a Roman Catholick and lived and died so Yet Protestants object its strange themselves never see any Miracle being so desirous and miracles so frequent as we pretend Herod was also very desirous to see a Miracle but his curiosity excluded him from that favour Men who believe nothing but what they see deserve not to see Miracles because they are obstinate Yet there are few Protestants who do not see Miracles what greater Miracle than that all Catholicks turn not Protestants If the continual Victory over natural and vehement Inclinations doth require a Miracle of super-natural Grace we are as naturally and vehemently inclined to their Religion as we are to our own Liberties and Pleasures What greater Miracle than that Roman Catholick sober and learned Men should be perswaded that their Senses are deceived in the Sacrament of the Altar and that they should suffer death for the Mystery of Transubstantiation There must be effects of super-natural Grace and not of Ignorance or Obstinacy which cannot be laid to our charge seeing we submit our Judgments to every definition of the Roman Church and our very Adversaries know we are learned Men. Sanctity of Life is a super-natural sign and effect of Grace and of the true Church This Sanctity is evident in the Roman Church Not to speak of Antonies Hilarions or Stillitas let 's draw nearer our times and consider the Lives of St. Bernard St. Dominick St. Francis St. Vincent Ferrer St. Francis of Paula St. Charles Barromeus St. Teresa St. Francis Xaverius St. Anthony of Padua and many more who were known Roman Catholicks professing the same Tenets and Obedience to the Pope which we now maintain against pretended Reformation And not to speak only of the Dead let any indifferent Person consider how in all Vocations of both Clergy and Laity we have many Persons eminent in Virtue far above that degree of morality Let our English Protestant be pleased to weigh with himself whether young Ladies of as great Quality Fortunes and Gifts of Nature as England doth afford could forsake their native Country Kindred and Friends contemn all pleasures of the World and themselves by embracing a religious poor and penitent Life in perpetual Inclosure submitting their wills to the Obedience and Humour of a Woman could this I say be performed by so many so continually and with so great alacrity and content of mind without a miraculous and super-natural Grace of the Almighty In my judgment it is a greater Miracle