where commanded in Scripture either as to the Obligation or Time of its Celebration as now practic'd by the Church Baptism is necessary to Children for Salvation We are bound to believe that the Son is Consubstantial to the Father that the second Person was Really Physically and Substantially united to our Humane Nature and not Morally only that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son. What plain Texts of Scripture prove these Tenets so as the Arian Eutychian Anabaptist c. shall be oblig'd to submit being convinc'd by the Evidence thereof A. P. therefore asserts that an Infallible Church is requisite to expound Holy Writ to us and by her Traditions which are the living Word of GOD instruct us in necessary Doctrines That which the Dr. appeals to for Judge to wit The written Word of GOD is no other than what has been the Appeal of all Hereticks from CHRIST's time Which consequently cannot be the Rule of one True Church that is Essentially different from an Heretical one And certainly no man of Sense and Judgment can say that a guilty Person will ever appeal to that Judge by whom he is evidently and sufficiently condemn'd but all Hereticks are guilty Persons and yet boldly appeal to Holy Scripture Therefore Holy Scripture is not the Judge by whom Hereticks are evidently and sufficiently condemn'd Whence is clearly made out that there must be some other living Judge by whose Authority Hereticks may be clearly convinc'd and all necessary Points of Doctrine taught and deliver'd to us Would not that be the worst constituted Government in the World in which there should be no living Judge or Explicator of the Law but every one should be permitted to Expound it so as his own Capricio or private Judgment suggests or as it may most make for his own Interest What Malefactor at this rate would not find a Plea for his own Defence and a Salvo for the most Enormous Crimes Now if this in Humane Laws would be esteem'd highly derogotary to the Prudence of the Law-giver shall those be deem'd to have the Spirit of GOD who presume to affirm the same of his Divine Majesty and so far to call in question his Infinite Wisdom and Goodness as to think that in the establishment of his Church he would omit That without which no State or Government could long subsist But here the Dr. may reply what he afterwards says that every one is not left to Expound this Rule at Discretion but must Vse the help of all Ministerial Guides possible that is he must Consult his Confer p. 18. Minister and if one satisfy him not advise with another and so to the end of the Chapter Now what shall we say if this Man prudently distrusts the Mission of his pretended Ministers as every one may that of the Church of England being grounded on meer Humane Authority What if he distrust his Ministers Sincerity Learning Vertue What if he question his having us'd Pious Means in humility of Soul Of which no Body can be assur'd What if Consulting many one tells him one thing another as it usually happens quite contrary What Means are there left to quiet this dubious mind You will say He is then left to his own Conscience Now being so left A. P. desires to know whether this Mans Conscience may be Erronous and actually err in things necessary to Salvation If so then his Religion may prove a meer Fancy if more an Opinion but at most a private Judgement and wholly void of Divine Faith. If he cannot err then each one must be allow'd to be Infallible in his own Perswasion and so the Dr. must grant that to each particular Member which he denies to the whole But that each one may err after all his Endeavours if we allow no living Judge to whom we are bound to submit is manifest from daily Experience by which we see that thousands having made use of all Ministerial Guides possible cease not to dissent amongst themselves and disagree even to Contradiction in things of the greatest moment And against the Dr. ad hominem Roman Catholicks use all the means Protestants can prescribe and many more in humility of Soul and have an undoubted assurance of being in the true way Which being so A. P. would be satisfy'd with what Conscience the Church of England can Prosecute men by Sanguinary Laws who follow her own Rule with the greatest Perfection One word to the Dr. and A. P. will go on to the other Parts of the Dr's Rule That can't be the only true Rule of Faith without which a true Church did subsist But without a compil'd Canon of Scripture assign'd by the Church of England as the only true Rule of Faith a true Church did subsist Therefore a compil'd Canon of Scripture can't be the only true Rule of Faith. The first Proposition is evident for a Church can t subsist without its Essentials one whereof questionless is a Rule of Faith. The second is prov'd thus The Primitive Christians made a true Church But this Church subsisted many years without a compil'd Canon of Scripture as is evident For several years after CARIST's Death pass'd without any written Gospels or Epistles more before they were divulg'd and some Ages before