Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	ceremony_n	church_n	common_a	1,960	5	6.2853	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60211	The origine of atheism in the popish and Protestant churches shew'n by Dorotheus Sicurus, 1648 ; made into English, and a preface added by E.B., Esquire.; Origo atheismi in pontificia et evangelica ecclesia. English	Crenius, Thomas, 1648-1728.; E. B., Esquire.	1684 (1684)	Wing S3756; ESTC R6868	23,279	40

but I had rather they would much oftner handle the former For seeing the Gospel teacheth many things above our Reason it is not possible to know which is the true Worship of God and Religion unless we know what the Gospel teacheth Therefore he will do most good to the Church tho' he will not at first be so acceptable as an English Moralist who can best set forth the matter of Faith which many either totally neglect contenting themselves with inculcating the precepts concerning manners without delivering the summ of the Christian Religion or do only lightly touching it and yet after all we wonder whence it comes to pass that those that have so many years frequented our Sermons being asked concerning the heads of the Christian Religion can give no account of them when yet they never in all their lives heard much if any thing of them I lament the misery of these poor sheep but I shall never more wonder at the multitude of Atheists and of those that are ignorant of all Religion But in short if the truth may be spoken the greatest part of the Preachers never learned the Compendium and form of true Theologie and what more can be expected from such men But I know not how it comes to pass that no Mechanick shall be suffered to exercise a Trade who hath not spent a great time in learning of it But all are suffered to preach without distinction or choice nor do I at all regard the Certificates which are usually given to young beginners in some places for how and at what price they are purchased of the Professors is as clear as the light But Paul's precept was that the Bishop should be apt to teach And he only will be such who has a right notion of Religion and has by the assistance of the Holy Ghost had experience of the force and power of it in the various events of his life For as a builder first forms the whole building in his mind So the teachers of any Arts ought to have the whole Scheme of the Arts they profess to teach in their minds that they may be able to shew the beginning and Series or order of all the precepts But all other Arts because they may be comprehended by reason may be more easily apprehended whereas the Gospel which contains many things above and against the judgment of reason is not apprehended without difficulty and therefore the Preacher is obliged to take the more pains that he may render the most obscure things plain And he will then be able to do this when he has possessed his own mind with a comprehensive knowledge of all the Doctrine of Religion before he begins to teach others Therefore it will never be laborious or difficult to such a Preacher to invent what he should speak but rather his prudence is to be imployed in the chusing out of the great variety and plenty what may seem most profitable and useful for the whole Christian Religion is of a Divine Original and being delivered to us in writing by the Prophets and Apostles those writings are to be followed Now in this the first thing is to understand rightly those things which he has undertaken to handle for no man can clearly teach another that thing which he doth not throughly understand himself That Verse of Horace is very common Verbaque praevisam rem non invita sequentur For unforc'd words wait on a well known thing Nor does any man attain the knowledge of the holy Scriptures by study only but it is necessary that by instruction of the Holy Ghost he should feel the force of them in his own mind and so be able by his own Experience and Practice to interpret them The next things required in a good Preacher is that he have a good way and manner of interpreting or expressing himself which is delivered in those precepts by which youth is instructed in Eloquence or Rhetorick For no man can ever know the way of teaching well if he be not well instructed in Eloquence in his youth and be very much and a great while conversant with those Arts in which the precepts of Rhetorick are contained And then an Interpreter ought to know the Genius of the language for the holy Scriptures have a certain peculiar Idiom and Phrase which those that are not acquainted with it from their youth cannot understand Nor is it enough to have some degree of knowledge in the tongues but to enable a man to judge well Logick and Rhetorick are of great use Lastly if he be able to draw a summ or Compendium of the whole doctrine