kept from the Sacrament and Communion for a crime till he profess Repentance than to be hanged or banished or ruined for it But especially the Temptation was strongest to the Bishops whose baits were the most alluring And ever since then they that most loved Wealth Power and Honour that is the worst most worldly men have been the most eager desirers and seekers of Bishopricks And while humble holy men must rather be sought to such earnest seekers are like to be the ordinary finders and possessors 11. But yet three things kept up for some time a considerable number of godly Bishops in the Churches which with the humble Presbyters kept up the Interest of sound and practical Religion 1. Those that had been tryed worthy men before Constantines conversion and the Bishop's exaltation kept their Integrity in the main though in the Nicene Council their contentious Libels shewed that we are more beholden to Constantine than to them that they fell not into such strife as their Successors did Good men may be carryed too far in Pride and Strife but they will not be mastered by them and turn against the Power of Godliness 2. The People and Inferiour Clergy had the choice of their Bishops And so though they oft had tumults as in popular Elections it will be yet the worst ambitious men were long kept out and the best oft chosen till the People and Presbyters themselves were corrupted 3. And divers good Emperours arose that took some care to promote the best But alas this had sad and frequent interruptions 12. For the Arians possest Constantine himself with hard thoughts of Athanasius and his Adherents And it could not be expected that Julian should countenance the best when Constantius and Valeus had done so much against them and got most of all the Churches headed by Arian Bishops to say nothing yet of after times 13. But now two things became matter of Contention among the Bishops and their Clergy and increased the strife from time to time The first and chief was the Old Cause greatly strengthened viz. Who should be greatest Who should have the largest fattest and most Ruling Diocess and Seat The other was Who should be taken for the most Orthodox and whose Explications of the Faith should be taken for the soundest especially about the description of the Person and immanent acts of Christ Or briefly 1. Jurisdiction and Greatness 2. Wisdom and hard words 14. Now also Constantinople contended with Rome and being the Seat of the Empire which they judged to be the true Reason of Church-preheminence they at first modestly took the second place And now the Trinity of Patriarchs was turned to five Jerusalem being made the fifth At all this Rome grudged 15. All this while the old Discipline of the Church was tolerably kept up 1. Because though much of the world had got into the Church yet a very great part were tenacious of their Heathenish Customs and prejudiced against Christians by their Contentions odiously described by Am. Marcellinus and many others and prejudiced against Constantine for his Son Crispus and Sopaters death c. and against Constantius for the Murder of Julian's Relations and being taken with the plausible parts of Julian and with the great Learning and highly extolled Lives of Plotinus Porphyrius Jamblichus Aedesius Maximus Proeresius Libanius Chrysanthius and such others described by Eunapius c. so that except Rome and Alexandria for 200 years and some few of the very great Churches for 400 the Churches were no greater than one Bishop and his Consessus might tolerably govern by the Keys 2. And all this while all the Presbyters were Church-Governours as well as the Bishop though he was their Chief and all Excommunications were to be done by joint consent And so many Church-Governours may do more than one 16. Then Councils called General having by the Emperours Grant and the Clergies Desire and Consent the Supreme Church-Power it was in these Councils that the Pride Ambition and Domination of all the worldly Prelates that were too soon got in did exercise it self as the valour and wit of Souldiers in a field of War And as 1. The good men yet among them 2. And the Articles of Faith yet retained by them did cause them to do much good against some Heresies and Disorders so the Pride and Turbulency yea ignorance of the rest caused them to become the occasions of the doleful Schisms and Heresies and Enmity of Christians against each other which continue to this day unhealed 17. These hurtful Contentions in Councils at first prevailed but little and that at Nice did much more good I think than harm And after at Constant a little more hurt was done and much good And those that followed did worse and worse till the proud worldly Spirit contracted Malignity and so much prevailed that for a thousand years at least the Bishops with their Prelatical Clergy and their Councils have been the grand Corruption and Plague of the Church which many of the most Learned Expositors of the Revelation take to be the Image of the Beast and Dr. H. Moore calls it a Heathenish Christianity which they have made their Religion 18. In their progress to all this as the Diocesses first grew up from our Parochial Magnitude towards that of the present Diocesan so the very Pastoral Power of all the rest of the Presbyters was by degrees taken away so far as that they had no consenting power in Ordinations or Excommunications unless the Bishop would chuse a few for his Council so that the proper power of the King 's was confined to one Bishop over many hundred Parishes and so Discipline became an impossible thing save as it served the Bishops against some that they disliked And so the Church which was as the Garden of Christ became like the Commons and good and bad were little