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A29830
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Catholick schismatology, or, An account of schism and schismaticks in the several ages of the world : to which are prefixed some remarks on Mr. Bolde's plea for moderation / J.B.
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J. B. (J. Browne)
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1685
(1685)
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Wing B5116; ESTC R37483
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61,193
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209
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should perish is rather than a peevish Party of Dissenters should be unsatisfied who could never yet agree in the matter of their satisfaction or in what alteration condescension or concession would satisfy them But as in Queen Elizabeths time * Dr. Ham. view of the Liturgy when to satisfy the clamours of Dissenters against the Liturgy and Ceremonies upon the impetration of the Lord Burleigh it was granted them That an alteration should be made and a Classis of their own Party was appointed on purpose But what alteration the first Classis made was reprehended by a second Classis of them as more faulty than the old Liturgy and that second was reprehended by a third Classis as most faulty of all Whereby the Queen plainly saw that their clamours for alteration was for they knew not what and that it was impossible for them to agree in what they would have altered The case is the same at this day some dissent on one account others on another some hold the whole Liturgy unlawful others inexpedient only some hold it inexpedient in some Offices others in other some stick at standing or kneeling others at nothing but the circumstances of Baptism some have accounted the Scotch Covenant the great Mountain in the way others scruple nothing but reordination Grand deâ—ate So that as a great Author of their own said 'T is as easy to make a Coat for the Moon as to reconcile them to one another and make them agree in what alterations they would have To what purpose then doth any Dogmatist trouble himself with Pleas and Interposals in that behalf But to return Mr. Bolde's Story of the Emperour and Senator of Rome Serious and compassionate Enquiry I will tell him one from as good an Author as Mr. Burgess of the Emperor and Senator of Capua The People were all in a rage against the Senate and would needs have them all deposed the Emperour Pacuvius Calavius shuts up the Senators all together and claps a Guard upon them and then comes to the People and tells them All was in their power now advices them to determine their several fates according to their demerits one by one this they readily hearkened to and as they pass'd a doom upon any one he approved the Sentence but before the Execution he perswades them to bethink themselves of another and a better man to be in his room since a Senate they could not be without but here the business stuck as he had foreseen it would the People who agreed unanimously against the old Senator could by no means agree who should succeed one named this man another that but whoever was named by one Party was sure to be rejected by another that in conclusion as great a pique as they had received against the old Senate for want of agreement in better men to come in their room they unanimously concluded it best to keep the old ones in Mr. Bolde left his story to the Reader to apply and so do I. 4. Mr. Bolde's Fourthly runs thus I never yet met with any argument that I can call to mind for the absolute inforcing of some particular needless ceremonies to be observed in the Church by all who live under one Civil government but what could be of the same force if it were applyed to all the Churches in the world There is as much reason I think that every Church and Congregation for the service of God throughout the world should observe the same ceremonies as that all the Congregations in one Nation should 1. I shall not here stand to enquire how far this doth in hypothesi at least violate the 27th Canon which forbids and censures all speaking against his Majesties Authority in maters Ecclesiastical or whether this doth not in the same manner clap the brand of PERJURY so far as he is able upon all Parliaments who in the Oath of Allegiance and Supremacy which they are obliged to take before they can sit in Parliament do assert the Kings Authority in matters Ecclesiastical thus That he is Supream Moderator and Governour in all causes and over all persons as well Ecclesiastical as Civil in these his Majesties Dominions and no other Whereas if the King have no more power to inforce particular Ceremonies on all who live under the same Civil Government of England than he has to enforce it on those of Germany France Spain and other Churches he is so far from being the Supream Head and Governour or having the supream power in all causes Ecclesiastical that in all such causes within these his Dominions he hath no power at all And as in the Church of England so in all other reformed Churches there is the same power among themselves and no other As the Churches of the Lutheran Confession Dure's vindiciae give the Sacrament to none but kneeling the Geneva Churches and the Protestant Churches of France give it to none but those that stand in the act of receiving and the like ceremonies there are inforced upon all that live in those Churches under one and the same Civil Government But 2. I think it sufficient answer to this to tell Mr. Bolde that there would be the same reason for every Church throughout the world to observe the same ceremonies as for all the Congregations in one Nation in case they were all injoined by the same or alike Authority 'T is true Mr. Bolde doth seem to bound and limit his aforesaid assertion with this Parenthesis if we respect only the observations and reflections that Heathens and the like will make when they see that in one and the same Nation people professing the same Religion do observe different rites as he supposeth Heathens and the like enemies of Christianity to do on the account of Christians of different Nations observing different rites Which groundless supposal is all he alledgeth to confirm and strengthen his 4th bold assertion Now to see how impertinently this is alledged 1. No Church-ceremonies are inforced or not inforced among Christians upon any such consideration or in any such regard to Heathens as his Reason doth suppose 2. Heathens and the like enemies of Christianity cannot reasonably make any such observations reflexions and exceptions on our holy faith on the account of our observing the same or different rites in Gods service as the Reason he renders doth suppose And therefore is very frivolously and impertinently render'd Mr. Bolde's Fifthly runs thus Long and often experience hath made it undeniably evident that putttng the paenal Laws rigorously in execution against humble modest conscientious Dissenters and I plead for none but such has not answered the design for which they were intended Severity says he is not a proper method for the satisfying of mens judgements or the removing of their scruples with much more to the same purpose When Vincentius seemed to argue thus in behalf of the Dissenters of St. Augustine's time St. Augustine's Answer was Nunquid ideo negligenda