out of the holy Scriptures he will then endeavour that the people also may comprehend the whole Christian Doctrine The Primitive Church seems to have aimed at this heretofore when she took such care that the ignorant might be throughly instructed before they were admitted to Baptism whom she then called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Catechumens For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to Catechise doth not signifie to teach simply but to read to a person and make him repeat after the Teacher And I wish the custom were retained in the Church of exacting of every man once an account of the Doctrine for we do more diligently consider and deeply look into those things which we are bound to recite in other words without changing the sense The last cause of Atheism we fetch from the total abolition of all Ceremonies for we see that Religion was never more despised than in those Churches where there is no Ceremonies For there is an absolute necessity of some external shews which may recommend and render Religion more August and Venerable to the common people who are not able without them to see into the greatness and dignity of this thing and we ought not to undervalue that improvement which children make while they Sing the Psalms Read the Bible and repeat the Catechism aloud in the Church For if Ceremonies are not impious as they are which are instituted by the Papists for Justification and if there be any use of them such as the recommending Religion to the people and children for whose sake they were chiefly instituted and both which they retain and preserve in the word and teach I see no reason why they should be abolished O how earnestly do I desire that those who govern our Church-affairs would more deeply consider this last cause which at first sight appears so light and contemptible and that they would understand what Ecclesiastical Prudence is concerning which we conjecture Nicolaus Videlius will with the assistance of God publish something in his Elegant book of the Prudence of the ancient Church Tho' ours should at least be so unhappy as leave this thing very imperfect It is a most impious thing to think that all Ceremonies were instituted by wicked Popes There ever were some wise and holy men who throughly understood that the minds of the common people were so stupid and low that they could never apprehend the Dignity and Majesty of Religion unless their minds were fixed and detained with some outward and visible Rites till they might by that means by degrees be more and more lifted up and so learn to admire it And yet I would not have too much haste made here because Abraham Scultetus a prudent Divine otherwise in this very Age left us a Tragical example of the ill effects that followed at Prague And thus at length I have opened this putrid sore and now if the work might be acceptable and it might promote the cure of it O how great thanks should I give to our God but if the evil should happen to be only exasperated and the attempt should incense the Patients I shall comfort my self with the Conscience of my undertaking and the usual reward of a Physician FINIS Anno 1196. Lib. 1. c. 26. Quin videmus tempora ipsa in Atheismum procliviora qualia fuerunt Augusti Caesaris tranquilla fuisse Bacon de superstitione L. 16. c. 6. p. 27 Cicero de fine bon l. c. 7. Lact. de falsa relig l. 3. c. 16. Joseph Ant. L. XVIII cap. 2. Apud imperitos prodigii loco accipiebatur ipsa aquarum penuria quod in pace sors seu natura nunc fatum Ira Dei vocabatur Tact. H. l. 4. c. 26. Quibus quaestui sunt capti Superstitione Animi Liv. l. 4. Parum Philosophiae naturalis homines inclinat in Atheismum at Altiorem Scientiam eos ad Religionem circumagere Baconis Ser. fidelis XVI De falsa Sapientia l 3. c. 17. Adversae deinde res admonuerunt Religionum confugimus in capitolium ad ●eos ad sedem Jovis O. M. Liv. l. 5. Nullum crimen abest facinusque libidinis ex quo Paupertas Romana perît turpi fregerunt secula Luxu Diviti●●molles Juven Sat. 6. Rom. 1. 30. Principis est ea maximè curare quae ad Deos pertinent nam metuunt minus ne quid injusti accipiunt à talibus minus insidiantur ut Deos habenti Socios Arist Polit. l. 5. c. 11. Licentia urbium aliquando disciplinà metúque nunquam sponte considet Sen. ep 97. Europae speculum or a View or survey of the State of Religion in the Western parts of the World p. 121. This and several other passages make me think the Author was a Hollander If our Laws 〈…〉 Act. XVII 18. Tit. II. 15. 1 Cor. IV. 1. 1 Tim. III. 2. I cannot assent to my Author in this viz. that there is any thing in the Gospel against the judgment of Reason illuminated by Faith If the Rite of Confirmation were duly put in execution with us no Church can take a better and more effectual care for this than ours has done