differenced in Communion 19. Yet because the Power must still be useful to the Bishops ends as he sees cause some shadow of the old exercise must be kept up But the Bishop having not leisure for the tenth part of the labour which this very shadow required Lay-men are made his Chancellours to decree Excommunications and Absolutions and to Govern by the Church Keys like a secular Court And Commissaries Officials Surrogates and other hard names and things are set up instead of the Presbyters and their Antient Office 20. By this time the Antient Species of the Churches was altered and whereas it was long held that a Church and Bishop were Correlates and there were no more Churches than Bishops now many hundred or a thousand Parishes are become no Churches but parts of one Diocesan Church which is the lowest and many score or hundred of the old sort of Bishops all cast out and swallowed up by one Just as if a thousand or some hundred Schools should have but one Governing Schoolmaster and be but one School but each part have an Usher to read to the Boyes
on the other IV. The Council that called the Emperours and others Princes power of investing Bishops the Henrician Heresie and judg'd the Bishops that had been for it to be dig'd out of their graves and burnt V. The Subjecting and debasing of all Christian Princes making them but as the Body and the Moon and the Bishops to be as the soul and the sun Especially the General Lateran Council which decreed Transubstantiation and all to be Hereticks that denied it And oblige all temporal Lords to exterminate all such Hereticks on pain of Excommunication deposition damnation VI. The Councils of Constance and Basils that were for Reformation how falsly and cruelly they dealt with Hus and Jerome and rejected the four great requests of the Bohemians and fixed their pollutions VII The Councils of Florence and that of Trent which had more Learned men who yet more obstinately managed the Enmity to Reformation VIII The present State of the Universal Church throughout the World as it is divided into Papists Protestants Greeks Moscovites Georgians with the Circassians and Mengrelians Armenians Nestorians Jacobites Cophtis Abasines Maronites Melchites And what thoughts these have of one another And I would desire Mr. Morrice to tell us 1. Whether he believes not verily that all these Instances prove that the Bishops have been the chief cause and that by Ambition Pride and Worldliness 2. Whether it be not the Bishops that in the Roman and other Parties now are the greatest hinderers of Reformation and of Concord and it would not be soon done were it not through them 3. Where it is that he will stop in his Vindication of the Bishops and their Councils and go no further and by what cogent reason 4. Whether he thought he had well defended the Church-Tyranny which I accused 1. By vindicating the first Ages and others whom I praised and accused not 2. And by letting fall his Vindication save a few consequent quibbles at the fourth General Council which was in 451. And so seems to vindicate the Bishops and Councils but for the space of 150 years of the time that I mentioned their degeneration 5. Whether if the Bishops had been willing when they had the King's Commission to make necessary alteration or were but to this day willing to prefer things necessary before things hurtful or indifferent we might not live in happy and holy Love and Peace in England 6. Whether he can blame a man that believes in Christ for lamenting the doleful corruption and division of the Christian world and for enquiring of and lamenting the sinful causes 7. If that Church Prelacy which they justly call the best in all the world can endure no more Parish Discipline than we have nor can endure such a Ministry as are silenced by hundreds or thousands than whom no Nation on Earth abroad that I can hear of hath better can you blame us for suspecting that somewhat is amiss with them and more with others 8. I hope you will yet remember that I did not appear as an accuser of Prelacy or Conformity but as importuned by your selves to give the reasons why I dare not take your Covenant and Oath never to endeavour any alteration of your Church Government and that after seventeen years silence My prayers to God shall be my endeavour for these following Alterations 1. That the Primitive Discipline may be exercised in the Parish Churches as Bucer importuned the King and Bishops de Regno Dei c. 2. That to that end we may either have so many Bishops under the Diocesan as be capable to do it or the Presbyters enabled allowed and obliged to do it 3. And that we may not instead of it have only a distant Court of men that know not the Parishioners where a Lay Chancellour decreeth Excommunication and Absolution which the Parish Priest must publish though his conscience be against it 4. And that Diocesans may not silence faithful Ministers without such cause as Christ will allow nor set up ignorant bad ones and bind the Parishioners to hear and communicate with no other I am so far from precise expectations from Diocesans or from reviling them that I do constantly praise them as very good Bishops who do no harm or but a little and if they should never preach themselves so they will not hinder others 9. And as for my calling Things and Persons as they are I hope you will not say that it was out of Malice that Anastasius Platina Massonius Stella Sigibert Baronius Genebrard Binnius c. have recorded such horrid crimes of Popes and others also of Prelates And is it malice in me to transcribe their History I am of Dr. Henry Moore 's mind who saith Mystery of Iniq. p. 388. Hence it is plain that they are the truest friends to Christendom even to Rome it self that do not sooth them