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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	england_n	write_v	3,090	5	5.8086	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53658	Church-pageantry display'd, or, Organ-worship, arraign'd and condemn'd, as inconsistent with the revelation and worship of the Gospel, the sentiments of the ancient fathers, the Church of England, and several eminent divines, both Protestants and Papists. By Eugenius Junior - in answer to a letter about organs.	Owen, James, 1654-1706.	1700 (1700)	Wing O706A; ESTC R25513	24,345	29

a stiff-necked stupid People Now methinks our Organical Neighbours look as like a parcel of Stubborn Jews as one Egge to another and some of 'm are as stiff-necked Bigots as ever the Jerusalem Jews were when besieg'd by Vespasian and as an evidence of their more than Jewish Bigotry they make Idols of Ceremonies and had rather see the Kingdom run down with Protestant Blood than Part with the least Hemm of a Consecrated Frock but they forward Souls will step more than half way o're th' Hedge to meet his Holiness of Rome But lest you shou'd think I 'm a little too uncharitable give me leave to tell you I deliver not my own Judgment but that of the Church of England her self for she in her Discourse of Ceremonies has this remarkable Passage And whereas in this our Time the Minds of Men are so diverse that some think it a great Matter of Conscience to depart from a piece of the least of their Ceremonies they be so addicted to their Old Customs And that you have a Pack of dull Animals in the Prelatical Constitution you acknowledg'd to me in your Fourth Letter wherein you added That these were the Poor Creatures that stood in need of a little Organical Assistance and 't was an Act of Charity to relieve 'm and you may remember that in my Answer I resolv'd this and a great many other Parochial Irregularities into the Ignorance ill Morals and ill Conduct of some dignified Drones among us who labour more for the Fleece than for the Flock But then Sir I made a Distinction and in particular assur'd you that the Parson of my own Parish was a Man of good Morals good Learning and of great Pains and therefore was justly excluded from those Censures If all that wear his Coat had but his Learning and exemplary Life I 'm sure our Critical Adversaries wou'd have no grounded occasion to hit us i' th' Teeth with the Scandals of Clergy-Men 3. If Organs may be us'd in Church-Worship to elevate our Affections Why mayn't other Inventions be added that may as effectually Answer the same End I 'll grant you as much as you desire that Musick may accidentally elevate a drousie Mind but so do a great many other things as a Skeleton a Bloody Lamb Devotional Images and Pictures and the Crucisix if you 're i' th' Humor to believe Lutherans and Romans but must they therefore be brought into Church and made a Part of the Ceremonial Service Risum teneatis 4. Are Organs helps to Devotion The Papists say the same of their Images Crucifixes Lighted Candles and all the stupendous Relicks mention'd in their Celebrated Legends Bellarmine makes a hideous Clamour about 's Altars Crosses Images Apud nos Altaria Cruces Imagines Relicks and pictur'd Walls those are they saith he that stir up Persons to Piety This is the very Language of our Organical Votaries By which we may Conjecture that there 's a Snake in the Grass for they can't plead for an Organ or Chant out an Ecclesiastical Ode but th' Old Cardinals Cant must be the Burden of the Song and then off it go's with a Bongrace The Papists say they don't adore th' Image but only use it as a visible medium as they do Organs Ne Imagini quidem Christi in quantum est lignum Sculptum ulla datur reverentia Aquinas by which they Worship the Invisible God and yet we count that Idolatry in 'm and Pray Sir are not our Organical Worshippers equally Guilty Or is that a Vertue in our Members of th' English Reformed Church which is a Vice in the Panders of the painted Jezabel of Rome And upon the same pretence as Organs are introduc'd into Divine Service the Walls of our Church may be fill'd with devotional Pictures to enflame th' Affections in fine what 's there that an English Protestant can say for an Organ which an Italian Papist will not say for a Crucifix and Carved Images the darling Instruments of Romish Devotion The Truth on 't is for you t' assert that by th' use of Organical Melody your Affections are rais'd to the Supream Being is in Effect the same as if a Woman shou'd say that she keeps Company with another Man to raise her Affections to her absent Husband 5. By this