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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39997	A counter-essay, or, A vindication and assertion of Calvin and Beza's presbyterian judgment and principles drawn from their writings, in answer to the imputations of a late pamphlet, entituled, An essay concerning church-government ... attempting to fasten upon them an episcopal perswasion ... / by a minister of the true Presbyterian Church of Scotland, established by law.	Forrester, Thomas, 1635?-1706.	1692 (1692)	Wing F1594; ESTC R35532	63,101	86

up was an a●eration and 〈◊〉 from the Divine Rule and that which gave th● f●rst rise to Antichristian Tyranny we also heard that he disown even the inference of a Fixed Moderator from the Angel of the Churches we have also frequently Observed how that Calvin disowns the peculiarity of the very name Bishop to one Pastor as giving the least semolance of any difference in the Official power and function of pastors The Conclusion therefore of their disowning this Official preheminent power in Ordination and Jurisdiction assumed or rather usurped in after times evidently and necessarily fo●lows yea is so evident that Beza in his Treatise de Episcopatu triphci calls the Bishop assuming in after times this preheminence in Ordination and Iurisdiction over Pastors the Satanical Bishop and the poysoned egg out of which Antichrist was hatched Come we to the 4th Proposition of our pamphleter which is this thus Proposition 4. The president Episcopacie is approven by Christ in the Book of the Revelation Answer Upon the Proposition it self I shall only here again animadvert and remind the Reader of this man's pitiful palpable ●orgery and abusive Sophilirie in covering himself and his design all alone g●●der the Cloud and playing with the general terms of President Epis●●p●cie to give some semblance of truth unto his proofs as knowing that Calvin and Beza do express themselves modestly of the first Proestotes or Fixed Moderators who first took place but his Mediums and Methods of arguing do sufficiently unmask his pitiful folly for they do make these Divines plead for a Hierarchial Diocesian or Patriarchal Prelat of the highest degree with a fixed sole Power of Ordination and Jurisdiction yea shape● out after the measures of Apostolick Authority The first Proposition of his Demonstration whereby the premised assertion is fastned upon Beza is thus Demonstration Proposition 1. The seven Angels of the seven Churches written unto by St. Iohn in the Book of the Revelation are encouraged against all the devices of the ungodly upon condition of their continuing faithful in their Administrations for proof of which we are referred to Postulatum 4. Answer 1. This Proposition in it self considered we may safely admit without the least prejudice to our cause or help to his design We might on the by here tell him as our learned Mr. Gilespie admonished some of his fellows that the Scripture Saints we may add and inspecial such an eminent Saint and Divine as the Apostle Iohn needs no titles of Honour out of the Popes Callendar and was acknowledged such by the Churches before this Canonizing came in use And enquire whether our Author useth to prefix St. to Aaron when he names him who is called the Saint of the Lord together with Moses and other old Testament Saints and what ground of disparity and difference he can assign But to pass this 2. Since he referrs to Postulatum 4. where we have the same Proposition with an annext Sentence of Beza on Revel 2. 26. v. Where he expons My Works c. of the faithful performance of the works laid upon this Angel and shews that the Assembly of Pastors are bespoken in the person of the President to whom victory is promised if he rely upon Christs power c. I shall here only resume what we have answered upon that 4 Postulatum viz. That Bezas taking the Angel for a single Person is the utmost conclusion he can draw from this passage wherein as Beza differs from the ordinary current of Interpreters So we have evinced the gross palpable folly and forgery of this mans design and inference here-from viz. That Beza ownes this president Bishop which he hath shapen out and described since he cannot conclude from these words that Beza asserts his Official Preheminence and Authority over his Colleagues which we told him is so Demonstratively evident that Beza disowns even the very inference of the necessity of a fixed Moderator as following upon his Assertion anent the president Angel expressly adding this Proviso Caution to guard against any mis-application of what he sayes anent the Angel his being a single person and thus in terminis gives this Pamphleter the lie as if by a Prophetick Spirit he had forseen this forgery