doubt though J humbly conceive J may Now his fault in case he be guilty having been publick and notorious and no Repentance no retractation appearing unless perhaps he thinks that the accepting a thousand pounds yearly in Preferments is vertually a Retractation and much less any Solemn Absolution having been given him unless perhaps also he thinks that the Act of Oblivion reaches to Heaven discharging the conscience and dispensing in foro interno from an obligation of demanding Absolution either from Bishops or from the Civill Magistrat who according to his Teaching has received the Power of the Keyes and can Excommunicate and Absolve as well as any Bishop matters J say standing thus J must needs tell him that all Prelaticall Protestants can no otherwise look upon him but as one J doe not say traditum Satanae but excommunicated and separated from Christs Mysticall Body And therefore J coniure him that he would take care of his Soule which must needs be in great danger even though in his heart he believes such Excommunications to be bruta fulmina For in that case also he will conclude himself at least guilty of most damnable Hypocrisy 175. It will now be seasonable with this Act of Charity to him to take my leave of him and putt a period to this my Answer which truly I think sufficient though perhaps he will impute my telling him so to an ungrounded confidence or presumption 176. I have onely one thing more to say to him which is this that I with reason enough may accuse him that in writing his Book he has prevaricated with his Superiours For whereas in his Preface he tells his Readers that He was by command publickly engaged in the Defence of so excellent a cause as that of the Church of England against the Church of Rome even of that Church of England which vpon the greatest enquiry he could make he esteems the best Church of the Christian world I desire no other Iudges but the Prelats of his own Church whether by examining his Principles J have not demonstrated how that contrary to Command and his publick engagement he has been so far from defending her that he has betrayed the cause of his Church to all the Fanatick Sects which have separated from her and with most horrible cruelty sought her destruction and with her the ruine of Monarchy Whereby he has left her in a most forlorn condition tottring upon foundations and Principles which to my certain knowledge were not extant at least not known in England thirty years since In so much as if those who commanded him to defend her will still avow him her Champion there will not be nor ever was a Prelaticall Church so miserably devested of all Authority And therefore let any indifferent Reader judge between us two Whether with better Success He has defended the cause of the Church of England against the Church of Rome or I the cause of his own Church against himself 177. To conclude nothing can be more irrationall then for the Doctour holding to his Principles to profess himself a Controvertist till he can demonstrate that he has the Gift of seeing into mens hearts For since he allowes all Sober Enqâ—irers to be for themselues Iudges of the Sence of Scripture in necessaries and Iudges likewise what Points are necessary till he can disprove the allegations of any Adversary Catholick Protestant or Fanatick by demonstrating that they have either not enquired at all or enquired unsoberly and that none besides himself enquires Soberly it will be most unreasonable in him to condemn or but trouble any Dissenters from him 178. But alas the misery is None are more eager in usurping a Magisteriall and Tyrannicall Power over other mens consciences then such as renounce all Authority internally obliging in the Church Because having no tye upon mens consciences or security in their Subiects Obedience they find externall violence the only Mean to support them Which surely argues a horrible deprâ—vation in the minds especially of Ecclesiasticks which depravation can now only be cured by the Wisedom and Power of the Civil Magistrate Da pacem Domine in diebus nostris Amen FINIS The CONTENTS § I. THe Authours Motive of writing this Treatise D. Stillingfleets three Heads of Accusation against the Catholick Church c. pag. I. § II. A Vindication of the Honour and Sanctity of S. Benedict c. from the Doctours contumelious imputations II § III. Of the life and Prayer of Contemplation derided by the Doctour 28 § IV. Visions c. no Grounds of believing Doctrines among Catholicks 71 § V. Resisting Authority falsely imputed to Catholick Religion 76 § VI. Fanaticism returned upon the Doctour and his whole Religion 88 § VII The Doctrine of Penance Vindicated from the Doctours mistakes 121 § VIII Of Conferring Absolution and Extreme Vnction in Articulo mortis 132 § IX Of Prayer for the Dead 137 § X. Of Indulgences 144 § XI Of the Churches Liturgy in a tongue not generally understood 148 § XII Of the Churches denying the Reading of the Bible indifferently to all 152 § XIII The Conclusion with Advicâ—s to the Doctour 171 ERRATA PAge 3. line 6. read inhuman p. 4. l. 2. read about ib. l. 4. read or Obedience p. 5. l. 16. read to the. p. 7. l. 15. r. upon p. 8. l. 4. read their p. 13. l. 3. r. Preacher p. 17. l. 25. r. sayes p. 47. l. 25. 