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A50916
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Of reformation touching chvrch-discipline in England, and the cavses that hitherto have hindred it two bookes, written to a freind [sic]
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Milton, John, 1608-1674.
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1641
(1641)
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Wing M2134; ESTC R17896
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44,575
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96
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preferre humane Tradition before divine ordinance And in the same Epist. If we shall return to the head and beginning of divine tradition which we all know he means the Bible humane error ceases and the reason of heavenly misteries unfolded whatsoever was obscure becomes leare And in the 14. Distinct of the same Epist directly against our modern fantasies of a still visible Church he teaches that succession of truth may fail to renew which we must have 〈◊〉 to the fonntaines using this excellent similitude if a Channel or Conduit pipe which brought in water plentifully before suddenly fail doe we not goe to the fountaine to know the cause whether the Spring affords no more or whether the vein be stopt or turn'd aside in the midcourse thus ought we to doe keeping Gods precepts that if in ought the truth shall be chang'd we may repaire to the Gospel and to the Apostles that thence may arise the reason of our doings from whence our order and beginning arose In the 75. he inveighs bitterly against Pope Stefanus for that he could boast his Succession from Peter and yet foist in Traditions that were not Apostolicall And in his Book of the unity of the Church he compares those that neglecting Gods Word follow the doctrines of men to Corch Dathan and Abiram The very first page of 〈◊〉 against the Gentiles averres the Scriptutes to be sufficient of themselves for the declaration of Truth and that if his friend Macarius read other Religious writers it was but {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} come un virtuoso as the Italians say as a lover of elegance and in his 2d Tome the 39. pag after he hath rekon'd up the Canonicall Books In these only saith he is the doctrine of godlinesse 〈◊〉 let us man 〈◊〉 to these or take from these and in his 〈◊〉 having again set down all the Writers of the old new Testament these saith he be the anchors and props of our Faith besides these millions of other Books have bin written by great and wise men according to rule and agreement with these of which I will not now speak as being of infinite number and meer dependance on the canonical Books Basil in his 2d Tome writing of true Faith tells his auditors he is bound to teach them that which he hath learn't out of the Bible and in the same Treatise he saith That seeing the Commandments of the Lord are faithfull and sure for ever it is a plain falling from the Faith and a high pride either to make void any thing therin or â—…o introduce any thing not there to be found and he gives the reason for Christ saith My Sheep heare my voyce they will not follow another but fly from him because they know not his voyce But not to be endlesse in quotations it may chance to be objected that there be many opinions in the Fathers which have no ground in Scripture so much the lesse may I say should we follow them for their own words shall condemn them and acquit us that lean not on them otherwise these their words shall acquit them and condemn us But it will be reply'd the Scriptures are difficult to be understood and therfore require the explanation of the Fathers 't is true there be some Books and especially some places in those Books that remain clouded yet ever that which is most necessary to be known is most easie and that which is most difficult so farre expounds it selfe ever as to tell us how little it imports our saving knowledge Hence to inferre a generall obscurity over all the text is a meer suggestion of the Devil to disswade men from reading it and casts an aspersion of dishonour both upon the mercy truth and wisdome of God We count it no gentlenesse or fair dealing in a man of Power amongst us to require strict and punctual obedience and yet give out all his commands ambiguous and obscure we should think he had a plot upon us certainly such commands were no commands but â—…nares The very essence of Truth is plainnesse and brightnes the darknes and crookednesse is our own The wisdome of God created understanding fit and proportionable to Truth the object and end of it as the eye to the thing visible If our understanding have a film of ignorance over it or be blear with gazing on other false glisterings what is that to Truth If we will but purge with sovrain eyesalve that intellectual ray which God hath planted in us then we would beleeve the Scriptures protesting their own plainnes and perspicuity calling to them to be instructed not only the wise and learned but the simple the poor the babes foretelling an extraordinary effusion of Gods Spirit upon every age and sexe attributing to all men and requiring from them the ability of searching trying examining all things and by the Spirit discerning that which is good and as the Scriptures themselvs pronounce their own plainnes so doe the Fathers testifie of them I will not run into a paroxysm of citations again in this point only instance Athanasius in his fore-mention'd first page the knowledge of Truth saith he wants no humane lore as being evident in it selfe and by the preaching of Christ now opens brighter then the Sun If these Doctors who had scarse half the light that we enjoy who all except 2 or 3 were ignorant of the Hebrew tongue and many of the Greek blundring upon the dangerous and suspectfull translations of the Apostat Aquila the Heretical Theodotion the Judaiz'd Symmachus the erroneous Origen if these could yet find the Bible so easie why should we doubt that have all the helps of Learning and faithfull industry that man in this life can look for and the assistance of God as neer now to us as ever But let the Scriptures be hard are they more hard more crabbed more abstruse then the Fathers He that cannot understand the sober plain and unaffected stile of the Scriptures will be ten times more puzzl'd with the knotty Africanisms the pamper'd metafors the intricat and involv'd sentences of the Fathers besides the fantastick and declamatory flashes the crosse-jingling periods which cannot but disturb and come thwart a setl'd devotion worse then the din of bells and rattles Now Sir for the love of holy Reformation what can be said more against these importunat clients of Antiquity then she her selfe their patronesse hath said Whether think ye would she approve still to dote upon immeasurable innumerable and therfore unnecessary and unmercifull volumes choosing rather to erre with the specious name of the Fathers or to take a â—…ound Truth at the hand of a plain upright man that all his dayes hath bin diligently reading the holy Scriptures and therto imploring Gods grace while the admireâ—…s of Antiquity have bin beating their brains about their Ambones their Diptychs and Meniaia's Now he that cannot tell of Stations and Indictions nor has wasted his pretious howrs in the endles
