Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	authority_n	bishop_n	church_n	2,934	5	4.3576	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09952	The iudgement of a most reuerend and learned man from beyond the seas concerning a threefold order of bishops, with a declaration of certaine other waightie points, concerning the discipline and gouernement of the Church.	Bèze, Théodore de, 1519-1605.; Fielde, John, d. 1588.	1585 (1585)	STC 2021; ESTC S120819	15,412	46

Apostolicall authoritie but by the authoritie of the whole Eldership neither doeth Peter doubt to call himselfe fellow elder Sunprosbuteron Nay this is so farre off from being any good remedy from staying of schismes that contrary wise there was neuer more bitter contention in the Church then about this primacie which had neuer come to passe if this preheminence aboue their fellowes had bene forbidden or rather if men had neuer brought it in Whereupon we conclude that this kind of bishop which is not of order but of superioritie was brought in of man as Hierome saith Tit. 1. by litle litle that so as he is in deede thought that the planets of dissentions might be thereby plucked vp all the care was committed to one man And whereas he sayth in the same place that it was decreed thoroughout all the world We are to vnderstand it no otherwise then of a priuy custome brought in by little little And what soeuer is found in Ignatius or other ancient Writers when the byshop of Sathan was not yet found out touching the authority of the byshops or ouerseers as Iustin speaketh is to be vnderderstood of this kind of Bishop THE BISHOP OF THE Deuill THus also we describe the bishop of the deuill that euen as that kind of bishop ordained of God degenerated by litle and litle into an humane ordinance whereof we intreated in the second place so this of the deuill against which we now labour is sprouted forth of the corruptiō of the bishop brought in by man Of this intollerable corruption there are foule most manifest and vndoubted markes Some of this kinde of bishops haue wholy singled themselues from the Elderships so that they haue nothyng to do with them Some haue wholy abolished them And that they haue chalenged vnto themselues and I knowe not to what Officials the whole guidance of the church chiefly the authoritie to elect to depose and to excommunicate so as they not onely are aboue others but as it were alone do exercise Lordship ouer Gods heritage contrary to the expresse inhibition of Peter That also they haue inuaded vppon temporall dominions contrary to the flat commaundement of Christ And that they will not onely be present but also President in causes of this lyfe and affaires of the Common wealth the cōmandement of the Apostle to the contrary notwithstandyng 2. Tim. 2. 1. Cor. 6. yea and that of Christ himselfe Luke 13. 14. That also they waste in riot statelinesse agaynst conscience and al shame the goods consecrate to holy vses That also they haue tied the spirit of God to certaine places and persons as though the bishop of the more noble place must needes haue necessary giftes aboue the rest or as though hee who now is most fit must needs be so alwais And last of all that they are the image of that beast which is described Apoc. 13. as Pope Anacletus hymselfe witnesseth epist 2. in as much as they are distinguished among themselues by those their thrones and degrees according to the paterne of the Roman Empire The Apostle Act. 20. 19. foretold of this Hierarchie as they terme it of the false bishop which in tyme became an Antichristian primacie And in the 3. Iohn 9. it is most manifest that Sathan begun euen then to lay the foundation of this mysterie Now out of the history of the Nicene Councell which otherwise touching doctrine was euery where receyued it is cleare how foule dissentions were euen then of orderyng the bonds betweene the bishops the fountaines whereof they were so farre from dammyng vg that pretending auncient customes they confirmed the Patriarkship and made a way for the horrible Papacie of Rome then slidyng on and vnderlayd the seate for the harlot that sitteth vpon seuen mountaines But farre be it of that these things although they haue their auncient and great authoritie should be preiudiciall to the deuine and Apostolicall writings according to the rule whereof there is no wise man will doubt that the Councels thēselues are to be squared And to what purpose should I confute that agreemēt betweene the priesthood of the Leuites of Christ which some old writers alleage to prooue this diuelish oligarche and at the length euē playne tiranny In deede it is euident that the high priest was a figure of Christ himselfe whose second image if we graunt that the bishops are it wil folow that there are as many images of Christ as there be bishops in as much as there is none aboue him But contrarywise no bishop hath bene the image of Christ Besides bishops are not heds of the vniuersall Church but of their owne perticular Nay no heads at all in as much as the Bishops are vnder Archbishops the Archb. vnder Patriarkes and they agayne vnder the Pope that is not vnder the true figure but the counterfet figure of Christ Now seeing that our onely hed is taken vp into heauen a successor for whom liuyng for euer we are not to seeke who seeth not that the elders ordayned by the law of God come in the roume of the priestes of the lawe and the Deacons to answer to the Leuites The first question Seeyng that there are ordayned in seuerall Churches seuerall pastors and ministers and the authority of all Christes ministers in the Church seeme to be equall Whether the office of the bishops be necessary in the church to procure meetings when occasion serueth admission to the ministerie and remoouyng from the place vpon iust causes or whether all the ministers hauyng equall authoritie and not vnder the authoritie of any superiour bishop ought to chuse fit men with the consent of the Patron who enioyeth the benefice and the people thēselues as also to correct remoue frō the charge And the maners of the people thēselues who can hardly or not at all be kept in obedience without the bridle of the bishops authority which may runne through in visityng of the Churches of the prouince may put vs in mynd to retaine such bishops Againe so often as there shal be dealing in matters touchyng the safetie of the common wealth in the solemne assemblies of the land accordyng to the laws which the kingdome hath of a long vse and custome receiued there can be nothing established without the bishops who haue the third roume and place in the kingdome which to take away or wholy to put downe would bee very dangerous to the Common wealth The answer to the first question Where as Sathans bishop hath bene the ouerthrowe of the Church and all Christian kingdomes whose head is the Romaine Antichrist it is to be looked vnto of all handes especially of all godly princes that they at once abolish it if they minde the reformation of the Church and their owne safetie As for the bishop ordained by mā brought into the Churche by little and little whereby Sathan made him a waye for greater thinges it had beene tolerable so that