they were compil'd into a Canon Therefore a true Church subsisted without a compil'd Canon of Scripture Therefore that can't be the only true Rule of Faith. The Dr. goes on and asserts that they had the same Proofs for their Bible with the Roman Catholicks viz. The Testimony of the Vniversal Church Confâ—r p. 9. of all Ages Which is manifestly false For neither the Universal Church nor any part of it deliver'd them the Bible as the Protestants have it Whether you consider the Number of Books Conformity of Texts or what is most Material the Sense and Meaning thereof For although the * Note This was only a National Council and of no General Obligation Council of Laodicea approv'd of no more Books than those which the Church of England now allows to be Canonical nor indeed of all those the Apocalypse not being then receiv'd yet that Council rejected not the other Books as Apocryphal But the Church then beginning to examine Holy Scripture approv'd for the present only the above-mention'd Canon neither rejecting nor admitting the other pieces Now in the Council of Carthage held in the year 397. the other parts of Holy Writ being brought under Examination were found to be of equal Authority and consequently receiv'd into the Canon St. Augustin subscribing thereto And this was confirm'd by Pope Innocent the first in the year 402. who giving an Account what Books were receiv'd and directing himself by the Rule of Tradition viz. Quid custodita Series temporum demonstraret sets down these very Books the Epist 3 cap. 7. Roman Catholicks now still allow of And St. Augustine was of the same Judgment as also Pope Gelasius August de Doctr. Christ cap. 8.
in the year 492. All which was confirm'd by the sixth General Council in the year 680. And in the Council of Florence held in the year 1438. the same Canon was again confirm'd the Greeks Armenians and Jacobites subscribing thereto So that when Protestancy began there were no Christians in the World who believ'd those Books precisely to be Holy Scripture which the Church of England allows of and consequently they have the Testimony of the Vniversal Church and every Member thereof against them wanting ten parts of that Rule which they believe the only essential one to Salvation Now as for the Text their own private Spirit is the sole Oracle it dropt from As for what relates to the Sense and Meaning of Holy Scripture the Dr. with all the Eyes of the quick-sighted Ministry shall never discover that Body of Christians who ever profess'd those Articles of Faith both Positive and Negative the present Church of England proposes for her Credenda Hence it is evident they have been their own Choosers of Books Texts and Sense and from first to last have no Authority either for one or other Mark here how the Dr. calls the Canon subscrib'd by St. Augustine and constantly allow'd by all the Universal Church for eleven hundred years Apocryphal Books of the later Time As also that his saying He is as sure of this Books being the Bible as of Cicero 's Offices being his Book is with submission to his Doctorship a mistake Nor can he be said to believe a thing on anothers word who neither believes him in his whole story nor in his manner of relating it nor in the meaning of the Words he uses to explicate himself but such an one must be said to believe what himself pleases and not what the other relates Which is the proper Notion of an Heretick deriv'd from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to choose He proceeds to illustrate what he slightly touch'd Confer p. 10. in the Conference proving the Bible from Mens considering the Prophesies and their Events the Characters of CHRIST the History of CHRIST c. Now this proves nothing there being no other Testimony either for the Prophesies or Events than the Church of Englands private Judgement she not having taken them on the Testimony of any Christians in the World. But granting the Historical Part of Holy Writ to be clear'd by these Comparisons yet the Doctrinal part on which the main hinge of Controversy turns can never be that way made out Which being soreseen by the Dr. he adds moreover that Men must use Pious Means in Humility of Soul and so they shall have Further Assurance begotten in them Here the Dr. has found a Salvo for all the Errours that ever have been or shall be committed in Points of Faith For he that shall say he has us'd Pious Means in Humility of Soul and that he has an Interiour Assurance of the Truth as all Hereticks in the World have ever pretended ought never to be proceeded against And by the same Rule all Penal Laws Persecuting Christians for Conscience are evidently unjust Which notwithstanding have ever been the only Bulwark of the Church of England Now A. P. will demonstrate the above-mention'd Assertion of the Dr's to be Weak Erroneous and False Which he thus proves The Water is clearest at the Fountain-Head Hence if ever any us'd those Pious Means and had thereby Assurance begotten in them We must allow it to Luther Carolostadius Zuinglius Beza Castalio c. Who