Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	bishop_n	church_n	england_n	1,563	5	6.0318	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33777	A sermon of conforming and reforming made to the convocation at S. Pauls Church in London / by John Colet upon Rom. xii, 2 ... writ an hundred and fiftie years since : to which is now added an appendix of Bp. Andrews and Dr. Hammonds solemn petition and advice to the convocation : with his directions to the laity how to prolong their happiness.	Colet, John, 1467?-1519.; Erasmus, Desiderius, d. 1536.; Hammond, Henry, 1605-1660.; Andrewes, Lancelot, 1555-1626.	1661 (1661)	Wing C5096; ESTC R26033	47,218	88

more fit for some one of the Fathers themselves that is to say You Prelates might have done it with far more grave authority and greater wisdome But the command of the most Reverend Father and Lord the Archbishop President of this Councel must be obeyed who laid upon me this burden which is in truth too heavie for my shoulders for I remember that the prophet Samuel said Obedience is better then sacrifice Wherefore I pray and beseech you to sustain my weakness with your goodness and patience in the first place to help me with your good prayers And before all things Let us pray to God the Father Almighty first remembring our most holy Father the Pope and all spiritual Pastours with all christen people furthermore the most reverend Father and Lord the Archbishop President of this Councel and all Bishops and all the Clergie and all the people of England remembring finally this your congregation Desiring God to inspire your minds so accordingly to agree to the benefit and fruit of the Church that ye may not seem when the Councel is finisht to have been gathered together in vain and without cause Let us all say Pater noster c. To exhort you Reverend Fathers to endeavour Reformation because nothing hath so disfigured the face of the Church as hath the fashion of secular and worldly living in Clerks and Priests I know not where more conveniently to begin my discourse then from the Apostle Paul in whose temple ye are gathered together for he writing to the Romanes and under their name to you saith ROM xii 2. Be not conformed to this world but be ye reformed by the renewing of your minde that ye may prove what is that good will of God well-pleasing and perfect THis the Apostle writ to all Christen men but most chiefly to Priests and Bishops Priests and Bishops are the light of the world For he said unto them Ye are the light of the world and he said also If the light that is in you be darkness how greāt is that darkness that is If Priests and Bishops who should be as lights run in the dark way of the world how dark then shall the secular people be Wherefore S. Paul said chiefly to Priests and Bishops Be ye not conformed to this world but be ye reformed In which words the Apostle doth two things First he forbids that we be not conformed to this world and made carnal and then he commands that we be reformed in the spirit of God and become spiritual Intending to follow this order I shall speak first of Conformation and then of Reformation Be not conformed to this world By the word world the Apostle meaneth the ways and manner of secular living which chiefly consist in four evils of this world that is in devillish pride carnal lust worldly covetousness and secular business These are in the world as S. John witnesseth 1 Epist. 2. 16. For he saith All that is in the world is either the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes or the pride of life These same things now are and reign in the Church and Ecclesiastical persons so that we may seem truly to say All that is in the Church is either the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes or pride of life I. And first to speak of pride of life How much greediness and appetite of honour and dignity is seen now adays in Clergy-men How run they yea almost out of breath from one benefice to another from the less to the greater from the lower to the higher Who seeth not this and who seeing sorroweth not And most of those which are in these dignities carry their heads so high and are so stately that they seem not to be put in the humble Bishop-rick of Christ but rather in the high Lordship and power of the world not knowing or not minding what Christ the master of all meekness said unto his disciples whom he called to be Bishops and Priests The princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them and those that be in authority have power but do ye not so Whosoever will be chief among you highest in dignity let him be your servant The son of man came not to be ministred unto but to minister Matth. 20. 25 c. By which words our Saviour doth plainly teach that a prelacy in the Church is nothing else but a ministration that an high dignity in an Ecclesiastical person ought to be nothing but a meek service 2. The second secular evil is carnal concupiscence And hath not this vice grown and encreased in the Church so far that in this most busie age the far greater number of Priests minde nothing but what doth delight and please their senses They give themselves to feasts banquetting spend their time in vain babling are addicted to hunting and hawking and in a word drowned in the delights of this world diligent onely in progging for those lusts they set by Against which sort of men S. Jude exclaims in his Epistle saying Wo unto them which have gone the way of Cain they are foul and beastly feasting in their meats without fear feeding themselves flouds of the wilde sea foaming out their own shame unto whom the storm of darkness is reserved for everlasting 3. Covetousness is the third secular evil which S. John calls the lust of the eyes and S. Paul idolatry This abominable pestilence hath so entred into the minds of almost all Priests hath so blinded the eyes of their understanding that we see nothing but that which seems to bring unto us some gain What other thing seek we now adays in the Church except fat benefices and high promotions And it were well if we minded the duty of those when we have them but he that hath many great benefices 〈◊〉 not the office of one small one and in these high promotions what other thing do we pass upon but onely our tithes and rents We care not how vast our charge of souls be how many or how great benefices we take so they be of large value Oh covetousness covetousness S. Paul justly called thee the root of all evil Of thee cometh this a heaping of benefices upon benefices Of thee so great pensions assigned from many benefices resigned Of thee so much suing for tithes for offerings for mortuaries for delapidations by the right and title of the Church For which things we contend as eagerly as for our lives O covetousness of thee it comes that these visitations of Bishops are so chargeable Of thee the corruptness of Courts and these daily new inventions wherewith the poor silly people are so vexed Of thee cometh the besyte and wantonness of u Officials O covetousness mother of all iniquity of thee comes this fervent studie of Ordinaries to dilate their jurisdictions of thee comes this peevish and raging contention in Ordinaries of thee insinuation of testaments of thee the undue sequestration of fruits of thee comes the superstitious