up in their sins by mitigating and hiding their soul miscarriages but deal apertly and plainly with them for their own safety that neither admit nor invent subterfuges to countenance or palliate their Idolatrous and superstitious practices but tell them plainly how much they are apostatized from the true Worship of God and Christ into Paganism and Idolatry Better are the rebukes of a faithful friend than the hired flatteries of a glozing mercenary I pray mark this well 10. I take two things to be the degenerating and corruption of Episcopacy 1. When they became so bad that they were not willing to do good according to their undertaken Office Bad men will do ill in any place 2. When they had put themselves into a state of incapacity that they could not do the Good undertaken were they never so willing 1. Since great Baits of Wealth and Domination have tempted the worst men to be the Seekers Bishops have rarely been good except under a Saint-like Prince or People that had the Choice nor are ever like to be And what work the Enemies of Holiness will make by abusing Christ's Name against himself is easie to know such will take the best men for the worst and call them all that 's naught that they may quiet their Consciences in destroying them 2. And since a Diocess of many hundred or score Parishes hath had but one Bishop for Discipline the work is become impossible to the best But when a few Bad men will mercinarily undertake Impossibilities and so Badness and Impossibility go together alas what hope but of a better world above Saith Luther de Concil Eccles p. 300. Sed quam sunt intenti hanc crassam asininam â—atuitatem Unus Episcopus nonnunquam habet tres Episcopatus vel Dioceses tamen vocatur Unius Uxoris maritus cum habet tantum unum Episcopatum tamen interdum habet centum ducentas quingentas Parochias aut etiam plures vocatur tamen Sponsus unius Ecclesiae Hi non sunt digami Tam insulsas ineptissimas naenias recipit mens humana it a permittente Deo cum a
in Christian Love and Peace and we offer them as unquestionable security for our Peaceableness Loyalty and Orthodoxness as the said Oaths Promises or Professions can be 6. They tell us Nothing is to be abated us and we must cease preaching the Rule must not be altered we will do more harm in the Church than out Projects for Moderation most distract the Church There is no Concord or Liberty to be expected but by our total obedience to the Bishops It is obeying the Church yea the Universal Church of Bishops that is the only way to Concord 7. To confute this Supposition which is the root of our Calamities I transcribe out of History and the Acts of Councils how great a hand in the Schisms and Heresies and Confusions of Christians those Bishops have had who have swelled up above the primitive species by vast Diocesses Wealth and claim of Government over other Churches and Bishops and that it is notorious that this Grandeur and exorbitant power of Bishops singly or in Councils hath been so far from keeping the Church from Schisms that it hath been one of the greatest causes of the Schisms of most Ages since such a sort of Prelacy sprung up and that Popery came not up in a day but rose from that Juniority to its present Maturity This was my work § 13. He truly tells you that the Original of all mischiefs is the Lusts that war in our Members and not this or that Order of Men. When the World had a good Pope if God would bless that Order of men some think he might do more good than any other man But he hath toucht the Core of the Churches Malady Verily the grand Strife is between the Flesh and Spirit the seed of the Serpent and of the Woman And if Patriarchs and Diocesans were but as much set on the promoting of a holy and heavenly Life as those Ministers are whom they silence and imprison they might do much good though the largeness of their Diocess render them uncapable of performing the 40th part of a true Bishops Work No doubt but Bishop Hall and Potter and Usher c. did much good by such preaching writing and good living as others use that are no Bishops But will fire burn without fewel And will it not burn if combustible fewel be contiguous Do not the Lusts that war in our Members live upon that food which we are forbidden to provide Do you think that the Lust of the Flesh doth not more desire Riches than Poverty Honour than a low Estate Domination over others to have our Will on all than humble Subjection Where the Carkass is there will the Eagles be gathered Do not you your self say that the Bishops and Church grew more corrupt after the third Century Do you believe that when a Bishops Power was made equal to a great Lords or more and all his Pomp and Riches answerable that the Lust of the Flesh would not more greedily desire it than it would desire a meer mediocrity Or that a worldly proud man would not seek more for Lordship and Greatness than a Synesius and such others as you say fled from it If the poor retired Monks were as bad as you make them what wonder if great Lordly Bishops were much worse Will not the fire of Lust grow greater as the fewel is greater I am satisfied that Riches and Power well used may greatly serve the Interest of Religion But two things must be considered 1. That the greatest Power and Wealth being far more desired by carnal Worldlings that is by bad men than by mortified heavenly minded men the more men desire them the more eagerly they will seek them by Friends Flattery or any means and therefore the liker they are to attain them except when the choosers are some resolved godly men And so which way can a Succession of the worst men be avoided But a mediocrity that doth not to the Flesh overweigh the labours and difficulties of the sacred Office will encourage the good