26. r. severall p. 48. l. 14. r. but be p. 52. l. 22. r. rake out p. 59. l. 20. r. helps for p. 60. l. 7. read therefore p. 67. l. penult r. them ib. l. ult r. both p. 75. l. 12. r. permit p. 76. l. 19. r. herself p. 85. l. 5. r. Apostat p. 87. l. penult r. also p. 88. l. 17. r. returned ib. l. ult r. Fanaticks ib. r. Farce p. 90. l. 8. r. flesh p. 91. l. 17. r. nutshell p. 92. l. 18. r. demonstrate p. 93. in the margent r. 15. Principle p. 95. l. 6. r. Points ib. l. 16. in some of the Copies dele not ib. l. 24. r. receives p. 97. l. 4. r. soever p. 100. l. 9. r. government p. 101. l. 2. r. government ib. l. 10. r. such an one p. 104. l. 10. r. p. 105. l. 11. r. because p. 110. l. 1. at the lines â—nd read the. p. 117. l. 4. r. Catholicks p. 123. l. ult read vvho testifies p. 136. l. 4. read by the exercise p. 142. l. 5. r. their p. 145. l. 5. r. eneruating p. 148. l. 8. r. understood p. 151. l. 10. r. Service ib. l. penult r. desire that p. 152. in the margent â—ead p. 215. A Post-script to the Doctor IF this short Treatise shall after more then half a years strugling haue the fortune to break through all hazards and arriue safe to the Doctors hands the Authour of it will presume in concluding it to offer to him a few Requests The First is That unless he do indeed think
himself obliged in conscience by breaking all Rules of Piety and humanity to do all manner of despight to his Catholick fellow-Subiects he would hereafter at least please to abstain from reviling and blaspheming Gods Saints or traducing the most Divine exercises of contemplative soules more perfectly practised only in Heauen Jt argued certainly a heart brimm full of the Gall of bitternes that to oppose only one single line of his Adversary pag. 31. in which all that he sayes is the mentioning new Sects and Fanaticisms he could allow one hundred and twenty Pages in a senceless and execrable recrimination not considering or rather perhaps too much considering and intending that such a recrimination should reflect with great disparagement on the English Protestant Church In whose Calendar severall of those Saints to this day possess a place Truly in all reason his Attempt by his Socinian Principles of depriving the Governours of that Church of all Anthority granted by her Princes and Parliaments ought to haue suffised him without traducing her as a Canonizer of Fanaticks What excuse he can make for this I cannot imagine unless perhaps his tenderly scrupulous conscience dictates to him that the Scottish Covenant requires all this and more from the obligation whereof the Bishops cannot it seems and his Brethren Presbiters will not absolue him If so his zeale methinks should incite him yet further and particularly to make use of the power and high esteem he has by his late Book gotten in his Vniversity of Cambridge to become a Godfather in rebaptizing and giving a New Name to an ancient and famous Colledge there which at present has two Names both of them extremely inconvenient and prejudiciall to the Design of his beloued Book being called not only S. Benets but likewise Corpus Christi-Colledge For as long as these names continue neither will S. Benedict pass there for a Fanatick nor the Reall presence be esteemed aground of a worse then Pagan Idolatry But I believe he will scarce be able with all his Rhetorick to obtain from them such a compliance or even perswade his own Parishioners to renounce Heaven except S. Gregory S. Benedict S. Francis c. be excluded thence A Second Request is that since to his great credit order has been taken by his friends more solicitous for him then their own Church to render his Book unanswerable he would hasten his zealous Huguenot Brethren of the Savoy iust such Defenders of the Church of England as himself to enlarge his conquests through France also by sending abroad their French Translation of his formidable Book the Rationall Account There will be no need to fear any officious Searchers nor the least obstruction to their dispersing their ware in France for there Catholicks are so confidently secure of the invincible Truth of their Religion that the