Selected quad for the lemma: book_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A59231
|
The method to arrive at satisfaction in religion.
|
Sergeant, John, 1622-1707.; N. N.
|
1671
(1671)
|
Wing S2578; ESTC R214763
|
9,307
|
46
|
every one who needs faith is not capable to Read and understand Books There is left then only Reason to use in this Inquiry And since People of all Capacities are to be saved much sharpness and depth of wit will not be requisite but plain Natural Reason rightly directed will suffice 5. This being so the Method of seeking satisfaction in Religion is become strangely both more short and easie For here will need no tedious turning over Libraries nor learning Languages nor endless comparing voluminous Quotations nor so much as the skill to read English all being reduc'd to the considering one single Point But such an one as bears all along with it And this too comprehensible as will appear to a mean understanding Again the large debating particular Points in a controversial way is by this means avoided For when the Right Rule of faith is certainly known then as certainly as there is any faith in the world all that is received on that Rule is certain and of faith Not but that 't is of excellent use too to cherish and strengthen the faith especially of Young Believers by shewing each particular Point agreeable to right Reason and Christian Principles and recorded expressly in or deduced by consequence from the Divinely-inspired Books 6. Lastly This Method is particularly suitable to the Nature of sincere Inquirers who if they want the liberty of their own Native Indifferency and be aw'd by any Authority whatever before that Authority be made out cannot but remain unsatisfyed and inwardly feel they proceed not according to Nature and the conduct of unbyast Reason Whereas when the Authority is once made evident Reason will cleerly inform them that it becomes their Nature to assent to it 7. But how will it appear that 't is so easily determinable by common reason which is the right Rule of Faith Very evidently But first we must observe the Assent called Faith depends upon two Propositi What God hath said is true and God hath said this out of which two necessarily follows the Conclusion that this or that in particular is true Of these two we are concerned onely in the latter For to examin Why God is to be believed when he has said any thing which they call the formal Motive of faith is not a Task for those who own Christianity But all we have to do is to find out What God hath said or which in our case is all one What Christ has taught and that vvhatever it be vvhich acquaints us vvith this we call THE RULE OF FAITH as that vvhich Regulates our belief concerning Christs Doctrine or the Principles of Religion Now I affirm it may by obvious Reason be discover'd vvhich this Rule is and that by looking into the Nature of it or considering what kind of thing it ought to be vvhich is no more than attentively to reflect vvhat is meant by those two ordinary vvords RULE and FAITH 8. And both of them acquaint us that the Rule of faith must be the means to assure us in fallibly vvhat Christ taught For in case a Rule though we apply it to our povver and swerve not from it leave us still deceivable in those points in vvhich it should regulate us vve need another Rule to secure us that vve be not actually deceiv'd and so this other and not the former is our Rule Next Faith speaking of Christian Faith differs from Opinion in this that opinion may be false but faith cannot Wherefore the Rule of faith both as 't is a rule and as it grounds faith doubly involves Infallibility 9. Let us apply this to Scripture and Tradition for setting aside the Light of the private Spirit grounding Phanaticism there are no more which claim to be Rules of faith and see to which of them this Notion fits that is which hath truly the Nature of the Rule of faith And this is perform'd by examining which of them is of its own Nature if apply'd and held to able to assure us infallibly that Christ taught thus and thus 10. And for the Letter of Scripture not to insist that if it be deny'd as many if not all the parts of the New Testament have been by some or other or mention that those who receive the Books do often and always may doubt of almost any particular Text alledged whether some fault through Malice Negligence or weakness be not crept into it in which Cases the Letter cannot evidence it self but needs another Rule to establish it I say not to insist upon these things which yet are undeniable We see by experience Multitudes of Sects differing from one another and some in most fundamental Points as the Trinity and Godhead of Christ yet all agreeing in the outward Letter And it is not onely uncharitable but even impossible to imagine that none among so vast Multitudes do intend to follow the Letter to their power while they all profess to reverence it as much as any read it frequently study it diligently quote it constantly and zealously defend the sense which they conceive of it so far that many are even ready to die for it Wherefore it cannot be suspected but they follow it to their power and yet 't is so far from infallibly teaching them the Doctrine of Christ that all this notwithstanding they contradict one another and that in most fundamental points The bare Letter then is not the Rule of Faith as not being of its own Nature able to assure us infallibly though we follow it to our power what Christ has taught I would not be mistaken to have less Veneration than I ought for the Divine Books whose Excellence and Usefulness as it is beyond man to express so peradventure amongst men there are not many who conceit this deeper than my self and I am sure not one amongst those who take the confidence to charge us with such irreverent thoughts But we are now about another Question They are the Word of God and their true Sense is Faith We are enquiring out the Rule of Faith whose office 't is not to satisfie us that we ought to believe what God has said which none doubts of but What it is which God has said And I affirm That the Letter alone is not a sufficient means to assure us infallibly of this and the experience of so many erring Thousands is a lamentable but convincing proof of it 11. On the other side there needs but common sense to discern That TRADITION is able if follow'd to ones power to bring infallibly down to after Ages what Christ and his Apostles taught at first For since it means no more but delivery of Faith by dayly Teaching and Practise of immediate Forefathers to their respective Children and it is not possible that men should be ignorant of that to which they were educated of that which they dayly saw and heard and did let this Rule be follow'd to ones power that is let Children resolve still to believe and practise themselves what