and not much tempt the bad Or if good men will be never so bountiful to pious uses their bounty and Church-Lands may better maintain Labourers enough for the work than be made a snare to one 2. And that Power which depopulateth and destroys its end is unlawful in its very state as well as in its use The Power of one man to be sole Physician to the City and to have none but Apothecaries under him or of one man to be the only School-Master in the County and have none but Ushers under him is rather to be called Destruction than Power It is Bishops casting out Power that I am against that is the necessary Power of the Keys in the Parish Ministers or putting down necessary Bishops and also a Power to silence Christs faithful Ministers and deprive Souls of the necessary means by imposing things needless in themselves and sinful in the receiver that after his best search believes them such Seeing then that we are agreed that it is the Lust that warreth in men that is the corrupter of the Church let but the face of the whole Romane Clergy these 1000 Years at least tell us whether it be not the swelling of the Power and Wealth of Bishops that hath caused so long a Succession of a worldly lustful tyranical Clergy § 14. And he truly saith p. 306. that the generality of men when they have gained Wealth and Honour are commonly willing to secure the enjoyment of those Possessions by letting things run in their ordinary course The Spanish Proverb is The World is a Carryon and they are Dogs that love it and they will snarle at any that would take it from them and if it lie in the Ditch Dogs rather than Men will gather about it and its pitty such men should by such a Bait be tempted into the sacred Chair And he truly adds that Repulse and Disappointment will end such mens Patience For really as the man is such are his desires It is not only turgent Prelacy but a Prelatical Spirit that troublerh the Church And If Novatianus or Arius would fain be a Prelate it is in his heart and no wonder if he be a Schismatick Trahit sua quemque voluptas Appetite is the Spring of Action All the Popes Clergy are much of his mind for they participate of his worldly Interest and depend on him and therefore participate of the Papal Spirit The Interest of the General and Army are conjunct § 15. And its true that he saith that the Bishops Interest obligeth him to maintain Peace and Unity And so no doubt from that sense of Interest it is endeavoured in Italy Spain France Germany c. when a strong man armed keeps his house the things which he possesseth are in Peace But whether therefore the People did ill that forsook the Bishops and followed Luther or are all bound to cleave to the Bishops Unity is the doubt § 16. Whether it be true p. 310 that
Stile or Passion and also tells me that if making odious Gods servants silencing and persecuting faithful Ministers and Perjury should prove as great a guilt and danger of Destruction to the Land as is feared I cannot justifie my long Silence nor that I use no more plainness and fervency in calling the guilty to Repent The CONTENTS I. A Specimen of the Way by which this Generation confuteth their Adversaries in several Instances II. In the General Part § 1. Hard for young men to know what Teachers or History to believe § 7. Tempting Reasons for Papacy § 8. Evident against it § 9. The Steps by which Bishops ascended to Papacy § 15. The different Opinions of Popery in the English § 18. The Case of Fact discerned what Judgment I settled in about Church-Power § 20. For what Mr. M. hath wrote with so much displeasure against me § 22. Instances of above an Hundred Councils besides particular Bishops all before An. 1050. of whom I appeal to the Consciences of all sober Men whether they have not been the Tearers of the Church General Instances of the greater Schisms since then by popish Bps. Some Questions put to Mr. M. and some Reasons to abate his displeasure § 22. Of a late Book of the History of my Life to prove me the worst of men § 24. Whether I be guilty of falsifying History III. The particular Answer to Mr. M's Vindication Ch. 1. The Reason and Design of my History of the Schisms of Bishops and Councils Ch. 2. Whether we ought to tell of the Bishops and Councils Church-corrupting Ways Ch. 3. Of Mr. M's Industry to shew me to be unlearned Ch. 4. Whether I vainly name Historians which I never read Ch. 5. Of my use of Translations and following Binnius Ch. 6. His charge of my own mistranslations and mistakes Ch. 7. His false Supposition that I am only for a Church of one Congregation Ch. 8. His false Supposition that I am against Diocesanes when it 's only the ill species Ch. 9. And that I am a Independent and yet plead for Presbyterians Ch. 10. His false Accusation that I make the Bishops the cause of all Heresies and Schisms Ch. 11. And that I mention all the Bishops Faults and none of their Goodness Ch. 12. His Accusation of Spite Malice and Railing examined Dr. Burnet satisfied Ch. 13. His Supposition that I speak against all Bishops Councils Ch. 14. Some mens Credit about ancient History tried by their History of this Age. Twenty Instances of the History of our times My own experience of it Whether I hate compliance with Superiours or to preach by Licence Ch. 15. Mr. M. Magisterial authorising or rejecting what Historians he pleases His Accusation of Socrates and Sozomene and valuing Valesius Simond c. Ch. 16. His Observation on my Notes of credible and incredible History His Instances of my Railing particularly considered Whether the word Hereticating be railing or causeless An Instance of Fifty five of Bp. St. Philastrius's accused Heresses by which I desire any sober man to judge Other Instances Whether St. Theophilus or Socrates and