King himself not only permits but invites yea and expressly commands the subtillest of the Huguenot Ministers to write and publish freely whatsoever they are able to say in defence of themselves or against Catholick Doctrines Now it is manifest that the Doctours friends the zealous Searchers and murderers of all Answers to his Book do not believe that he has any confidence at all either in the truth or honesty of his cause And iust reason they have since it is a cause evidently destructive both to the English Church and state as hath been demonstrated And if themselves had any regard at all either to their Church or the Civill state and peace of the kingdom all betrayed by him they would see and acknowledge that their vigilance would have been much better employed in preventing the birth of so deformed and pernicious a monster My third Request is indeed J fear too reasonable to expect it should be granted by an Adversary of the Doctors temper It is this His design beeing to deterr all English-men from Communion with the Catholick Church from a consideration of dangerous Doctrines and Practises in it he is requested that hereafter he would not abuse the world by fathering on the Church Exotick opinions of particular Schoolmen and by representing the Churches Doctrines lamely falsely and dishonestly His enormous faultiness in this regard in mitation of Doctor Taylor committed in his last Book through every one of the Points mentioned by him may be visible to all heedfull Readers and irrefragable Proofes hereâ—fare in a readiness to be produced if his busy friends the Searchers could be perswaded to rest in their beds in the night time He cannot complain of any difficulty to find out all necessary Doctrines in which Catholicks universally agree as we may for Proteflant Doctrines The Councill of Trent alone will sufficiently furnish him Or if he think fitt to have recourse to the interpretations of its Decisions in all reason and conscience he ought to content himself with such as seem to him most moderate and rationall Christian charity and love of Peace requiring this from him But I fear his unconformity hereto must be pardoned For his principall vocation now being to be a Controvertist to which it seems he is by Superiours engaged and to which employment Preaching Sacraments and all must yield it will be impossible for him to write volumes of Controversy his way if he be confined to matters only which are pertinent or to arguments which are Logically concluding For how could he then delight profanc Readers with ridiculous stories or give scope to his own more profane Fancy in descanting irreligiously on the actions of Saints or fill up many sheets with nasty occurrents raked out of dunghills and charging them on the Church which abhorrs them more then himself How could he I say thus play the Controvertist if he were to assault the Church only in her necessary Doctrines and Discipline exhibited in her Councills I must therefore I fear prepare my self with patience to receive a Refusall to Requests though in my opinion very reasonable and which I here sett down because J believe they will be esteemed such by ingenuous and judicious Readers who surely will not judge the cause of Catholicks prejudiced by the Doctors confutation of a Church no where extant in rerum naturâ except in his own disordered Fancy Lastly he is desired to consider that Almighty God commands us to loue Peace and Truth Zach. 8. 19. both these For Peace alone without Truth is a conspiracy in Errour and an imprudent zeale for Truth may be more pernicious then Errour Both these therefore ought to be loved together And to Hate both Peace and Truth seems a depravation scarce consistent with Human nature or any Rationall Agent besides the Devill himself Since therefore the Doctor by demolishing all Tribunalls in Gods Church which might peaceably end Controversies has endeavoured as much as in him lyes to banish Peace eternally from among Christians it is iustly to be expected from him that being now become by Profession a Controvertist he should give some better testimony to the world that he is at least a Seeker and Promoter of Truth and that his Design in writing Preaching and Disputing is to conquer the iudgments of Dissenters to a belief of that which himself pretends to be Truth But can any reasonable man imagine that he had so much as a desire to convert Catholicks who alone seem to be esteemed by him Dissenters by such a Book as his last is which they cannot read without trembling at the blasphemies of it and without a horrible aversion from one who would make their Church and Faith odious for Doctrines and Practises which the said