were the Principal Heads of the Reform'd Churches and consequently receiv'd more of the Divine Influence us'd more Industry in acquiring Authentick Copies comparing Texts imploring the Divine Assistance than any of their Followers To begin therefore with Luther Zuinglius says of him That He was a foul Corrupter and horrible Falsifier of GODS Word One who follow'd Lib. de Sacramentia fol. 472 the Marcionists and Arians that ras'd out such Places of Holy Writ as were against him Thou doest says he to Luther Corrupt the Word of God thou art seen to be a manifest and common Corrupter and Perverter of the Holy Scriptures How much are we asham'd of thee who have hitherto esteem'd thee With how great reason Zuinglius objected this to him those are Judges who have noted Vide Bell. Ser. de Pentec above a thousand places chang'd by him in the New Testament alone and that he set forth the Gospels seven times every Edition very much differing from the precedent Now A. P. desires to know whether and when Martin Luther had the Assurance he requires Luther on the other side affirms of the Zuinglian Vid. Pro. Ap. tract 10. S. 10. Subd 4. Translators that They were Fools Asses Antichrists Deceivers and of an Ass-like Vnderstanding Beza says of the Basilian Translation That It is in many places wicked and altogether differing from the Mind of the Holy Ghost Of Beza's Translation Castalio observes That to note all his Errours would require a great Volume Beza again pronounces of Castalio's Edition That It is False Foolish Vnskilful Bold Blasphemous Vitious Ridiculous Cursed Erroneous Wicked Perverse In the first English Bible set forth in the Reign of Henry the VIII by Tindal the chief Apostle of the pretended Reformation Bishop Tunstal has noted no less than two thousand Corruptions in the Translation of the New Testament alone A. P. therefore desires the Dr. to give a Rule to seekers of the Truth by which they may discover the True and Uncorrupted Word of GOD. Amidst so much Dis-union Clashing and manifest Contradictions all which naturally flow from that irregular Liberty of Expounding Scripture given to all men by the Reformers From what has been hitherto said A. P. draws this Argument That which leads to manifest Discord of Opinion cannot be the Rule of One Holy Catholick Church But the Rule assign'd by the Dr. as now prov'd has open'd the Door to manifest Discord in Opinion Therefore it is not the Rule of One True Catholick Church A. P. Humbly intreats the indifferent Reader to ponder this whole Discourse with that Attention and Judgement it deserves For if A. P. proves this point against the Dr. he is sure That the whole Basis of the Reformation will totter and that the Church of England has no more to say in her Defence than the most Erroneous Body of Christians which has ever been since CHRIST's Time. A Prosecution of the REMARKS WEre the Quaery concerning the Ordination of Confer p. 10. Linus any way material to A. P's Faith he would Answer it And what Copy St. Peter had of the Old Testament makes nothing to the proof of A. P's Canon for which he has the Testimony of an Infallible Church whereas the Church of England has none at all for hers The Dr. in the same Page says The Word Rock Note That Cephas the word our Saviour us'd is a Syriach word and signifies the same in either Gender As you are a Rock
of the Tigurines upon it It Tigur Theol. Ort. Conf. fol. 10. Tigur Tract 3 cont supra Luth. Conf. pag. 61. is most clear and cannot be deny'd but that never any man writ more uncivilly more filthily more leudly c. than Luther And again Did ever man hear such Speeches pass from a furious Devil himself No less Excellent an Instrument was he in order to Civil Authority and Government Among Christians Tom. 6. Germ. de Saec. Pot. alibi says he no man can or ought to be Magistrate but each one is to other equally subject Hence no wonder he treats Crown'd Heads with that unparallel'd Indignity and Impudence He calls Henry the VIII More Furious than Madness it self Tom. 2. fol. 333 334 335 338 340. more Foolish than Folly it self indu'd with an Impudent and Whorish Face without any one vein of Princely Blood in his Body a lying Sophist a damnable rotten Worm a Basilisk and Progeny of an Adder c. Most wicked and impudent Harry And again Thou lyest in thy Throat foolish and Sacrilegious King. Thus giving Luther some few grains of Allowance that is allowing him to be one who question'd if not deny'd the Unity of God held Christ to have been Man from all Eternity the Divinity to have suffer'd several unquestion'd Books of Scripture to be meer sigments and idle stories the three first Gospels not to be true the ten Commandments not to be made for Us Polygamy and Fornication not to be unlawful Continency to be as impossible as not to be a Man one generally confess'd a manifest and publick corrupter of Scripture most filthy in his Language and Writings most dis-respectful and insolent towards Princes one Infamous for his intimate Familiarity with the Devil and in short one whose Principles