Sozomene were the Criminals Even Pope Honorius and Vigilius hereticated for being wiser than other Popes Ch. 17. Of his Censure of my Design and Church Principles Whether I be guilty of exposing Christianity more than Julian Lucian Ch. 18. Of his 2d Chap. Who is most against Discipline Of Anathematising Whether Novatus was a Bishop or an ordaining Presbyter Councils for rebaptising His Self-contradictions Some Questions to him Whether the Diocesane Party as Mr. Dodwel who nullifie our Sacraments are Hereticks if the Re-baptisers were such The old qu. was not of Rebaptising Hereticks but of such as Hereticks had baptised Of the Donatists and many Councils Of our Liturgy's Rule to find Easter-day What the Novatians held Petavius and Albaspineus Testimony of them His quarrels about Epiphanius the Arians the Audians divers Synods Antioch Of the Circumcellians Optatus of the Donatists as Brethren His Excuse of the Bishops Ch. 19. Of the 1st General Council at C. P. Whether Bishops followed Emperours Their usage of Greg. Nazianz. Of the Priscillianists the Bishops and Martin Of my Letter to Dr. Hill Of the Council at Capua Jovinian Easter African Bps. Donatists Theophilus Aliars Ch. 20. His 5 Chap. Of the 1st Ephes Council His reviling Socrates and Sozomene as against Cyril Cyrils Story Of the Presbyterians Cruelty Nestorius Case His cavils against my Translations The effects of that Council at this day considered Ch. 21. Of the 2d Ephes Council Of Cyril the Eutychians and Dioscorus Ch. 22. Of the Calcedon Council Pulcheria and Eudocia What one sound man can do in a Council Whether our late Conciliatory Endeavours about Arminianism have been as vain as these Councils Of Theodos 2. and the Eutychians The whole story of that Council Luther as well as I makes the Controversie verbal Of the Bishops Peccavimus Many Accusations refelled More of the Councils Successes and late Conciliators The Westminster Synod Mr. M's way of Concord Of the old Conformity and ours Mr. Edwards Gangrena and the late Sects and Heresies Ch. 24. Of his 7th Chapter Of the old Heresies Whether Projects for Moderation have been the chief distracters of the Church He ost falsly saith that I charge the Bishops with all the heresies in the world What it is that I say of them The true cause of Schism confessed His misreports of the cause and Bishops His false saying of me that I compared Oliver and his son to David and Solomon My profest Repentance which he seigneth me an Enemy to What Nonconformity is and what his misreports of it An explitatory profession of the meaning of this Book against Misinterpreters THE Ready Way OF Confuting Mr. Baxter A SPECIMEN OF THE PRESENT MODE OF Controversie in England Joh. 8. 44. 1 King 22. 22. Prov. 29. 12. 19. 5 9. Rev. 21. 8. 22. 15. IN 1662. Dr. Boreman of Trinity-Colledge in Cambridge Published a Book against me as having written to Dr. Hill against Physical-Predetermination to Sin and in it saith That it is reported That I kill'd a Man with my own Hand in cold Blood and if it be not true I am not the first that have been wronged The Man though promoted to the Charge of this Parish St. Giles in the Fields was accounted so weak forbearing his Ministry and saying he was suspended some Years before he died that I thought it vain to take publick Notice of his Words neither imagining whence he had them nor ever hearing of them before But a few Weeks before the late Plot was reported one Mr. P. came to me and told me That at the Coffee-House in Fullers-Rents where Papists and Protectants used familiarly to meet he provoking the Papists to Answer my Books or to Dispute with me was answered by a Gentleman of this Parish said to be of the Church of England That Mr. Baxter had kill'd a Man in cold Blood with his
commanded it 5. I find that Christ hath himself done the work for which the necessity of Universal Humane Government by Pope or Councils is pretended viz. He hath made and caused his Apostles peculiarly qualified for it to record Universal Church-Laws even as many as are Universally necessary And if so I cannot but think 1. That he hath done it better than Man can do 2. And that to add more unnecessarily must needs be a snare and burden to the Church 3. And that it must be an usurping the Power of Christ For if there be no other Universal Governour there is no other that hath Authority to make Universal Laws Therefore this is Treason against Christ and a making Man a Vice-Christ 6. I found that there is not so much as a Natural Capacity in any one or many for an Universal Government Church-Government being of such a nature as maketh it far more impossible than for one Monarch or Aristocracy to Govern all the Earth And to do it by a truly General Council or by the Diffused Bishops of all the World is further from possibility than to do it by a Pope 7. I searcht the Councils pretended to be General to see whether they had made any better Laws than Christ's or made any desirable addition And I found 1. That while they were not wholly Papists they never pretended to make Canons for any Christians but only those in the Roman Empire 2. And that it had been much happier for the Churches if they had made no more Laws than Christ had made them for holy Doctrine Worship and Church-Discipline and had only as Teachers expounded and applied the Laws of Christ 8. I considered the Present State of the Church Universal and I find it such as no Party of Christians in the World doth own The Pope pleadeth for an Universal Soveraignty and all his Clergy do the same some saying it is in Councils some in the Pope and most in both together or Councils approved by the Pope And Protestants Greeks Nestorians Jacobites and almost all other Christians in the World accuse this