Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	church_n	new_a	testament_n	6,695	5	8.0566	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A02563	The olde religion a treatise, wherin is laid downe the true state of the difference betwixt the reformed, and Romane Church; and the blame of this schisme is cast vpon the true authors. Seruing for the vindication of our innocence, for the setling of wauering minds for a preseruatiue against Popish insinuations. By Ios. Hall, B. of Exon.	Hall, Joseph, 1574-1656.	1628 (1628)	STC 12690; ESTC S117610	79,903	246

yeelded that no man hath power to set to a seale but he whose the writing is Sacraments then being the seales of Gods gracious euidences whereby hee hath conueyed to vs eternall life can bee instituted by no other then the same power that can assure and performe life to his creature In euerie Sacrament therefore must bee a diuine institution and command of an element that signifies of a grace that is signified of a word adioyned to that element of an holy act adioyned to that Word Where these concurre not there can bee no true Sacrament and they are palpably missing in these fiue Adiections of the Church of Rome Lastly The Sacraments of the new Law as Saint Austen often flowed out of the side of Christ None flowed thence but the Sacrament of water which is Baptisme and the Sacrament of bloud in the Supper Whereof the Author saith This cup is the new Testament in my bloud which is shed for you The rest neuer flowing either from the side or from the lips of Christ are as new and mis-named Sacraments iustly reiected by vs and we thereupon as vniustly censured CHAP. XVI The newnesse of the Doctrine of Traditions THe chiefe ground of these and all other errours in the Church of Rome is the ouer-valuing of Traditions which the Tridentine Synode professeth to receiue and reuerence with no lesse pious affection then the Bookes of the Old and New Testament and that not in matter of Rite and Historie only but of faith and manners also Wherein as they are not vn willing to cast a kind of imputation of imperfection vpon the written Word so they make vp the defects of it by the supply of vnwritten Traditions to which indeed they are more beholden for the warrant of the greater part of their super-added Articles then to the Scriptures of God Both which are points so dangerously enuious as that Antiquitie would haue abhorred their mention Neither is any thing more common with the holy Fathers of the Church then the magnifying the complete perfection of Scripture in all things needfull either to be beleeued or done What can be more ful and cleere then that of Saint Austen In his quae apertè c. In these things which are openly laid forth in Scripture are found all matters that containe either faith or manners Cardinall Bellarmines elusion is not a little preiudiciall to his owne cause He tels vs that Saint Austen speakes of those points which are simply necessary to saluation for all men All which hee acknowledges to be written by the Apostles But besides these there are many other things saith hee which wee haue only by Tradition Will it not therfore hence follow that the common sort of Christians need not looke at his Traditions That commonly men may be saued without them that Heauen may bee attained though there were no Traditions Who will not now say Let mee come to Heauen by Scripture goe you whither you will by Traditions To which adde that a great yea the greater part if wee may beleeue some of their owne of that which they call religion is grounded vpon only Tradition if then Tradition bee only of such things as are not simply unnecessary to saluation then the greater part of their mis-named Religion must needs be yielded for simply vnnecessary to all men And if wee may bee saued without them and bee made Citizens of Heauen how much more may we without them be members of the true Church on Earth As for this place Saint Augustines words are full and comprehensiue expressing all those things which containe either faith or manners whether concerning Gouernours or people If now they can finde out any thing that belongs not either to beleefe or action wee doe willingly giue it vp to their Traditions but all things which pertaine to either of those are openly comprized in Scripture What can bee more direct then that of holy Athanasius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. The holy Scriptures inspired by God are in themselues all-sufficient to the instruction of truth and if Chemnitius construe it All truth this needs not raise a cauill The word signifies no lesse for if they bee all-sufficient to instruction they must needs be sufficient to all instruction in the truth intended Tertullian professes openly Adoro Scripturae pleni●udinem c. I adore the fulnesse of Scripture Let the skill of Hermogenes show where it is written if it bee not written let him feare that woe which is pronounced against those that adde or detract Thus he Who can but feare that the Cardinall shifts this euidence against his owne heart For saith he Tertullian speakes of that one point That God created all things of nothing and not of a pre-existent matter as Hermogenes dreamed now because this truth is clearely expressed in Scripture therefore the fulnesse of Scripture as concerning this point is adored by Tertullian And for that Hermogenes held an opinion contrarie to Scripture he is said to adde vnto Scripture and to incurre that malediction Now let any reader of common sense iudge whether the words of Tertullian be not generall without any limitation and if the first clause could bee restrained the second cannot Scriptum esse doceat c. Whatsoeuer therefore is not written by this rule may not be oberuded to our beleefe Neither doth he say If it be written against but If it be not written and his challenge is nusquam legi that the words are no where read as if this were quarrell enough without a flat contradiction to what is read So as the Cardinals glosse meerely corrupts the Text How easie were it for me to tire my reader with the full suffrages of Origen Cyprian Chrysostome Basil Cyrill Epiphanius Hierome Ambrose Theodoret Hilarie Vincentius Lirinensis and in a word with the whole streame of Antiquitie which though they giue a meet place to Traditions of Ceremony of historie of interpretation of some immateriall verities yet reserue the due honour to the sacred monuments of Diuine Scriptures Our learned Chemnitius hath freely yeelded seuen sorts of Traditions such as haue a correspondence with or an attestation from the written word the rest we do iustly together with him disclaime as vnworthy to appeare vpon that awfull Bench amongst the inspired Pen-men of God SECT II. Traditions against Scripture IT is not to be imagined that the same word of God which speakes for all other truths should not speake for it selfe how fully doth it display it 's owne sufficiencie and perfection All Scripture saith the Chosen Vessell is giuen by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine for reproofe for correction for instruction in righteousnesse Profitable saith the Cardinall but not sufficient Many things may auaile to that end whereto they suffice not So meat is profitable to nourish but without naturall heat it nourisheth not Thus hee Heare yet what followeth That the man of God may bee perfited and thorowly