and Practice are absolutely destructive of all Piety Religion Civil Government and Morality and then Dr. Martin Luther will prove most undoubtedly an excellent Instrument of GOD's What impartial man can doubt but these Grains of Allowance are weighty enough to counterpoise the Dr's bare assertion of it Having in compliance to the Dr's Request given these Grains of Allowance to Luther whom he has been pleas'd to assign for an excellent Instrument of GOD's and a Pillar of the pretended Reformation A. P. craves the Favour of his kind Reader that he may be permitted to draw also a short Scheme of one whom he verily believes to have been a very great Instrument of GOD and who was Contemporary to Martin Luther 'T is of the great Xaverius who when some parts of Europe instigated by this Trumpet of Sedition revolted from their Obedience to the Pope leaving those great Pretensions in the World to which his extraordinary Parts might have made him justly aspire and binding himself to GOD by a triple Vow of following the Evangelical Counsels as Luther had formerly done though now broken it went in extreme Poverty to the farthest parts of the East where having Preach'd the Faith to near thirty Kingdoms in twelve of which he left it planted having demolish'd many thousands of Idolatrous Temples and Baptiz'd with his own hands twelve hundred thousand Souls Almighty GOD accompanying his Preaching by such Signs as he is usually pleas'd to confer on Apostles of the Gentiles as a wonderful Power over Devils the Gift of Tongues the Spirit of Prophecy the Curing all Diseases and raising five and twenty persons from Death to Life all which attested by many Eye-witnesses were after a very rigorous examen found indisputably true he dy'd with an Opinion of admirable Sanctity which is yet farther confirm'd by his Body remaining till this day uncorrupt at Goa The Pious and Christian Reader is now desir'd to reflect a little on these two Instruments and having seriously compar'd their Lives and Doctrines in both of which they were Diametrically opposite to each other freely and indifferently to determine which of them seems to have been sent by Almighty GOD. To return now to our Dr. we find him relating Confer p. 8. a story that this great Instrument of GOD Martin Luther being at Rome heard the very Courtizans jeering by say that some who Consecrated had us'd these Words Bread thou art Bread thou shalt be Wine thou art Wine thou shalt be Now had Luther heard this from the Colledge of Cardinals Bishops and Prelates and had they allow'd of it he might have had some Motive to distrust the sincerity of the Roman Catholick Tenet But he heard it from the very Courtizans This indeed is an irrefragable Proof of Luther's Pious Conversation And here the Dr. has unawares pointed us out the true Motive of Luther's Change of Life and Doctrine viz. The Conversation of Courtizans which he knew being a Frier he could not so easily enjoy The Dr. now got into a pleasant Humour tells us another impertinent story of an old Man who Swore to the Devil Ador'd an Image of the Blessed Virgin and kept his Courtizan Giving an hint as though the second Council of Nice approv'd all this Which are three notorious Calumnies The Fathers there assembled said as they ought that an Oath made to the Devil could not oblige and that it would be less Sin to be naught with a Woman it being a personal and private Trespass than by denying the Respect due to Holy Images at that time wickedly oppugn'd by the most Impious Ieonoclasts to give occasion of publick Scandal and Heresie I must upon this occasion mind the Reader of a very disingenuous Proceeding frequently us'd by most Protestants viz. That if they find in History of whatever Time or Author any Passage seeming to make the least against the Roman Catholicks they presently receive it with all the Credit due to the most assured Verity Whereas though five hundred Authors of undoubted Sincerity Virtue and Learning attest from their own knowledge and experience Passages Miracles c. evincing our Catholick Tenets they value them no more than a Tale of Tom Thumb or Valentine and Orson The Dr 's Rule of Faith prov'd Insufficient THis story which as appears by his own account rendred the Dr. very uneasie till he was deliver'd of it being over he now assigns for the Rule of Faith the Holy Bible the sum of it in necessary Doctrines being the Apostolical Creed Confer p. 9. Now A. P. when requisite will assign many necessary Points which as they are unmention'd in the Apostles Creed so are they either not at all or much less clearly prov'd from Holy Scripture than the Doctrine of the Real Presence Auricular Confession Purgatory c. But at present what follows shall suffice 'T is necessary for Christians to keep Holy the first day of the Week Now where does the Bible teach the Sabbath or seventh day which was commanded to be kept in the Decalogue to have been abolish'd by CHRIST and the Sunday being the first substituted in its place The same might be instanc'd in the Feast of Easter no