Roman Church and Claim The Papists condemn the rest The Greeks Arminians and almost all the rest accuse each other 9. I considered what Popery is that is Clergy-Power in its height and what it hath done in the World And I found 1. A woful description of the lives of multitudes of Popes recorded by their own most credited Historians And 2. I found multitudes of vicious Canons obtruded by them as Laws on the Universal Church 3. I found most doleful Histories of the Wars and Rebellions that they have caused from Age to Age. 4. I found that they have corrupted the Doctrine of Christ in abundance of particulars 5. And that they have lockt up the Sacred Scriptures from the Vulgar as they have not done their Canons 6. And that they have turned God's Spiritual Worship into a multitude of Superstitious Rites and scenical Ceremonies and Shews 7. And that they have turned Spiritual Church-Discipline into a secular sort of Tyranny 8. And that they have most schismatically unchurched the rest of the Churches because they are not Subjects of the Pope 9. And that they have branded the soundest Churches with the name of Hereticks while they are the grand Heresie of the World 10. And that they have been and are the greatest Silencers of sound Preachers and hinderers of true Piety and Reformation in the Church 11. And that they have wofully vitiated the People that are their Subjects so that odious wickedness fed by Ignorance abounds among them and it is their Votaries that are called Religious and a few Canonized persons Saints as if Religion and Sanctity were rarities or any could be saved without them 12. Lastly I find that they have lived upon Blood like Leeches and have been the cruellest Persecutors of holy men on pretence of killing Hereticks And that it is this to which they trust 10. I took not this notice of them upon meer prejudice but have read I think as many Papists Books as Protestants or any other against them Nor have I taken it upon dark Scripture Prophecies suspecting my understanding of them But 1. The matter of fact from themselves 2. Against their Papal Supremacy from such Arguments as are fully collected by Dr. Barrow 3. Against their heinous Church-corruptions from such Moral Evidence as Dr. H. Moore hath fully gathered in his Mystery of Iniquity 4. Against their pretences of Tradition and Antiquity I fetcht my Arguments from the Histories and Authors which they themselves alledge and especially their Councils with the Fathers Writings § 9. Seeing the Church in this sad Condition and the Papal part so greatly vitiated I considered how long it had so been And I found that the Pope and his Bishops grew not up like a Mushroom in a day but had been long in thriving to maturity And I met with no man that could just tell what Year or what Age the disease or tumor did begin Bishop Bromhall thinks if they will abate their last 400 years Innovations we may have hope of agreeing with them Bishop Gunning will own no General Councils but the first six some will receive eight some but four Mr. Morrice here goeth no further in his defence of them whatever he think Some begin Popery with Leo the great some with Gregory's Successour But it is most certain that it was first an Embrio and next an Infant and so grew up from Childhood to maturity by degrees And the first Church-corruption was not that which we now call Popery And it is as certain that the tumor did neither begin nor grow up in the Bishop of Rome alone but in other Bishops who grew up with him were his strength and Councils and he their Head § 10. It is known when the Greeks and Romans began most notably to strive which should be greatest and how the division increased and when and how it came to an anathematizing or excommunicating each other § 11. It 's notorious that it was from the Councils of Calcedon and Ephesus that the great separated bodies of Nestorians and Eutychians now called Jacobites that possess the East and South were broken off with Nestorius and Dioscorus and so continue to this day § 12. I considered who were the Chief Authors of all these lamentable Schisms and Church-corruptions in the several Ages when they rose and who continue them to this day And I found that many Princes were much to be blamed and the People not Innocent no not the Religious Monks But the Bishops that had the main Church-power by abusing it were with their Clergy the principal Causes and so are to this day The breaches might yet be healed in East West and South were it not for them § 13. Finding this in History of undoubted Truth I next considered what was the Cause that the Bishops and their Clergy should become such Church-corrupters and Dividers and still continue the Churches miseries And
and finding that I and such others are accused as being disobedient to them and for not swearing and covenanting never to endeavour any alteration of their present Church-Government and all excommunicate by the Canon that say there is any thing in it even from the Archdeacon downward to the rest in Office repugnant to the Word of God I took it at last to be my duty to give the Reasons of my dissent in a full Treatise of Episcopacy And because I perceived young men and strangers to former times deceived by the general noise How Antient and Universal Episcopacy hath been as if all that is called Episcopacy were but one and the same thing or as if we were against the Primitive Episcopacy therefore I suddenly and too hastily for want of time bestowed a few weeks in summing up the Heads of the History of Bishops and Councils out of a few Historians which were most common next at hand and of most credit with those whose faults I opened That it might be truly known How much the tumified degenerate sort of Prelacy