And holding the very first fixed Moderators to have been the humane Custom subsequent and opposite to the first divine appointment and practice of the Official compleat parity among Pastors our Lords enjoyning the Pastors faithfulness in their administrations and bespeaking them thus in the person of the President we told him will therefore in Bezas sense and words import no more then a faithful exercise of their joynt Collegiat Power and Authority which Beza holds was our Lords Institution and at this time is existent So we see the Major is nought The Assumption is Assumption But the Angels were President Bishops over other Ministers within their respective Churches For proof of this we are referred to Definition 4. Where we are told that the Angel of any Church representative is the President Bishop over other Ministers within the respective Diocess Province or Patriarchat which is proved by Beza Rev. 2. and 24. His words are To the Angel that is the President whom it behoved especially to be admonished and by him his fellow Colleagues To you the Angel the President and the Assembly of your Colleagues Answer We have upon that Definition fully discovered the folly and impertinency of this inference from the words of Beza and this Mans palpable shameless imposings upon him as if these words would bear the Conclusion of his owning a President Bishop with an Official yea sole Preheminence in Ordination and Jurisdiction over ordinary Pastors of as high a nature as he supposes the Apostle Paul exercised which appears by Definition 3. compared with its proof this his arguing we said is a shameless imposing both in that he supposes Beza to hold these Angels to be Patriarchat Provincial or Diocesian Angels or Bishops above 260 years before such a mold and cast of Churches was existent as likewise that every representative Church is Provincial Diocesian or Patriarchal and inferring this high Patriarchiall or Diocesian Prelat with sole power of Ordination and Jurisdiction from Bezas simple assertion of a president Angel in whom the rest of the Pastors were bespoken yea and bespoken as his fellow Colleagues viz of equal Official Authority in Bezas sense unless he will make him contradict not only himself but Calvin who expons and understands Colleagues thus yea and all this contrair to the express caution of Beza in the same very place who asserts that this his sense and exposition of the President Angel will not so much as bear the Conclusion of the necessity of a fixed Moderator which he holds to be a humane invention and that the Prelat of this Mans mold and pleaded for by him by these distorted citations gave the rise to the Antichristian tyranny If this be not shameless imposing let any rational man

We said above that Calvin acknowledges the Ancients their aberration from the Scripture Rule in their Church Government and that this Custom in his own and Ierom's Judgment was brought in humano consilio and pro temporum necessit●t by humane Advice and Counsel and according to the times exigence wherein he clearly distinguishes this from a Divine Institution authorizing a divine Office of Gods Appointment for he presently cites that place of Ierom upon Titus mentioned above wherein he shews that by divine Appointment the Church was governed by Presbyters in common And that the then Bishops power was only by Custom not authorized by divine Appointment So that our Pamphleter will never be able to conclude from these words Calvins Recommendation and Approbation of this practice but on the contrary Calvin and Ierom both doth suppose what ever thing in this practice was an incroachment upon the Presbyters divine Power was a humane Device and sinful Usurpation which would be convincingly evident to any that considers 3. That this Practice of appropriating the name Bishop to one is as I did above clear in terminis condemned by Calvin as an abuse of the Holy Ghosts Language and making way for one Pastor his encroaching upon the Power of his Colleagues We told him that upon Phil. 1. 1. having asserted the Identity of the Bishop and Presbyter he tells us that this place is made use of by Ierom to prove Presbyters Divine Paritie he adds postea invaluit usus c. afterward Custom prevailed that he whom Presbyters set over their collegiat Meeting was only called the Bishop but this had its Original from the custom of Men but is not at all grounded upon Authority of Scripture In which words this practice which our Pasqueller would make us believe hath Calvins Approbation is clearly Reprobat as an Aberration from the Rule and Institution which first took place and no man can be so irrational as to imagine that Calvin would put this Censure upon the singularity of the name Bishop as appropriat