Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	power_n	spiritual_a	temporal_a	8,634	5	8.7196	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67622	The reasoning apostate, or, Modern latitude-man consider'd, as he opposeth the authority of the King and Church occasioned by several late treatises / by John Warly ...	Warly, John, d. 1679.	1677 (1677)	Wing W877; ESTC R11108	25,929	127

as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 like a Weapon which hurts not or Thunder discharg'd without a Bolt To evade this power they alledg the plantation of the Gospel not by force of the Magistrate but by winning persuasion and to make this appear cite Christ's words John 18. v. 36. If my Kingdom were of this World then would my Servants fight This doth not conclude against the authority of Kings in Ecclesiastical Cases for the design of that in this place was to take off the opinion which the Jews had of his coming that his Kingdom was not Spiritual but Temporal This Interpretation is given by St. Augustin Audite ergo Judaei gentes audi circumcisio Audi praeputium audite omnia regna terrena non impedio dominationem vestram in hoc mundo regnum meum non est de hoc mundo August in loc To this purpose are many Deductions from places of Scripture which I shall not largely consider by shewing how distorted by Faction beyond the intent of them which I shall only name and briefly discover the crookedness of the perverse Interpretations amongst which none seems to be prest more than that Let every one be fully persuaded in his own mind Rom. 14.5 In this place the design of the Apostle is not to deliver up each man to his own private Interpretation or extravagant Phancy as to command an attention to that which was deliver'd by him and the rest of the Apostles which is the greatest Authority For to suppose each man to rely on his own intrepretation is to imagine him to contradict that which he advises in another place That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie God Rom. 15.6 For it seems to me to be a Paradox not intelligible that men may be said to be at unity with as many different opinions of Christ which may extend to Fundamentals as there are Persons So long as their Faith is terminated in Christ as Aliquo tertio in which they agree By the same reason they may conclude that there is a Unity of opinion in Philisophy concerning all Creatures whether Animate or in Inanimate because all agree in this general notion of Substance or Animality and that it is sufficient to know them in Gross without more distinct knowledg of them So that Metaphysicks and natural Philosophy would be esteem'd as useless in Reason as some Creeds or Decrees of Councils in Religion But I pass further I cannot omit an Objection of a great Agent for Libertinism suggested to the Parliament in 59. shewing the impossibility of the powers interposing in Matters of Religion in some cases for says he the Magistrate must be obey'd for Conscience sake how therefore can a man be oblig'd to obey him when some duty is commanded which his Conscience contradict To this 't is enough to say that the fallacy lyes in the word Conscience which in that place must not signifie each man's persuasion or apprehension of the Duty for if it were so some men would not be obliged to obey their Prine and their fancies exempt them from subjection Thus far have endeavour'd to assert the right of Princes in matters Ecclesiastical but I shall not undertake to define particularly in what their power consists or bound it by limits 'T is enough to my design if I can but stop the mouths of a factious Multitude by breaking and diverting the force of their Current by shewing that these places of Scripture conclude nothing against Princes power to be exercised in suppressing Schism and Heresie Neither shall I be so Dogmatically bold as some late Smyctimnians who as Magisterially as others out of a consistory declare their opinion of the power of the Supream Magistrate as if the title of our King had been distasted by them because once deriv'd from Rome Proclaims him only Churchwarden of the Church Neither shall I wildly follow their Metaphor nor criticise the Name with which Princes are called by them for then I must consider the Church as it was once represented by the Ark so by a Chest with three Keyes the King to have one the Clergy another the People or Elders another Each have their particular Suffrages so when all agreed it was to be opened which if it were so it is to be fear'd it would be always shut Neither shall I take notice of another who ordains the Laity Clergy and the King himself according to him must be a Clergy Man else he can have no right or power in the Church But I cease to go further in this extravagant Tract and shall rather propose these Considerations Seeing it is certain or at present may be suppos'd that a Council and determination of the whole Church is the most expedite means of ending Controversies Is it not reasonable that the Magistrate should press the use of them Add to this that Councils are call'd by Princes power as is confessed by all true Protestants now is it not reasonable that the Decrees of Councils in order to be put in practice should be as much the Princes care as the Council was when it was call'd to Ordain them This consider'd will make the Christian not to esteem this Method of searching Truth as a piece of forc'd Servitude for it is no more force to Reason than Children suffer when they are sent to School Let not any think themselves injur'd by this Instance as Pedantick for the Doctrine of the Gospel as well as the Law may be styl'd a Pedagogy in that sense But here I may expect a check from a late and not Assertor of Libertinism who blames Constantine at least pities him as if he had an oversight for using this means to settle the Church because it occasion'd several bloody Persecutions This is a weak Battery against the Church and only deserves to be confuted by the Poet. Exitus acta probat careat successibus opto Quisquis ab eventu facta notanda putat Success is a very bad test of the prudence us'd in the means for the one is not to be measur'd by the other especially by men who are not able to pass Judgment on the success which is more intelligible and palpable always than the means Thus the Author is mistaken for the success of that Council cannot be said to be bad because Divine Providence made use of those Persecutions for the more undoubted setling of Faith seal'd with so many Martyrs blood Let this also be consider'd that the same would prevail against the Gospel it self as well as Councils and Christ himself blam'd by this Observer as much as Constantine because his coming occasion'd strife as he says Mat. 10.34 I came not to send Peace but a Sword as condemn other pious means Another way of asserting Libertinism is by invalidating the examples of good Kings Josia Asa c. who had more conference with God and so their Law more obligatory to the People but succeeding Kings have no such warrant to do the same This Objection