Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
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A27449
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Rome tyrannical, idolatrous and heretical the origine of her errors with an answer to her objections : also three short sermons of repentance against swearing and drunkenness preached to the ships company before Admiral Aylmer and several captains / by Peter Berault.
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Berault, Peter.
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1698
(1698)
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Wing B1956; ESTC R30222
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55,952
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193
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after his Death into Hell and there was tormented and that Lazarus's Soul he being Dead was carried into Abraham's Bosome a place of Joy and Comfort To the Thief which was Executed with Christ at his Passion and believed in him Jesus Christ answered This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise Which shews that the Souls of the Faithful never come into Purgatory-fire to be burnt and tormented for all their Sins are forgiven and consequently the Punish ment incident to the same is forgiven also and their Souls pass from Death to Life that is they go to Heaven Blessed are the dead that dye in the Lord from henceforth they rest from their labors and their works follow them If from the time of their Death they have Blessedness and Rest then they are not in any Purgatory-fire to be burnt and tormented The first place saith St. Austin Hyp. L. 5. the Faith of the Catholicks doth by divine Authority believe is the Kingdom of Heaven the second is Hell a third place we are utterly ignorant of neither can we find such a one in the holy Scriptures And in his Enchiridion ad Laur. c. 67. He saith That those that believe a Purgatory-fire are much deceived and that through a humane Conceit Know ye saith he de van secul 1. c. That when the Soul is separated from its Body she is immediately placed in Paradise for her good Works or cast into Hell because of her Sins Object The Primitive Church say they did pray for the Dead as Tertullian de Corona Militis doth confess Therefore it is a good proof that she believed a Purgatory I Answer That when the Primitive Church did pray for the Dead she did not believe they were in any place of Torments nor that there was a Purgatory She only believed that the Souls of the Faithful should only enjoy the sight of God after the day of Resurrection She prayed then for the filling up of their Glory she prayed to be joyned with them and be partakers of the Resurrection of the Faithful She prayed that Jesus Christ would hasten their Resurrection and she prayed also for the Patriarchs the Prophets the Apostles and Martyrs that God would be pleased to increase their Glory but she did not implore their assistance nor believe a Purgatory as it is related by Justin Martyr 9. 60. and 76. Iren. L. 5. Tertul. Cont. Marc. L. 4. c 13. The Origine of Purgatory is Virgil in the sixth Book of his Eneids wherein he saith that the Souls before they enjoy Blessedness are differently purged in different places as you may see in these following Verses Ergo exercentur poenis veterumque malorum Supplicia expendunt aliae panduntur inanes Suspensae ad ventos aliis sub gurgite vasto Infectum eluitur Scelus aut exuritur igni c. Thirdly I shew that the Church of Rome adds to the Word of God when she teaches that the general Councils and Popes are Infallible that the latter have Authority or Pre-eminence over all other Bishops that they have power to Depose Kings and Princes from their Thrones and are above them for this Doctrine is not found in the holy Scriptures 1. I say that their general Councils and Popes are not Infallible for St. Austin Tom. 6. l. 2. cont Donat. plainly teaches that God alone and the holy Scriptures are Infallible or cannot Err. The general Councils saith he which are gathered of all the Christian World are often corrected the former by the latter when by any tryal of things that is opened which was shut and that is known which was hidden If a general Council may be corrected as saith St. Austin therefore it may err Wherefore he speaks thus to Maximian Bishop of the Arians Neither ought I to alledge the Council of Nice nor thou the Council of Arimini to take advantage thereby for neither am I bound nor held by the Authority of this nor thou of that Set Matter with Matter Cause with Cause or Reason with Reason try the Matter by the Authority of the Scriptures l. 3. c. 4. The Council of Constantinople condemned the setting up Images in the Churches and the Council of Nice Act. 4. ordered afterwards they should be set up One of these Councils being contrary to the other must needs be Erroneous And that is granted by it self when in a set Form of Prayer which is appointed to be said after the conclusion of every Council they pray that God would spare their Ignorance and pardon their Errors de ord celeb conc The Pope himself may Err for Pope Innocentius doth teach lib. ad Bonif. cont Epist Pelag. c. 4. That young Children cannot be saved except they receive the Baptism of Christ and also the Communion of his Body and Blood And Pope Gelasius Comperimus Consecra de distinct 2. did decree That all they should be Excommunicated which would receive the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper but in one kind But this Doctrine is now taxed for an Error by all Papists and the Council of Trent Sess 21. Can 1. made a Decree contrary to the Doctrine of the Pope Gelasius If any body saith this Council assures that all and every Faithful are obliged by God's Commandment to receive one and the other species in the holy Sacrament of the Lord's Supper let him be Anathema Therefore it is evident that the Popes may Err And this may be seen in their own Decrees wherein it is written That they are to be judged of none except they be found erring from the Faith part 1. cap. dist 40. cap. si Papa Whereby it appears that they thought their Popes might Err in matter of Faith or else that exception was put in vain For all Men are subject to Error all Men are worse in their Words and Sinners in their Works There is none True and Infallible but God and his holy Scriptures because they are inspired of him He is the God of Truth he cannot Lie Tit. 1 2. 2. I say that the Popes have no Authority or Pre-eminence over the other Bishops though those of the Church of Rome stifly holding the contrary give them the Title of Universal Bishops and call them Gods on Earth Kings of Kings and Lords of Lords as saith Albanus de potest pap part 1. n. 22. And Antonius part 3. n. 22. And upon the Triumphant Arch Erected in the honour of Sixte the Fourth it was written Oratio vocis Mundi moderaris hâ—â— henas Et meritò in Terris diceris esse Deus But this Doctrine being not found in the holy Scriptures it is consequently manifest they do add to the Word of God Objection The Popes say they have Authority or Pre-eminence over all other Bishops because they are Successors to St. Peter and St. Peter had such a Pre-eminence and Authority over the rest of the Apostles because Jesus Christ told him Thou art Peter and upon this Rock I will build my Church I grant that Christ said to