first part Now let us come to the second II. Of Reformation But be ye reformed by the renewing of your minde THe second thing that S. Paul commandeth is That we be reformed by the renewing of our minde that we may prove what is that good will of God well-pleasing and perfect Let us be reformed in those vices which be in us contrary to those vertues I mentioned even now that is to meekness to sobrietie to charity to spiritual occupation that as the said S. Paul writeth unto Titus Denying all 〈◊〉 and worldly lusts we may live soberly 〈◊〉 and vertuously in this present world This reformation and restoring of the Churches estate must needs b begin of you our Fathers and so follow in us your Priests and in all the Clergy You are the heads you are an example of living to us upon you we look as upon marks of our direction In you and in your lives we desire to read as in lively books how and after what manner we ought to live wherefore if you will consider and pull out the motes that be in our eyes first cast out the beam out of your own eyes 'T is an old proverb Physician heal thy self Let me beseech you spiritual Physiclans first to take your selves this purgation of manners and then afterwards offer us the same to take Now the way whereby the Church may be reformed into a better fashion is not to make new laws there be already laws enough if not too many Nothing is new under the sun as saith Solomon Eccl. 1.9 For the evils that are now in the Church were before in times past and there is no fault committed among us for which our fore-fathers have not provided very good remedies There are no trespasses but there be remedies against thē in the body of the Canon law 'T is not needfull then that new laws and new constitutions be made but that those which are made already be well kept and put in execution Wherefore I pray you let those canons and laws which are made be called for and rehearsed before you in this your assembly those canons I mean that restrain vice and those that further vertue First let those canons be rehearsed that do warn you O Fathers c not to lay hands suddenly on any man not to be too facile in admitting into holy Orders For here lies the original and spring-head of all our mischiefs that the gate of Ordination is too broad the entrance too wide and open every man that offers himself is admitted every where without putting back Hence comes it that we have such a multitude of priests who have little learning and less piety In my judgement it is not enough for a priest to construe a collect to put forth a question to answer a sophism but an honest a pure a holy life is much more necessary approved manners competent learning in holy Scripture some knowledge of the Sacraments But chiefly and above all things the fear of God and love of heavenly life Let the canons be rehearsed which command that d benefices of the Church be given onely to those that are worthy that promotions be made by the right balance of vertue not by nearest q kinred or carnal affection or acception of persons whereby it happeneth now adays that boyes and fools and ill-livers do reign and rule in the Church in stead of old men and wise and good To this end let the canons be rehearsed which forbid and oppose the dirt of e Simony Which corruption which infection which cruel and detestable pestilence doth now creep abroad like a canker in the minds of Priests so that in these days many are not afraid by 〈◊〉 and servile attendances by rewards and promises to procure to themselves great dignities Let the canons be rehearsed that command personal f residence of Curates in their Churches For of this many evils grow because all Offices now adays are performed by Vicars and Parish-priests yea and those foolish and unmeet oftentimes wicked that seek nothing among the laity but filthy lucre whereof cometh occasion of evil heresies and ill christendome in the people Let the canons be rehearsed which concern the lives of you Fathers and the honesty of us Priests which forbid a clergie-man to meddle in g merchandise that he be no h usurer no i hunter no common k gamer or player that he bear no l weapon The canons that forbid clergy-men to haunt k taverns that forbid them to have suspected familiarity with women The canons that command sobriety moderation in m apparel and temperance in adorning the body And to my Lords these Monkes Prebends and Religious men let the canons be rehearsed which command them to go the straight way that leads to heaven leaving the broad way of the world which command them not to turmoil themselves in business neither n secular nor other which command that they do not * 〈◊〉 plots sow in Princes Courts for earthly things For it is decreed in the first Councel of Calcedon That 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Can. 4. 7. Monkes ought onely to give themselves to prayer fasting and to the chastizing of the flesh and observing of their rules Above all things let the canons be rehearsed that appertain to you my Reverend Fathers and Lord-bishops laws concerning your just and b canonical election in the Chapters of your churches calling upon the holy Ghost For because those canons are not obeyed now adays but Prelates are chosen oftentimes more by the favour of men then by the grace of God hence truly it comes to pass that we have not seldome Bishops who have little spirituality in them men rather worldly then heavenly savouring more the spirit of this world then the spirit of Christ. Let the canons be rehearsed of the o residence of Bishops in their Diocesses which command that they look diligently to the health of souls that they sow the word of God that they shew themselves in their Churches at least on great holy-days that they officiate in their own persons and do sacrifice for their people that they hear the causes and matters of poor men that they sustain fatherless children and widows and exercise themselves in works of vertue Let the canons be rehearsed concerning the right bestowing of the p patrimonie of Christ the canons which command that the goods of the Church be spent not in costly building not in sumptuous apparel and pompes not in feasting and banqueting not in excess and wantonness not in q enriching of kinsfolk not in keeping of hounds but in things profitable and necessary for the Church For when S. Augustine the Monk once Bishop of England asked Pope Gregory how the Bishops and Prelates in England should spend their goods which were the offerings of faithfull people the said Pope answered and his answer is put into the decrees cap. 12. quaest 2. That the goods of the Bishops ought to be divided into four parts