Church is so far from owning that she condemns them and would moreover persuade them to forsake an established Communion without being informed whither to betake themselves These proceedings are so unreasonnable that it seems manifest he had not so much as a thought of convincing their iudgments so that he will have small reason to wonder that not one single person can be found whom he looks on as an enemy who has given him occasion to erect a Trophey yea moreover though perhaps he will not believe it that a considerable number have against his will had their eyes opened by him to see the desperate state of that cause which seems to seek its last refuge in the Protection of such an Advocat A strange fate certainly this is of a Book so boasted of and to which such conquests have been promised Therefore any sober Reader who shall heedfully reflect on the Doctor 's abilities will hardly be perswaded to believe that he intended his last should be a Book of Controversy but rather an Engin raised by him to work during the space of a few months some considerable mischief against the persons of innocent Catholicks at a season as he thought proper for his purpose when he conceived thereby the whole Kingdom might happily be incensed against them Which holy design if he could effect it would afterward be indifferent to him whether his Book were confuted or not However our hope is that Dominus iudicabit pauperes populi bumiliabit Calumniatorem FINIS Nullos esse Deos in ane coelum Affirmat Selius probatque quod se Factum duÌ„ negat haec videt BeatuÌ„ Martial l. 4. Epigr 21. Pag. 262. Psal. 118. Mem. 2. Cor. 12. v. 2. 3. 4. P. 334. P. 336 P. 336. P. 337. P. 244. Suar. in 3. S Th q 27. Anâ—on Summ. p. 1. tit 8. c. Baron ad A. D. 604. P. 248. P. 235. Irenic P. 392. P. 346. P. 349. P. 350. 13. Principle 15 Principle I. Que. Ansvv. II. Qu. Ansvv. III Qu. Ansvv. IV. Qu. Ansvv. V. Qu. Ansvv. Irenic Eph. iv 4. 5. vers 5. Gesner in Re Bellar. Def. Schlusscâ—b P. 443. Ration Accou p 54. Aug. de Bapt. cont Donat. l. 4. c. 16. P. 180. Conc. Triden Sess. XIV cap. 3. P. 183. P. 181. P. z12 Conc. Tâ—id Ses. XIV c. 8. August lib. 50 hom Hom. 41. Conc. Tâ—id Seâ— VII de Sacram Can. 8. P. 206. Gal. 4. P. 183. Aug. Hom. 50. capvlt P. 681. Luk xvi 9. Lib. de curâ pâ—â— moâ—tuis cap. 4. P. 183. Conc. Tâ—id Ses. xxv Decâ—et de Indulg Ibid. P. 516. P. 188. P. 174. Cor. 14 1. Cor. 14. Vers. 5. 9. 13. 27 28. P. â—15 P. 174. Philast Preface pag. 6. Ibid. p. 22.
For though his Book proves in effect exceeding harmless to the common Cause of Catholicks and though all the Weapons made use of by him against the Catholick Faith really want both edges and points of Sufficient sharpnes and strength to make an entrance into the Rock on which our Saviour has built his Church yet they pierce into the very bowells of the Persons fortunes and condition of English Catholicks whose destruction he seems to design And on the other side though the same weapons do draw out the very heart-blood of the English Church yet he pretends all the way and seems to be acknowledged by them a Champion of its cause and not to intend the least harm to the Prelats and Subiects of it Cicero was wont to say that he thought any one Roman Augur could not without Smiling look upon another Augur considering what large preferments and honours they enioyed by befooling the whole Roman Common-weale with their ridiculous fopperies The like smile of secret intelligence passes between the Doctor and his ancient Brethren For a great pleasure it must needs be to them to see him in his new dress in his Surplice and Scarlet-Hood so Canonically defending out of the Pulpitt the Church of England or brandishing his Sword against her Adversaries in printed Volumes but so defending it as not to do the least harm to the old cause Not one word falls from his tongue or pen to give his now Prelats warning of their danger from Presbyterians Independents Latitudinarians and other Sects though all these conspiring against them had held their Necks so many years of late under their feet But nothing can be more ridiculous to those Sectaries nor truly more deserving detestation from all loyall Subiects then to see the same Sectaries quondam friend Doctour Stillingfleet zealously pretending a care of the Safety of his Majesty and the State against the seditious writings and practises of ill-principled Subiects and at the same time as if he thought the world by vertue of the Act of Oblivion had quite forgott the last twenty years troubles naming none but Catholicks as such ill-principled Subiects who yet alone among all Dissenters from the English Church had all of them unanimously adhered to his Majesty