they were taught by and practis'd with their Fathers and this from Age to Age and it is impossible but all succeeding Children which follow this Rule must needs from the Apostles time to the end of the World be of the same Faith which was taught at first For while they do thus there is no change and if there be no change 't is the same Tradition then thus understood has in it the Nature of the Rule of Faith as being able if held to to bring down infallibly what Christ and his Apostles taught 12 We have found the Rule of Faith there remains to find which body of men in the World have ever and still do follow this Rule For those and onely those can be infallibly assured of what Christ taught that is can onely have true Faith Whereas all the rest since they have but fallible grounds or a Rule for their Faith which may deceive them cannot have right Faith but Opinion onely which may be false whereas Faith cannot 13. And first 'T is a strong presumption that those many particular Churches in communion with the Roman which for that reason are called Roman-Catholicks do hold their Doctrine by this Infallible Tenure since they alone own Tradition to be an Infallible Rule whereas the Deserters of that Church write whole Books to disgrace and vilifie it And since no man in his wits will go about to weaken a Tenure by which he holds his Estate 't is a manifest sign that the Deserters of that Church hold not their Faith by the Tenure of Tradition but rather acknowledg by their carriage that Tradition stands against them and that 't is their Interest to renounce it lest it should overthrow their Cause Wherefore since Tradition § 11. is the only means to derive Christs Doctrine infallibly down to after ages they by renouncing it renounce the onely means of conveying the Doctrine of Faith certainly to us and are convinc'd to have no faith but onely opinion And not onely so but even to oppose and go point-blank against it since they oppose the onely-sure Method by which it can with certainty come down to us 14. Besides since Tradition which I always understand as formerly explicated to be the Teaching the Faith of immediate Forefathers by words and practise hath been proved the onely infallible Rule of Faith those who in the days of K. Henry VIII and since have deserted it ought to have had infallible certainty that we receded from it formerly for if we did not but still cleav'd to it it could not chuse but preserve the true Faith to us and if they be not sure we did not they know not but we have the true faith and manifestly condemn themselves in deserting a Faith which for ought they know was the true one but Infallible Certainty that we had deserted this Rule they can have none since they neither hold the Fathers Infallible nor their own Interpretation of Scripture and therefore unavoidably ship wrack themselvs upon that desperat Rock vvhich is aggravated by this Consideration that they built not their Reformation upon a zealous care of righting Tradition which we had formerly violated nor so much as Testimonial Evidence as shall be shown presently that we had deserted It but all their pretense was that we had deserted Scripture and because they assign no other certain means to know the sense of the Holy Books but the Words and those are shown to be no certain means § 10. 't is plain the Reformers regarded not at all the right Rule of Faith but built their Reformation upon a weak Foundation and incompetent to sustain such a building Whence neither had the first Reformers nor have their Followers Faith at all but onely Opinion 15. On the contrary since 't is known and agreed to by all the World at what time all Deserters of our Church of what name soever broke from us as also who were the Authors and Abetters and who the Impugners of such New Doctrines besides in what places they first begun and were thence propagated to others but no such thing is known of us even by our Adversaries whom it concerns to be most diligent Searchers after it seeing they are in a hundred minds about the Time when and the Persons who introduc'd these pretended New Doctrines of ours which they say vary from Scripture as may be seen by their own words in several Books and amongst others one call'd The Progeny of Protestants and this for every point in which they pretend we have innovated 't is plain that when we charge them with deserting the known Doctrine of the former Church and the Rule of Faith we speak open and acknowledg'd evidence when they accuse us of the same their charge is obscure and unknown even to the very Accusers nay plainly prov'd false by the necessity of â—he things being notorious if it happen'd and the constant disagreement of those who allege it when or how it happen'd 16. I say Notorious for since Points of Faith which ground all Christian practise are the most concerning Truths in the World it cannot be but the denyal of such Truths must needs raise great commotions before the opposite Tenets could be universally spread and the change of Christian Practise and Manners which depend on those Truths must be wonderfully manifest and known to every body wherefore had we been guilty of such a change and introduc'd New Tenets and propagated them over the Christian world as is pretended it must needs be manisestly and universally known that we did so neither is it possible the change should be so insensible and invisible that our very Adversaries cannot find it out especially this alone making their Victory over us so certain and perfect For seeing we own TRADITION as an In-fallible Rule We are irrecoverably overthrown if they make out that we ever deserted It and surely nothing should be more easie than to make out That than which if True nothing can possibly be more Notorious 17. Moreover since it can not be that Multitudes of men should profess to hold point's both infinitely concerning and strangely difficult to believe and yet own no ground upon which they hold them if we ever as 't is said we have deserted Tradition vve must till the time we took it up again have proceeded upon some other Ground or Rule of Faith And because none ever charged us with proceeding upon the Letter of Scripture or Phanaticism and besides these there is no other but Tradition 't is plain we never deserted but always stuck to Tradition 18. Besides 't is impossible that that Body of Men which claim for their Rule of Faith an uninterrupted Tradition from the Apostles days should not have held to that Rule of faith from the beginning For otherwise they must have taken it up at some time or other and by doing so profess to the World that Nothing is to be held of Faith but what descended by an uninterrupted delivery