beseeching him that no such pictures may be hanged vp contrarie to our religion Though by the way who can but blush at Master Fishers euasion that it was sure the picture of some profane Pagan When as Epiphanius himselfe there sayes it had Imaginem quasi Christi vel sancti cuiusdam the Image as it were of Christ or some Saint Surely therfore the Image went for Christs or for some noted Saints neither doth he find fault with the irresemblance but with the Image as such That of Agobardus is sufficient for vs Nullus antiquorum Catholicorum None of the ancient Catholiques euer thought that Images were to be worshipped or adored They had them indeed but for historie-sake To remember the Saints by not to worship them The decision of Gregory the Great some six hundred yeeres after Christ which he gaue to Serenus Bishop of Massilia is famous in euerie mans mouth and pen Et quidem quia eas adorari vetuisses c. Wee commend you saith hee that you forbade those Images to bee worshipped but we reproue your breaking of them adding the reason of both For that they were onely retained for historie and instruction not for adoration which ingenuous Cassander so comments vpon as that he showes this to be a sufficient declaration of the iudgement of the Roman Church in those times Videlicet ideo haberi picturas c. That Images are kept not to bee adored and worshipped but that the ignorant by beholding those pictures might as by written records be put in minde of what hath beene formerly done and bee thereupon stirred vp to pietie And the same Author tells vs that Sanioribus scholasticis displicet c. the sounder Schoole-men disliked that opinion of Thomas Aquine who held that the Image is to be worshipped with the same adoration which is due to the thing represented by it reckoning vp Durand Holcot Biel. Not to spend many words in a cleere case What the iudgement and practice of our Ancestors in this Iland was concerning this point appeares sufficiently by the relation of Roger Houeden our Historian Who tells vs that in the yeere 792. Charles the King of France sent into this Isle a Synodall Booke directed vnto him from Constantinople wherein there were diuers offensiue passages but especially this one that by the vnanimous consent of all the Doctors of the East and no fewer then 300. Bishops it was decreed that Images should be worshipped quod Ecclesia Deiexecratur saith he which the Church of God abhorres Against which errour Albinus saith he wrote an Epistle maruellously confirmed by authoritie of diuine Scriptures and in the person of our Bishops and Princes exhibited it together with the sayd Booke vnto the French King This was the setled resolution of our Predecessours And if since that time preuailing superstition haue incroached vpon the ensuing succession of the Church 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Let the old rules stand as those Fathers determined Away with nouelties But good Lord how apt men are to raise or beleeue lies for their owne aduantages Vspergensis and other friends of Idolatrie tell vs of a Councell held at London in the dayes of Pope Constantine Anno 714. wherein the worship of Images was publiquely decreed the occasion whereof was this Egwin the Monke after made Bishop had a vision from God wherein hee was admonished to set vp the Image of the Mother of God in his Church The matter was debated and brought before the Pope in his See Apostolike There Egwin was sworne to the truth of his vision Thereupon Pope Constantine sent his Legate Boniface into England who called a Councell at London wherein after proofe made of Egwins visions there was an act made for Image-worship A figment so grosse that euen their Baronius and Binius fall foule vpon it with a facile inducimur c. we are easily induced to beleeue it to be a lie Their ground is that it is destitute of all testimony of Antiquitie and besides that it doth directly crosse the report of Beda who tells vs that our English together with the Gospell receiued the vse of Images from their Apostle Augustine and therefore needed not any new vision for the entertainment thereof Let vs inquire then a little into the words of Beda At illi but they Augustine and his fellowes non daemoniaca c. came armed not with the power of Deuils but of God bearing a siluer Crosse for their Standard and the image of our Lord and Sauiour painted in a Table and singing Letanies both for the saluation of themselues and of them whom they came to conuert Thus he This shewes indeed that Augustine and his fellowes brought Images into England vnknowne here before A point worthy of good obseruation but how little this proues the allowed worship of them will easily appeare to any reader if hee consider that Gregorie the first and Great was he that sent this Augustine in England whose iudgement concerning Images is cleerely published by himselfe to all the world in his fore-cited Epistle absolutely condemning their adoration Augustine should haue been an ill Apostle if he had herein gone contrarie to the will of him that sent him If withall he shall consider that within the verie same centurie of yeeres the Clergie of England by Albinus Bedes Scholler sent this publique declaration of their earnest disauowing both of the doctrine and practice of Image-worship SECT II. Image Worship against Scripture AS for Scripture We need not to goe further then the verie second Commandement the charge whereof is so ineuitable that it is very ordinarily doubtlesse in the guiltinesse of an apparent checke left out in the deuotionall Bookes to the people Others since they cannot raze it out would faine limit it to the Iewes pretending that this precept against the worship of Images was only Temporall and Ceremoniall and such as ought not to be in force vnder the Times of the Gospell Wherin they recal to my thoughts that which Epiphanes the sonne of Carpocrates answered When his lust was checked with the command of Non concupisces True said hee that is to be vnderstood of the Heathen whose Wiues and Sisters wee may not indeed lust after Some more modest spirits are ashamed of that shift and fly to the distinction of Idols and Images a distinction without a difference of their making not of Gods Of whom we neuer learned other then that as euery Idoll is an Image of something so euery Image worshipped turnes Idoll The Language differs not the thing it selfe To be sure God takes order for both Yee shall make you no Idoll nor grauen Image neither reare you vp any standing Image neither shall you set vp any Image of stone in your Land to bow downe to it Yea as their owne vulgar turnes it Non facies tibi c. statuam Thou shalt not set thee vp a Statue which God hateth The Booke of God is full of his