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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	church_n	council_n	rome_n	6,864	5	7.0948	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A12983	A sermon preached at Paules Crosse, the second of Nouember. 1606. By Richard Stocke, preacher of Al-hallowes, Bread-streete, London	Stock, Richard, 1569?-1626.	1609 (1609)	STC 23276; ESTC S117808	42,660	92

of them it is lawfull to doubt saying that Concilta plenaria full councels may erre If the question be of the authoritie of the pope whether it be greater then of a councell Hterome answereth Si authoritas quaritur or his maior est vrbe If you questiō about superiority the whole world is aboue one city But aske the coūcel of Constāce which deposed Iohn 23. chose Martin 5. If they say the coūcell erred they grant as much as we desire If they say that the councell did not erre then the authoritie of the councell is aboue the Pope But why should I contend so long about councels seeing thēselues haue brought it to a narrower scantling for they confesse that all particular Churches may erre except the Church of Rome and the Church of Rome too Bellarm. de pōtifice Rom. lib. 4. c. 4. Idem lib. 4. Cap. 3. Bellarm. de pontif Romano lib. 4. c. 3. if the Pope should translate his seate from Rome as Peter did from Antioch and for councels that all generall councels may erre not confirmed by the Pope So that if it be proued that the pope who is their virtual Church can erre then all is granted And first before I shew you that they haue erred in particular I will let you see the strength of some of their Reasons whereby they would prooue he cannot erre Luke 22.32 Bellarmine reasoneth out of the Gospell of Luke thus I haue prayed for thee that thy faith faile not Here saith Bellarmine Christ obtained 2. priuiledges for Peter one that he could neuer loose true faith though he were tempted of the diucll Another that he as he is high priest could neuer teach any thing contraric to faith or that in his seate neuer any should be found which should teach contraric to the true faith The first of those saith he perhaps doth not descend to the successors of Peter Very well then by Bellarmines confession the Pope perhaps may loose true faith nay I would for their owne sakes it were but perhaps and yet I thinke it is without all perhaps that he cannot for a man cannot loose that he neuer had Popes as Popes neuer had true faith For antichrist cannot possibly haue it then it is without perhaps he cannot loose it but this but by the way but the latter saith he is without all doubt deriued to them Is it indeed and why I pray you What reason can you giue that these words should conuey two grauntes and priuiledges to Peter and but one to his successors Doubtlesse none is giue by him neither can be giuen but yet he will proue it by what As impudent shamelesse as he is to wrest Scripture to his purpose yet can he find none with any colour to offer this violence vnto But do not the Fathers so affirm Though his Vse be to make fathers speak what he would haue them yet they cannot be sorced by him here how then doth he proue it only by certaine sentences of seuen Popes and some sewe late writers But is it equall that parties should be witnesses or Iudges or are we now without Scripture or antiquity to take any thing for truth which a few popes or some new writers shall affirme at least must we take them in so maine a matter as this is I take it none can iustly reprooue vs if we reiect them especially when we haue so good reason out of the text that it can carie no such thing And that I prooue thus Because that by faith here is not meant an historicall faith or the saith of doctrine but a iustifying faith or the faith of the heart not a generall faith but a particular not that by which we belecue God but in God which failes not by errour so it be not sundamentall for so we should haue condemned all whosoeuer haue liued but when a man doth fall wholly from grace and ccaseth to be a member of Christ And that it is so appeares first from those words That thy faith should not saile not vanish away or be extinct as Chris saith which cannot be vnderstood of any other saith but of that by which we stand and are saued for the other faith may faile not once but often and a man be saued notwithstanding 2. From those words When thou art conuerted strengthen thy brethren that is after thou hast repented and art conuerted strengthen thy brethren sustaine their faith namely their sauing faith of which they confesse some of theirs may be destitute 3. Out of the drist and scope of our Sauiour Christ for his drift was to arme and protect Peter against that try all and temptation that he then foretold him of not against errour in teaching the Church but against apostasie in time of tryal therefore faith Thcophilact hee sheweth him the particular temptation for our Sauiour would not arme there where he was not to be hurt where there was no daunger nor put a helmet on the head where the heart and breast was to be smitten And thus much Bellarmine cōfesseth when he makes Peters fall to bee a matter of fact to cast vtterly off his former profession and not of saith and therefore it was perseuerance in the habit of iustifying faith not infallibilitie in the matter of his historicall faith that Christ prayed for which so differs that a mā may haue the one that is iustifying faith and yet hold an crrour not fundamentall to the death as Bellarmine contends for the Fathers diuerse of them and the other that is a right beliefe of the generall poynts of religion and yet not haue iustifying faith nor sauing and sanctisiing grace as Bellarmine confesseth the Pope cannot erre and yet professeth he may want sauing grace 4. Prō the 31. verse where Christ affirmeth that he praved for other of the Apostles as well as Peter seeing Satan opposed them and sought to winnow them as wel as Peter Now for these Christ questionlesse prayed vnlesse wee shall thinke that one was not as deere to him as another not Iohn the beloued as Peter nay he loued all with a very great loue and so prayed for them 5. It is answered that the thing he prayed for here was a thing not proper to Peter but common to all the Apostles yea all the Elect and if the gift and grace bee common to all and the same person made the same prayer in effect for all as hee doth Iohn 17.9 I pray for them which thou hast giuen me out of the world And verse 11. Holy Father keepe them in thy name verse 20. I pray not for these alone but them also which shall beleeue in me through their word what can they make out of it for their particular for by vertue of this prayer not only not Pet. but none of the Apostles yea none of the faithfull can fall from that faith there spoken of Vpon which ground the ancient Fathers apply this place to al the Apostles yea all