But seeyng the prince himselfe is a louer of the true religion it is a question whether there may be such an assembly with out the consent or commandement of the prince Whether the ministers alone may meete as often as they will Last of all whether the nobles and other godly men elders which are yeerely chosen with vs out of the people and nobilitie together may lawfully or expediently come without the cōmandement of the king to such assemblies Which assembly of the nobles and people seemeth to some altogether needles vnder a godly prince either because it hath not long since ben receyued by a meere custome without any law and that vnder a prince who then resisted the religion whereby such assemblies myght haue the greater authoritie or els because it may seeme dangerous if so many nobles assemble so oftē without the consent of the king they may somtimes consult of some thing els besides religion Others thinke that this assemblie is in no case to bee refused but rather that it is very needefull that the Nobles and other religious men be present as helpers to their ministers in the assembly bearyng witnesse of their lyfe and the peoples behauiour otherwyse it will after come to passe that if an impious prince raign afterward that neither ministers may safely assemble neyther can the determination be put in execution without the consent helpe ayde of the nobles To the second question Councels are necessarye in the Church for many causes both to the retayning of agreement and also to the seeking of remedies by common aduise for the daungers which fall out And last of all to take order for those that rest not in the iudgement of perticular seignories if they thinke they haue any iniurie done them And these Councels are eyther of a whole nation or of some one Region or Prouince or Diocesse as they haue begun to speake after the description of the Prouinces of Rome deuided into many Seigniories It is necessary that the Councels of the prouinces be deuided for many causes except there be other vrgent causes they would be appoynted rather euery halfe yeere then quarterly least in discoursing of matters they spende the tyme in vayne And it will bee best for the auoyding of ambition that the Councell be not alwayes assembled in the same place of euery prouince but as soone as one halfe yeeres Synode is discussed it may be determined by cōmon consent where shal be the place of the next followyng It will be very well that two of euery seignorie of the prouince chosen by common voyces and sent with some commission be present at these councels one a pastor and the other an Elder or a Deacon Neyther would we haue any strife about sitting who should sitte first or last but euery one to sit as it shall fall out without any contention and the iudgement to bee giuen as any one shall sit Now he that shal gouern the whole action who was chosen for this one thing by common consent of voyce the chiefe pastor of the place beyng in the beginning President which office shall end when the Councell shall be ended There are no matters in question to bee propounded to these Councels to take knowledge of but such as are more spiritual belong to that prouince where they are to be decided without appeale by the word of God the rules there set downe without any brabling or disturbance of the company Yet if any great priuate controuersie shall fall out in the prouinciall Synode where some may thinke that he hath cause to complayne of iniury done vnto him he may put vp his complaint to be decided in a generall councel whē it shal be thought good to assemble it Furthermore it is chiefly required that if all the lawes of the Church be established of the kings christian maiesty it foloweth that the Councels are to be assembled by his commandement and direction and not otherwise Neither yet is there a new commission euery tyme to be sought for of the king for that purpose seeyng his maiesty hath once established a law touching the set tymes of ordinary Synodes But yet if there arise iust cause of suspition of hādling in these metings other matters besides meere ecclesiasticall it shall be safe for the kings maiesty to send one of his subiects whō he will to disgrace by his presence the meeting of the Synodes where yet he is not to be as a iudge except some thing fall out where it is necessary that the authoritie of the ciuill magistrate be put betweene A generall councel of the land is not to be assembled but vpon great causes which seeyng they agree not with set tymes it followeth that they are not to bee standing neither but as often as some thing shall seeme to fall out of so great waight either in doctrine or in gouernment of the church as cannot well be decided but in a generall meeting that prouince is to be carefull to put other prouinces in mind concerning that matter in these halfe yeeres Synodes that with the consent of all or the greater part they go vnto the kings maiesty who as being a christiā prince is to desire nothing more then the peace of the churches ought without any stay or doubting at the suite of the Churches to appoint a place and tyme for a general meeting as the need of the churches shal require And the same order may seeme to be kept in the generall Councels which is in the prouincial whether before the kings maiesty himselfe as in some general councels the emperors of Rome haue bene present or before the honorable lordes of the kings maiestie And last of all whatsoeuer shal be alowed by the common consent of the Synode shall be confirmed by the kinges maiesties expresse authoritie after the example of the godly Emperours The third question Whether the king or the bishops are to call the assembly of the Church and as concernyng what matters they may make lawes To the third question Wee haue aunswered the first part of this question already To the second we answere First it is not lawful no not for the angels themselues to make any lawes for the consciēce but the church is to be vpholden by those which the Lord hath enacted seeyng we are now to looke for no newe reuelation the whole counsell of God touchyng our saluation being fully perfectly made manifest Our iudgement also is that the discipline or good order is to bee sought for out of the word of God and to be kept inuiolable as the second part of christian doctrine Yet there remayneth two things wherof there may yea and there ought to be lawes set downe in the Church For first of all where as euery thyng is not expressely and in so many wordes set downe in the writings of the Prophetes and Apostles therefore in controuersies both concerning doctrine and the substaunce of Church discipline the Councell ought to