had caused the Divisions and Calamities of the Church § 21. For this Mr. Morrice as fame saith and many more are so greatly offended with me and say of me herein what they do And on pretence of Vindicating the Primitive Church which untruly implyeth that I who vindicated it against corrupters did oppose it he defendeth the corruptions and sinful miscarriages and diseases of the Prelates And this he doth 1. By striving to make me contemptible as unlearned as if that would excuse the sins which I rehearse and lament He findeth in one place through my haste and heedlesness a word of Theodoret misplaced and the word Calami translated Quills which he thinks should be Reeds and one or two more such as if he prevaricated and had a design to extol the Book which he finds no more and greater fault in than he really hath done And he proveth it likely that I never saw the Histories that stood by me near twenty years because the Printer put a Comma between Marquardus and Freherus I think there are a dozen Comma's misplaced in my whole Book when he himself saith of his own Book The faults that have escaped are almost infinite But of these things more anon 2. He loudly and frequently chargeth me with malicious falsifying History and when he cometh to the proof I have shewed you who the falsifier is 3. The great thing I am accused of is making the Bishops more the causes of Heresie Schism and Violence than they were And of that I have said nothing but what I think I have fully proved And let the Reader judge by this following Catalogue Domineeâ—ing Pride hath been the chief cause of Heresies and Schisms especially working in the Clergy to tumid Prelacy and Tyranny I. I before noted how the Apostles began to strive who should be greatest till the effusion of the Spirit after Christs rebukes had cured them And what tiranny Diotrephes used through love of Preheminence II. If the doubtful stories of Simon Magus be true his tumor was more than Papal And Epiphanius makes Menander Saturnilus Basilides to be but his Off-spring The Original of the Nicolaitans and Gnosticks who Epiphanius saith had ensnared himself once is utterly uncertain Carpocras Cerinthus Ebion Valentinus Secundus Ptolomaeus were all but Birds of the same Gnosticks Nest a crazed sort of men that mingled Christianity Platonism and Magical Imaginations and what they were themselves is not known Such was Marcus Colarbasus Heracleon the Ophitae the Cainites the Sethians Cerdo Marcion was a Bishop's Son cast out for vice and Lucian Apelles and Severus his Off-spring the Heads of their little Sects whether Bishops or not is unknown What kind of Hereticks Tertullian Tatianus and Origen were and how many faults as soul Lactantius and many not numbered with Hereticks have is well known And among all these in those early daies till there were Popes and Diocesans such as now in the world none such could be Hereticks III. Many Councils contended about the time of Easter and Victor with one part of Bishops excommunicated Polycrates and the Arian Bishops while as Socrates and Sozomen tell us the Churches that left it indifferent had peace IV. A Council of the best Bishops at Carthage decreed Rebaptizing V. A Council of the Bishops of Cappadocia Cilicia Galatia c at Iconium for Rebaptizing those Baptized by Hereticks And Stephen Bishop of Rome excommunicated them all VI. A Council at Synadis and divers others decreed the same Rebaptizing VII Divers more African Councils of good Bishops with Cyprian decree the same whom Stephen Bishop of Rome condemneth VIII Divers Bishops are said to be Sabellian Hereticks IX Paulus Samosatenus Bishop of Antioch was a Heretick X. The Council of Bishops at Cirta in Numidia under Secundus Mr. M. calls worse than I do XI A Carthage Council of 70 Bishops An. 306. set up the Donatists Schism striving for the preheminence who should be Bishop of Carthage XII An. 308. Another Donatists Council had 270 Bishops Many more Councils they had XIII The first General Council at Nice we honour and assent to its Creed But thank Constantine for burning all their Libels and keeping peace by his presence and speech XIV The Schism made by Meletius and Peter Bishops is well known XV. The Heresie of Arius a Presbyter that would have been a Prelate quickly infected Eusebius Nicomed If not Eusebius Caesariensis and divers other Bishops XVI Epiphanius saith that Audius was driven to his Heresie by being long abused beaten and at last excommunicated for reproving the Bishops and Priests for their Covetousness Luxury and other sins And so he became a Bishop himself XVII Eusebius Nicom made Bishop of Constantinople whom you tell us Valesius thinks was no Heretick hired a Whore at Antioch to father her Child on Eustathius the Bishop there and got more Bishops to depose him and the Emperour to banish him XVIII A Council of Bishops at Tyre unjustly condemn and persecute Athanasius XIX Three Bishops saith Mr. M. overcome with too much Wine and persuasion ordained Novatian falsly Bishop of Rome before this aforementioned XX. A Council at Jerusalem An. 335. tryed and approved Arius Faith and restored him XXI A Council at Constantinople condemned Marcellus Ancyranus and Athanasius and justified Arius XXII A Council of near 100 Bishops at Antioch 36 being Arians deposed Athanasius XXIII Another Council at Antioch make a new Creed without 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 XXIV A Council of 376 Bishops at Sardica decree Appeals to Rome which Augustin and the African Bishops were against XXV The Semi-Arian Bishops went to Philippopolis and condemned such as the other at Sardica had absolved but cast out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as not scriptural and cast dreadful accusations on Athanasius Paulus C. P. and Marcellus XXVI An. 350. A Council at Milan received Ursacius and Valens Arians XXVII Stephen an Arian Bishop hired a