as it is usual amongst Conquerors had introduced and impos'd their own Language upon those they had subdued and made their Slaves So they have to the uttermost of their Power established their Liturgies Ceremonies and Language in all Churches that they might serve afterwards as a Monument of their Jurisdiction and Authority upon others 2. I say that the Roman Church doth diminish from the Word of God when she forbids the Reading of the Holy Scriptures to the common People For this forbiding of hers is wholly contrary to the Commandment of Jesus Christ who in the 5th chapter of St. John 39 Verse speaks thus Search the scriptures for in them ye think ye have eternal life and they are they which testifie of me And quite contrary to this Ordinance of St. Paul who writing both to the Bishops and all his Brethren either Men or Women either young or old speaks thus in his first Epistle to the Thessalonians 5. 27. I charge you by the Lord that this Epistle be read unto all holy Brethren And writing to the Colossians 4. 16. he saith When this Epistle is read among you cause that it be read also in the Church of the Laodiceans and that ye likewise read the Epistle from Laodicea However as if the Church of Rome were wiser than Jesus Christ St. John St. Paul and all other Apostles and holy Fathers who did so much and so often recommend it she forbids it to the common People stifly affirming that it is dangerous that it causes Schisms several Sects and Heresies For in the Council of Trent it is written that if the Reading of the Holy Scripture be permitted in a known Tongue amongst all People it will be more hurtful than profitable The abuse some make of the Holy Scripture ought not generally to condemn the use of it otherwise the best things would be taken away from us because they are sometimes misused The use of Wine would be forbidden because many are Drunk with it and is the cause of several Disorders It is enough to forbid what is essentially bad without forbidding that which is essentially good Jesus Christ doth not only permit the Reading of the Holy Scripture to some particular Jews but he enjoyns it unto all â—earch saith he the Scriptuâ—â—â— And that he may the better 〈◊〉 them he makes them remember That in them they think they have eternal Life He seems in another place to attribute all their Errors to the Ignorance of that Sacred Book when he said to the Saducees Matth. 22. 29. Ye do err not knowing the Scriptures Had not the Eunuch read the Prophet Isaiah he should never have understood him And it was by this Reading he began to be a Christian as it may be seen in the Acts 8. 30. The People of Berea as it appears in the 17th Chapter of the Acts were highly commended that they searched the Scriptures to see whether those things were true or no which Paul did Teach For whosoever he be though he were an Angel from Heaven if he Teach Matters contrary to the Doctrine of the Holy Scriptures we are to hold him accursed as saith St. Paul Gal. 1. 8. All Scripture saith the same Apostle 2 Tim. 3. 16. is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for Instruction in Righteousness that the man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all good works Nevertheless the Church of Rome doth forbid to the common People so good a Book so useful to Piety and so necessary to Salvation Is it not then a great Cruelty to forbid Children to see and read the Testament of their Fathers Is it not an excess of rigour to deprive them of that which nourishes their Souls for an Eternal Life And is it not an extreme Tyranny to hinder them from seeing that which they are to be judged upon 3. I say that the Church of Rome diminishes from the Word of God when in the Lord's Supper she takes away the Cup from the common People and from the Clerks that are not Priests For we read in St. Matthew 26. 27. that in the Institution of this Sacrament Jesus Christ took the Cup and gave it all his Disciples saying drink ye all of it Objection When Jesus Christ said to his Disciples Drink ye all of it He spake to the Priests only saith the Roman Church and therefore the Priests only ought to drink of the Cup. I Answer that St. Paul writing to the Corinthians amongst whom were more Laics than Priests doth evidently shew the contrary for speaking to every one he saith 1. Cor. 11. 28. Let a man examine himself and so let him eat of that Bread and drink of that Cup. St. Ignatius Bishop of Antioch and Disciple of the Apostles in the 69th Year of our Lord Jesus Christ Epist 9. ad Philadelph saith That one and the same Bread was broken to all and one and the same Cup distributed to all Justin Marty tells us That the consecrated Bread and Wine were in his time distributed to every Communicant And St. Chrysostome Hom. 18. upon the second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians speaks thus There is a time where there is no difference between Priests and thâ—se that preside over as when we receive the holy Mysteries for we are all equally admitted to them It is not now as it was under the Old Testament where the Priest did eat particular things and the People others where it was not lawful to the People to eat that which the High Priest was then eating It is not so now for one and the same Body and one and the same Cup is given to all The Pope Gelasius in the Year 490. 2. Distinct 2. Can. Comperimus did Decree that all they should be Excommunicated which would receive the Lord's Supper but in one kind and his Predecessor Leo did call those Sacrilegious that did refuse to take the Cup. And tho' in the general Council of Constance Sess 13. the Roman Church do confess this holy Sacrament was receiv'd in the Primitive Church with the Bread and the Cup yet in the general Council of Trent she speaks thus If any man say that the Catholick Church had not just Reasons to give the Communion to the Laics and Clerks who did not say Mass under the accidents of Bread only and that she Erred in this let him be Anathema The Reasons saith the Roman Church why they took the Cup from them are many Inconveniencies and several Absurdities I Answer that besides there is no Inconveniency though there should be any it ought not to be above the Commandment of Jesus Christ and St. Paul Christ the Primitive Church and the Apostles were very Wise and Wiser than shall ever be the Church of Rome and since they have commanded and given the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper with the Cup the Roman Church ought to follow their example and obey them The Inconveniencies which they suppose at