Objection you acknowledge not only the grievous lameness of your Church-Devotion but th' ineffectualness of the Common-Prayer to Cure it otherwise what need of consulting the Vitalian Oracle This puts me in mind of Serenus Cressy * Vid. his Letter to Mr. B. about Baker's Book who forsook the Church of England because as be saith he found no spiritual Devotion in 't And Hutchinson alias Berry the Priest Writes † B. Cain and Abel p. 134 135. That the most of serious Godliness among English Protestants is found among those call'd Puritans But I 'm sure the Modern Puritans have more Charity for their Friends and Neighbours than th' Objector's Catholick Friend has Here 's then a very considerable defect acknowledged that the Prayers and Preachments of the Church are liveless and dull for the Affections of these Organical Gentlemen are not excited by them but that we mayn't always be dull and drousy her 's a Muisical expedient thought upon and the Church-Worship shall be turn'd into a Stage-diversion and an Artificial contrivance and which I think shou'd it universally prevail will transform all Religion into meer Mechanism However I am glad to hear your languishing Devotion is of th' mending Hand and that you are resolv'd to shake off that Ecclesiastical Rust which your Affections have contracted for the want of rousing and powerful Pulpiteers But oh the strange Effects of Organ-Pipes What charming influence have they on dull and Melancholly Souls And now therefore who more happy than the Inhabitants of Organical Parishes By consecrated Bells they can drive away the Infernal Hobgoblins if they have but Faith enough to Believe what a Spanish Jesuit will Swear to be true and by the help of a pair of Melodious Organs they may Conjure not only the lazy and Ess-hole but all the Calvinistical Parishioners to Church and so their Pews shall be as throng as three in a Bed This puts me in Mind of a certain Philosopher who complain'd that when he spake Soberly to the People they gave him no Audience but playing on 's Pipes Multitudes floct after him Oh rare Melody What pity it 's all our Parlors are not Converted into so many pompous Theatrical Quires and that all our Bairnes and Servants are not train'd up in this Organical way What more revicing than a Canonical Consort of Musick What strange and wonderful feats have been perform'd by the Melodious charms of Musical Pipes These were the sweet Syrens that charm'd the famous Vlysses and 's Companions And Theophrastus tells us that by the Art of Musick the pain of the Hip-Gout has been cur'd Here 's good news to our Gouty-Parishioners if they can but make shift

Latimer Cook Pet. Martyr Sir John Cheek John a Lasco Mr. Peter Mr. Cecyl Sir Tho. Smith Mr. Taylor of Hadley Dr. May Mr. Traheron Dr. Lyel Mr. Skiner Justice Hales Justice Bromley Goodrick Gosnal Stamford Carel Lucas and Brook Recorder of London These were the Flowers of the English Reformation and Men eminent for Sacred and Polite Literature And I think the Judgment of such a valuable Sett of Men deserves a Particular Regard And therefore wonder with what Confidence some can pretend to have such a mighty Veneration for our first Reformers when yet they so zealously defend and are so eager for retaining what the Old Reformers thought better abolisht and quite remov'd Thus you have th' express Opinion of many great and good Men against your erecting a pair of Devotional Organs in the Christian Church But if you think that you can't attain the Supremacy of Bliss without Converting the Church into an Organical Quire e'en go on and let your well-instructed Organist begin his Anthem of O be joyful while the rest of the Parish are devoutly Praying like ' mselves From all blindness of Heart from Pride Vain-Glory and from all the Deceits of the World the Flesh and the Devil and Contempt of thy Word and Commandment Good Lord deliver us And for once I 'll suppose my self in the AMEN-Officer's Desk and presume to say A m e n But before you begin you 'd do well to take Advice from those that are able to give it and who more fit to Counsel you in this Grand Affair than 3. The Church of England it self whose Judgement comes next to be consider'd and if you 'll not be advis'd by her for my Part I shall give you over as a pack of obstinate Sons of the Church But what saith the Church of England Why to be brief She utterly Condemns the Use of Organs in Divine Worship as unlawful and Thanks God She was rid of 'm in the Infancy of the Reformation as appears by the following Passage out of her Homilies Alas Gossip said a Woman to her Neighbour What shall we do at Church