to one Minister and not also upon the singularity of an Official Preheminence which this man pleads for Two words more I add on this that if this man will allow Calvin any Interest and consent in and to the Confession of the French Church he is there told by Calvin that the true Church ought to be governed by that Policy which Christ hath ordained viz. that there be Pasters Presbyters Elders and Deacons and as to a preheminent fixed Presidency they do thus in terminis disowne it Again we believe that all true Pastors wherever they be are endued with equal and the same Power under one Head and Bishop CHRIST IESVS Thus expresly disclaiming this preheminent Power in Ordination and Jurisdiction which our Pamphleter makes Calvin owne or any supposed President or Pastor with official power over his Colleagues and that upon the same ground of Cyprian which we heard mentioned and approved of Calvin viz. That Christ hath in him the original sole Episcopacy whereof in a perfect Parity he has imparted to every Minister an intire and equal share Next I offer to him the sense of the famous Doctor Reynolds upon these words of Calvin in his Letter to Sir Francis Knolls cited at large Petri. Hist. part 3. pag 400 and 69 70 71. upon Ieroms words à Marco Evangelista the Doctor proves that by the Decree of the 4th Counsel of Carthage cap 3. anent Presbyters interest in Ordination which proves saith he that Bishops ordained not then in all places alone altho Ierom says Quid facit excepta ordinatione c. And by Ierom's proving Bishops and Presbyters to be all one in Scripture and even in the right of Ordination 1 Tim. 4. 14. That Ierom could not mean Bishops in Alexandria to have had this sole Power And as for that place of Calvin instit lib. 4. cap. 4. Sect. 2. cited then by Doctor Boncroft anent whose Sermon he wrote that Epistle he shews that Calvin relating the practice of choosing one to proceed and giving him the Name of Bishop doth notwithstanding shew that he was not above the Presbyters in Dignity and Honour or to rule over them but was appointed only to ask the Votes to see that performed that was agreed upon by common consent And having shewed that this was brought in by consent of Men in Ieroms Judgment he adds that Ierom otherwhere shews how ancient the Custom was from Marks time to Heraclas c. In which words of Calvin saith the Doctor seing that the Order of the Church hath evident relation to that before described and that in describing it he had said the Bishop was not so over the rest in honour yet he had rule over them it follows that Mr Calvin doth not so much as seem to confess on Ierom's Report that ever since Mark 's time Bishops have had a ruling superiority over the Clergy Adding that it may easily be made appear from many places of Ierom and Calvin both as well as from this passage it 's evident that neither of them doth affirm Bishops to have had all that time such a Superiority as Boncroft fathered upon them Wherein the Doctor clearly affirms and proves that neither of these places of Ierom or Calvin would bear either an Assertion of this matter of Fact viz. the forementioned President his exercising a sole Episcopal Authority or their approbation of the Government of one single person preheminent in Office unto other Ministers as this Pamphleter suggests Proceed we to the 4th Postulatum which is this Postulatum 4. The 7 Angels of the seven Churches written unto in the Book of the Revelation are encouraged against all the devices of the Ungodly upon condition of their continuing faithful in their Administrations To prove this Beza is adduced on Rev. cap. 2 26. My Works that is he who shall faithfully perform the work laid upon him for he bespeaks the Assembly of Pastors in the person of the President to whom he promiseth Victory against all the Wicked if he rely and trust in the Authority and power of that True and only Head of the Church To which I answer Answer First we have proved upon Definition 4 that Beza's taking this Angel for one single person by whom the rest were to be admonished will infer in Beza's Sense no preheminence in Office and Authority over his Colleagues 2. That Beza disownes even the inference of the necessity of a fixed Moderator as necessary following upon his Assertion Yea 3. That he holds this practice of the fixed Moderator to be founded only upon a humane Custom and such a Custom as gave a rise to Antichristian Tyranny and consequently that the Ministers of these Churches are owned by Beza as Colleagues of equal Power and Authority with the President though by him immediately be-spoken and so by clear and necessary consequence further their continuing faithful in their Administrations can import nothing more in Beza's sense in the