A SERMON PREACHED AT Paules Crosse the second of Nouember 1606. By Richard Stocke Preacher of Al-hallowes Bread-streete London LONDON Printed by T. C. for Edmond Weauer and William Welby 1609. TO THE RIGHT REVErend Father in God Iames by Gods prouidence Lord Bishop of Bathe and Welles R. S. wisheth all Grace true Honor and Comforts in this life and the Crowne of glory in the life to come RIghte Reuerende in CHRIST Saluia Massil de gubernat Dei the anger of God his fearefull punishments for Iradiuinitatis est poena peccantis hath bene heauie vpon vs for the space of these almost sixe yeares The cause doubtlesse is the sinnes of the time which haue defiled the Land and prouoked God to send such plagues as may purge the land of vs when we will not purge it and our selues from our sinnes Which sinnes what they are as I haue touched diuers in the Sermon following so none seemeth to mee to be more offensiue to the eyes of God then that popish Idolatrie which is committed in the land wherewith euerie place countrie and Citie is horriblie defiled though as the prophet speaketh Ezek. 8.12 it is but in the darke and in the chamber of their imagery Which was an occasion to me beeing called to the stage of the land to act this part I haue done in this Sermon namely to perswade euerie man to iudge himselfe and them to whom the sword of iustice is committed to iudge other malefactors specially Romish Idolaters and to execute the iust lawes vpon them because God will not iudge when man doth iudge before as the Iudges of assile will not censure againe those malefactors whom the Iustices of the sessions haue formerly punished But when this is neglected God will and can not for his iustice but he must bring this the like fearefull iudgementes vpon the land Which as they were the occasion of my preaching of this doctrine so they are some causes of my publishing of it in writing to trie if I might by any meanes prouoke euery man in his seuerall place and condition to this preuenting course of Gods iudgementes At the least I shall haue my owne discharge by it Now I haue presumed to bring it forth into publike vnder your name and countenaunce for diuerse both publike and priuate reasons and respectes Publike first you are now aduanced to a speciall place of gouernment in the Church and haue that authoritie in your hands that you may cause effect great reformation of manners and redresse of many things which are highly displeasing to God To which if I might be any occasion to excite your Lordship I should thinke I had effected some great good because your example as it might prouoke others in authoritie both in Church and common wealth to do the like so it might animate them to goe forward with hope it would be well accepted of his highnes when they shall see you who haue beene so continually in his presence and so daily conuersant with him and can not but knowe his heart affection take some round and constant courses in reforming of abuses both in manners and doctrine Secondly your place you yet enioy so nigh vnto his Maiesties person whereby you haue done hitherto good offices to the Church The English desence of the Popes Breeues Bellar. Letter her enemies being witnes in iustly and wisely exasperating his Maiesties heart against these foxes who would destroy her vines Now if I might bee anie meanes to further your willing minde to be constāt in this dutie I should iudge it in me a good seruice to the Church as in your selfe it will be a glorious seruice to the King of Kings honourable to his highnes profitable to the Church comfortable to all her friendes and bring you great honour from God and good men Which pointe I will not here much presse in the particular seeing I haue in the treatise following don it in the generall though to vse Bernards words in another case De diligēdo Deo Non prout dignum rei sed prout datum mihi Yet let me intreat your Lordship or rather adiure you by that honour and sauour which God hath giuen you with your Soueraigne and by that account you must giue for the imployment of it before the great King in that great day that you would goe on in this so religious and profitable a worke namely to excite his Maiestie to wakē his sleeping lawes that as he hath long sung mercie he would at length tune iustice and command indeed that his lawes may haue their course Psal 101.8 that betimes he would destroy the wicked of the lād that such workers of iniquitie may be cut off from the citie of the Lord. It is not vnfitting your Lo. beeīng called to be a reuerēd Bishop a gouernor of the Church to incite him to this since it was the consecrating of the Leuites hands to the Lord for euery man to slay his brother Exod. 32.29.27 his companion and his neighbour who had defiled the land with Idolatrie And it is no lesse then necessitie requireth of his Maiestie both for the good of himselfe Thomas Worthingtonus presbyter his posteritie those hopefull plants his whole people and the church of God Sith they boast not at home onely but a broad of the great increase of this Idolatrous broode amongst vs. There is one who hath lately published two Tomes of Bristowes the Iesuite written in Latine called Motiua Anti-haretica who in his Epistle Dedicatorie speaks thus Post diuturnas in Anglia ingrauescentes pro fide Catholica persecutiones ita plus solito crescat Catholicorum ibi mumerus ac zelus vt spes effulgeat Diuina praestante misericordia totum illud amplissimū Regnū ad sanctaematris Ecclesiae gremiū breuirediturum Is it not then more then need high time that his Maiesties former lenitie shuld be turned into iust seueritie lest he may seeme to succeeding ages to forget both his God himselfe his posteritie people Which may easily be preuented if his lawes may be at length with some roūdnes executed specially against the seedes men of treason idolatrie by whom this popish superstitiō is nourished increased in this land For so saith the former authour in the same place commending the founders and vpholders of their Seminaries as the fountains of those waters which haue watered these weeds till they be fit for the fire adding that His enim in collegijs Sacerdotes initiati inde in Angliā missi tū paruas ibi religionis reliquias cōseruerunt tum easdē vt nūc videamus in immensum propagarunt These then by confession beeing the preseruers and the increasers of this Idolatrie among vs there is no way to preuent the cōtinuance and increase of this ●●●●…by ●●●…ing off such at least who husband this Idolatrous worke least 〈◊〉 should growe to that they would haue it the ●ar●s to