and for his Majesties sake had defended also the said Church against the Doctor and his Brethren in evill the Sectaries The plain truth is the Doctors collusion and prevarication in his Book seems to me so visible and so insupportable that it is a shame that hitherto not one true Prelaticall Protestant has appeared as a Defender of the English Church and State against him but on the contrary even some English Prelats themselves have congratulated and boasted of his supposed succesfull endeavours against the Catholick Church though ruinous only to themselves Indeed it was the Doctors Master-piece by his Drollery to putt Protestants into a fitt of laughing that being in so good an humour they might drink down the Poyson he presented them This Poyson it seems does not yet sensibly work with them and therefore they neglect to provide Antidots Well all J can say is Viderint ipsi But they may also do well to consider that to this hour they have not from this Defender of the Church of England seen one line which was not more to the advantage of their Enemies the Sectaries then of their own Church So that abating severall hundred pounds of yearly preferments he still is what he was before his Majesties return He was pleased to stile some late Catholick Writers by the name of Ratts for not answering line by line his great Volume He must give me leave to make use of his Metaphor another way applying it to himself It is a common Observation among Mariners that when they see a Ship suddenly freed from Ratts formerly abounding there they conclude that there are some leaks in it unobserved by any but the Ratts themselves which threaten its sudden sinking Now let any one judge wherther the Doctour by publishing his Principles has not stolln out of the Church of England yet with a Latitudinarian conscience holding fast his Preferments and does not this argue that the Ratt foresees or shrewdly suspects some danger to the Ship and therefore provides for his own safety by returning to the same Sects which uncessantly plott against it and it is to be feared against the Civill State too It is a sad thing therefore that not one Protestant will open his eyes and give warning of the dangerous proceedings of their Champion Now whether that task and duty deserted by them has not been efficaciously enough undertaken and performed by the Authour of the following Treatise J leave to all indifferent Iudges to determine They are also hereby entreated to impute the delay of this Answer to the true cause above mentioned or indeed to any thing rather then to the least guilty apprehension which Catholicks may have of encountring such an Adversary as the Doctour is supposed to be by persons who are perswaded that an insolent confidence must needs be accompanied with Reason and Truth And for such persons so qualified no doubt it was that the Doctor wrote his Book not to instruct them but to imprint his own enormous passions in their minds Whereas Readers of but ordinary capacity and prudence will easily perceive that it was a consciousness of his own inability to cast any prejudice on the received Doctrins and Discipline of the Catholick Church her-self that forced him to indulge to his fancy and invention to expose to contempt and hatred of unwary Readers the Opinions and Practises of a few particular persons among Catholicks not alwayes faithfully related by him and most of them already censured by Superiours But that which has gained to him the most of his applauding Readers is his acting the Theologicall Zani after a fashion altogether new and unexpected whilst he most ridiculously imputes Fanaticism to the Catholick Church of which never any Heretick before him suspected her capable My last request to the Reader is that seeing this Treatise written in a stile so unpractised hitherto by mee and indeed so contrary to mine own inclination he will interpret it aright and believe that J judged my self obliged to neglect complements of Civility to such an Adversary If he had written like one that sought out Truth J should have condemned my self if any phrases of bitterness had escaped my pen. But in answering such a mass of Buffonry mixed with rancour and malice the Wise man has taught me my Duty Proverb xxv 5. OF FANATICISM §. 1. The Authours Motive of Writing this Treatise Doctour Stillingfleets three Heads of Accusation against the Catholick Church c. 1. THe Authour of this following Treatise may with confidence profess that it was not from a resentment of severall contemptuous Aspersions cast on him by Doctour Stillingfleet in his lately published Book that he was induced to write this Answer For who would not glory in suffring any