Since all the Saints or Images are tak'n away since all the goodly sights we were wont to have are gone Book of Homilies of the Time and Place of Prayer Part II. p. 131. Lond. Prinsed 1621. since we cannot hear the like Piping Singing Chanting and playing upon the Organs that we cou'd hear before To this the Church very gravely Replies But dearly Beloved we ought greatly to rejoice and give God thanks that our Churches are deliver'd out of all those things which displeased God so sore and filthily defil'd his Holy House Take Notice here 1. That 't was the Opinion of the Church of England in Queen Elizabeth's days that Organs in Churches did greatly displease God And are they more acceptable in God's account now Or are our Ecclesiastical Engineers grown more wise than their famous Ancestors 2. That Organs did filthily defile God's House and therefore she thanks God for the removal of this Organical defilement among other Superstitions But least you shou'd Question the Authenticalness of the good Old Homilies and to look upon the Evidence as weak and impertinent I 'll add 3. That the Thirty Fifth Article of the Church of England confirms the Doctrine of the Homilies as good sound and wholesome Whoever therefore asserts this New or rather Old Romish mode of Worship by Organs directly contradicts the Judgment of the Renowned Church of England And yet these Organical Hot-spurs wou'd be thought her only true Sons tho' at the same time they publickly and cotumaciously Rebel against her Maternal Authority The Church of England in another place saith * Of Ceremonies why some be abolisht and some retain'd in the Preface part of the Common Prayer That some Ceremonies enter'd into the Church by indiscreet Devotion and such a Zeal as was without Knowledge And for because they were winked at in the beginning they grew daily to more and more abuses which not only for their unprofitableness but also because they have much blinded the people and obscur'd the Glory of God are worthy to be cut away and clean rejected Injenuous Confession Monstrum horrendum The Mother and Children so very unlike What pitty is it that so Excellent a Mother shou'd have such a degenerate Brood but corruptio optimi pessima 4. As to the Popish Churches I shall only declare the Sentiments of some of their learned Men touching the concern in debate We 'll begin 1. With Thomas Aquinas † Instrumenta Musica sicut Cytharas non assu●it Ecclesia in Divinas laudes nè videatur judaizare Aquin. Sum. 2a. 2ae Qu. 91. Art 2. Obj. 4 ta who liv'd about the Year 1270 he tells us that Organs were not receiv'd into the Church in his time The Church saith he does not take Musical Instruments into the Divine Praises least it shou'd seem to judaize And it 's observable that Cardinal Cajetan ‖ Notandum tempore Thomae Cajet in eund loc sum Tho. Aquin. upon Aquinas saith Take notice that in the times of St. Thomas the Church made no use of Organs And Gregory de Valentia is of the same Opinion It 's manifest from hence that the Gallican Churches which boast so much of Antiquity had no Organs in their Churches about 500 Years ago 2. Others of the Romish Stamp look upon Organs to be really prejudicial to the Devotion of the Holy Church tho' they may accidentally excite the Mind Cornelius Agrippa who was Counsellor to Charles the V. and a Papist as appears by his Reflections on Luther vehemently † De Vanitate Scient Cap. 6. 17. declaims against Organs as abus'd ad fornicariam pruriginem and filling the Church with such a loud noise that the Worshippers can neither hear nor attend to what is spoken He looks upon Church-Musick to be a Lecherous licentious sort of Devotion and resents it ill that the Holy Mysteries shou'd be chanted out by a Company of wanton Musicians who 're hir'd with a great Summ of Money * Ibid. And Aquinas in th' above quoted Question † Aquin. Sum 2a 2ae Qu. 91. Art 2. Resp 4ta ad 4t Objectionem saith out of Aristotle That those sort of Musical Instruments do rather Create in the Mind a sensual Delectation than Form in the Mind a good Disposition Another Learned Papist who resolv'd not t' approve all he saw and heard in the Romish Synagogue saith in these Words Let a Man be a greater Worldling than Crassus a greater Reviler than Zoilus yet is he accouned a Devout Man because he Sings Service well tho' he understands nothing of it Nor are they Content with this but we have also brought into Churches a Laborious and Theatrical Musick a tumultuous pratling of divers Voices such a one as I think was ne'r heard upon any Stage among the Romans or Graecians All Places roar with Pipes Eras. in 1 Corinth