demand a Scripture prohibition or precept for every thing that humane authority imposeth on the Church is of most dangerous consequence as Mr. Baxter has soundly proved and shewed wherein by an induction of about Twenty particulars Defence of the Principles of Love p. 97 98 99 100 101. c. I shall no more than name but some of them 1. It draws men into the dangerous guilt of adding to the word of God under pretence of defending its perfection He shews how 2. It sorely prepares men for infidelity He shews how 3. It alters the very definition of the Scripture and makes it quite another thing c. 4. It tends to cast all-rational worship out of the Church c 5. It will bring in all confusion instead of pure reasonable worship c. 6. It will fright poor People from Scripture and Religion and make us our Doctrine and Worship ridiculous in the sight of all the world as he shews at large 7. All possibility of Union among Christians and Churches must perish if this error prevail and be practised c. 8. It will have a confounding influence into all the affairs and business of our lives These and as many more Mr. Baxter doth not barely name as I have done but foundly proves to be the consequence of making Scripture a particular rule of circumstantials in worship or teaching that humane authority has not power of imposing on the Church things not forbid in Scripture To all which I add That Sedition and Rebellion is not so apt to arise from any one Presbyterian Tenet whatsoever as from this for when men deny humane authority the power of imposing Church-ceremonies for want of Scripture-precept or prohibition they do on the same account call those ceremonies Humane devices uncommanded Rites Popish and Superstitious c. and therefore mark the consequence to be reformed and if the Magistrate will not reform it the people must and on this very principle have commenced the most barbarous and unnatural wars in England Scotland and other places And therefore 't is very disingenuous in Mr. Bolde not only to assert and vindicate this fundamental and most distinguishing principle of Dissenters but to accuse its contrary a most undoubted truth of Dangerous consequences when 't is so apparent that the dangerous consequences are all on the other side He proceeds on this head thus P. â—2 It is not demonstrably certain that humane authority has power any further than to punish and restrain indecencies and disorders in the Church Not to say whether this be not that speaking against the Kings Sovereign Authority in causes Ecclesiastical which the 27th Can. censures 1. It is demonstrably certain that humane authority had power to appoint Church-ceremonies and to determine the circumstantials in Religion David alter'd some things and instituted others even in the Temple-Service upon no other authority than humane Hezekiah on the same authority and no other broke the Brazen Serpent to pieces though it was a symbolical ceremony of Gods own institution He appointed the Levites to kill the Passover which by Gods appointment was to have been performed by the people themselves He preferr'd the Levites to assist the Priests in killing the other Sacrifices which they were never before admitted to So that it is demonstrably certain That humane authority had once a power to determine the circumstantials of Religion Nor can Mr. Bolde tell when or how they came to be divested of it But on the contrary when Christ said His Kingdom was not of this world he plainly intimated that he never intended to divest Governours of the authority they were possessed of 2. It 's demonstrably certain that the Scriptures do no where restrain the power of humane authority to punishing of disorders or indecencies in the Church when the Scripture commands obey every ordinance of man it supposeth in man or humane authority a power of making ordinances Church-ordinances not excepted and ubi lex non distinguit non est distinguendum It has been all along the practise of humane authority in all the reformed Churches to institute Church-discipline and to impose it upon the people and lex currit cum praxi Thus Calvin himself writes to Farellus Ep. 87. To prevent the desultory levity of those who affect novelty it always prevailed in the Church which was decreed in ancient Councils That those who would not be subject to the laws of common discipline should be dismissed from their function And Beza on the life of Calvin that subscription to their Church-discipline was enjoined not only Ministers but people 4. That every Church National has power to institute or appoint its Church-ceremonies was one principal argument that our Protestant Reformers made use of against the Papists in altering our Religion from Popish to Protestant 3. Mr. Bolde's 3d Argument runs thus The things we contend about are of such a nature they cannot bear so much weight as some lay upon them c. 1. How much the less the matters are we contend about so much the more is the sin and shame of contentious disobedience and inconformity to them 2. The more fit they are to be made a sacrifice to peace especially when in obedience to that great Gospel-precept of obedience to every humane ordinance 1 Pet. 2.13 And since Mahomet must to the Mountain or the Mountain to Mahomet as he speaks for shame let not Governours stoop to Subjects antiquity to Novelty and publick Authority the highest on earth to private fancy the most humoursome and peevish Since these things are not says the Pleader matter of such moment P. 24. as moderate men should lay out much of their zeal about He proceeds to shew how much mischief men laying out too much zeal and too much stress upon these things has occasioned he gives not so much as one instance of the mischief but instead of all instances he cites Mr. Burgess in his Sermon before King James for this Story The Roman Emperour Augustus in going to dine with a Senator of Rome saw some company dragging a man after them that made a horrid out-cry The Emperour demanding the Reason it was answered their Master had condemned him to the Fish-ponds for breaking a Glass of great value The Emperour stopp'd the Execution and when he came to the Senators house in expostulating the case with him he asked him whether he had Glasses worth a mans life That I have says the Senator Glasses that I value at the price of a Province Let 's see them says the Emperor the Senator brought them The Emperour broke them with these words Better all these perish than one man My Author says he left it to his Majesty to apply and so do I to the Reader And the Reader applies it thus The Glasses are Church-ceremonies the Senator is the Imposer of them the Emperour is the Opposer of them the breaking of the Glasses is the abolishing of the Ceremonies rather than one man