Jesuits presum'd in Italy to give their judgement of S. Paul as of a hot headed person as Sandys in his Relations tells us Now besides all this who knows not how many surreptitious works are ingrass'd into the legitimate writings of the Fathers and of those Books that passe for authentick who knows what hath bin tamper'd withall what hath bin raz'd out what hath bin inserted besides the late legerdemain of the Papists that which Sulpitius writes concerning Origens Books gives us cause vehemently to suspect there hath bin packing of old In the third chap. of his 1. Dialogue we may read what wrangling the Bishops and Monks had about the reading or not reading of Origen some objecting that he was corrupted by Hereticks others answering that all such Books had bin so dealt with How then shall I trust these times to lead me that restifie so ill of leading themselvs certainly of their defects their own witnesse may be best receiv'd but of the rectitude and sincerity of their life and doctrine to judge rightly wee must judge by that which was to be their rule But it wil be objected that this was an 〈◊〉 state of the Church wanting the temporall Magistrate to suppresse the licence of false Brethren and the extravagancy of still-new opinions a time not imitable for Church government where the temporall and spirituall power did not close in one beleife as under Constantine I am not of opinion to thinke the Church a Vine in this respect because as they take it she cannot subsist without clasping about the Elme of worldly strength and felicity as if the heavenly City could not support it selfe without the props and buttresses of secular Authoritie They extoll Constantine because he extol'd them as our homebred Monks in their Histories blanch the Kings their Benefactors and brand those that went about to be their Correctors If he had curb'd the growing Pride Avarice and Luxury of the Clergie then every Page of his Story should have swel'd with his Faults and that which Zozimus the Heathen writes of him should have come in to boot wee should have heard then in every Declamation how hee slew his Nephew Commodus a worthy man his noble and eldest Son Crispus his Wife Fausta besides numbers of his Friends then his cruell exactions his unsoundnesse in Religion favoring the Arrians that had been condemn'd in a Counsell of which himselfe sate as it were President his hard measure and banishment of the faithfull and invincible Athanasius his living unbaptiz'd almost to his dying day these blurs are too apparent in his Life But since hee must needs bee the Lord-starre of Reformation as some men clatter it will be good to see further his knowledge of Religion what it was and by that we may likewise guesse at the sincerity of his Times in those that were not Hereticall it being likely that hee would converse with the famousest Prelates for so he had made them that were to be found for learning Of his Arianisme we heard and for the rest a pretty scantling of his Knowledge may be taken by his deferring to be baptiz'd so many yeares a thing not usuall and repugnant to the Tenor of Scripture Philip knowing nothing that should hinder the Eunuch to be baptiz'd after profession of his beleife Next by the excessive devotion that I may not say Superstition both of him and his Mother Helena to find out the Crosse on which Christ suffer'd that had long lien under the rubbish of old ruines a thing which the Disciples and Kindred of our Saviour might with more ease have done if they had thought it a pious duty some of the nailes whereof hee put into his Helmet to beare off blowes in battell others he fasten'd among the studds of his bridle to fulfill as he thought or his Court Bishops perswaded him the Prophesie of Zachariah And it shall be that that which is in the bridle shall be holy to the Lord Part of the Crosse in which he thought such Vertue to reside as would prove a kind of Palladium to save the Citie where ever it remain'd he caus'd to be laid up in a Pillar of Porphyrie by his Statue How hee or his Teachers could trifle thus with halfe an eye open upon Saint Pauls Principles I know not how to imagine How should then the dim Taper of this Emperours age that had such need of snuffing extend any beame to our Times wherewith wee might hope to be better lighted then by those Luminaries that God hath set up to shine to us far neerer hand And what Reformation he wrought for his owne time it will not be amisse to consider hee appointed certaine times for Fasts and Feasts built stately Churches gave large Immunities to the Clergie great Riches and Promotions to Bishops gave and minister'd occasion to bring in a Deluge of Ceremonies thereby either to draw in the Heathen by a resemblance of their rites or to set a glosse upon the simplicity and plainnesse of Christianity which to the gorgeous solemnities of Paganisme and the sense of the Worlds Children seem'd but a homely and Yeomanly Religion for the beauty of inward Sanctity was not within their prospect So that in this manner the Prelates both then and ever since comming from a meane and Plebeyan Life on a sudden to be Lords of stately Palaces rich furniture delicious fare and Princely attendance thought the plaine and homespun verity of Christs Gospell unfit any longer to hold their Lordships acquaintance unlesse the poore thred-bare Matron were put into better clothes her chast and modest vaile surrounded with celestiall beames they overlai'd with wanton tresses and in a aâ—…aring tire 〈◊〉 her with all the gaudy allurements of a Whore Thus flourish't the Church with Constantines wealth and thereafter were the effects that follow'd his Son Conâ—…antius prov'd a flat Arian and his Nephew Iulian an Apostate 〈◊〉 there his Race ended the Church that before by insensible degrees welk't and impair'd now with large steps went downe hill decaying at this time Antichrist began first to put forth his horne and that saying was common that former times had woodden Chalices and golden Preists but they golden Chalices and woodden Preists Formerly saith Sulpitius Martyrdome by glorious death was sought more greedily then now Bishopricks by vile Ambition are hunted after speaking of these Times and in another place they gape after possessions they tend Lands and Livings they coure over their gold they buy and sell and if there be any that neither possesse nor traffique that which is worse they sit still and expect guifts and prostitute every induâ—…ment of grace every holy thing to sale And in the end of his History thus he concludes all things went to wrack by the faction wilfulnesse and avarice of the Bishops and by this means Gods people every good man was had in scorn and derision which S. Martin found truly to be said by his friend Sulpitius for being held in admiration