senex ad illorum adspectum etiam corpore commoveretur Dignitatum magnarum divitiarum contumax contemptor neque quicquam prius otio habuit ac libertate And I think as it is said of Cuspinian Ratus se satisfacturum ingenuo Lectori siquae verissima esse comperisset simplicissima oratione mandaret posteritati satis enim est historico ut praeclare dixit apud Ciceronem Catullus non esse Mendacem And as to my ends and expectations I am not so vain as to write with any great hope of persuading many if any who are possest of large Diocess Wealth and Power to forsake them much less to cure the common Thirst that corrupted Nature is possest with and to be the means of a Publick Reformation If I may satisfie my Conscience and save some from being deceived by false History about the Causes of the Antient Schisms it 's all that I can hope for Had I lived in Alb. Crantzius daies I might perhaps have said as he of Luther Frater Frater abi in cellam tuam dic Miserere mei Deus Et de Canonicis 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dictis Nunquam posse eos reduci ad meliorem srugem nisi prius a viris doctis expugnata arce i. e. Papatu And for my self none of the Interested mens reproaches are unexpected to me Anger will speak I know what the Papists say of the Reformers and all the Protestants And yet I expect that all at last will turn to the disgrace of falshood by putting men to search Church-History for the Truth The case of Capnio is worth a brief recital A covetous Jew pretending Conversion contrived with the Fryers and Inquisitors to get a great deal of money from the Jews by procuring an Edict from the Emperour to burn all the Jews Books that so they might purchase them of the Fryers The Emperour will first hear what Capnio a great Hebrician saith Capnio adviseth to spare all that only promoted the Hebrew Literature and burn only those that were written against Christ Hockstrate and the Fryers were vext thus to lose the prey and accused Capnio of Heresie The cause is oft tryed especially at Rome All the Learned Hebricians were for Capnio The Fryers raged the more This awakened many Learned men to search into the Cause and armed them against the Fryers Galatinus Hutten Erasmus c. are for Capnio The Fryers accuse them also of Heresie But by this they stirred up such a Party of the most Learned men against them that when Tezelius came to vend his Indulgencies Luther had so many ready to joyn against the Inquisitors and Mercenary cheating Fryers as greatly furthered the Reformation And two or three ingenuous Conformists who have lately written against the violent battering Canoneers do tell us that some are like to be excited by the Overdoing of the Accusing silencing Party to search better into the matter of Fact and Right till they can distinguish between an Eucrasie and a Tympanite Or if this world be incurable they cannot keep us out of the heavenly Jerusalem where there is no Errour Schism nor Persecution because no Ignorance Malignity or Pride but the General Assembly of perfect Spirits are united in one perfect Head in perfect Life and Light and Love The particular Defence of the History of Councils and Schisms An Account to Mr. Morrice why my mentioning the Church-distracting sins of the Clergy when worldly grandeur corrupted them is not a Dishonouring but a Honouring of the Primitive Church And to vindicate those sins is no Vindicat ion of the Primitive Church CHAP. I. The Reason and Design of my History of Bishops and Councils § 1. THEY that know the men with whom I have to do and the Cause which I have in Controversie with them will easily understand my purpose The Persons with whom I am to deal are such as hold 1. That a General Council of Bishops or the Colledge of Bishops Governing per Literas formatas out of Council are the Supreme Governing Power over the Universal Church on Earth having the Power of Universal Legislation and Judgment 2. That among these the Pope is justly the Patriarch of the West and the Principium unitatis to the whole and the ordinary President in such Councils And say some It belongs only to the President to call them and they are but rebellious Routs that assemble without a just call 3. That there is no concord to be had but in the Obedience to this Universal Governing Church But all Persons and all National Churches are Schismaticks who live not in such Subjection and obedience 4. That such as the Diocesan Episcopacy which is over one lowest Church containing hundreds or multitudes of Parishes and Altars without any other Bishop but the said Diocesan is that Episcopacy which all must be subject to while it is subject to the Universal supreme 5. That every Christian must hold subjective Communion with the Bishop of the place where he liveth And say some must not practise contrary to his Commands nor appeal for such practice to Scripture or to God 6. That if this supreme Power silence the Diocesans or these Diocesans silence all the Ministers in City or Country they must Cease their Ministry and forsake the Flocks 7. And say divers of them They are no true Churches or Ministers that have not ordination from such Diocesans yea by an uninterrupted succession from the Apostles And for want of this the Forein reformed Churches are no true Churches but the Church of Rome is Much more of this Nature I have already transcribed and confuted out of A. Bishop Bromhall Dr. Heylins Life of A. Bishop Laud Mr Thorndike Mr Dodwell and divers others § 2. The first thing then in my intention is to shew that the Roman Grandeur which is thought to be the Glory of the Church on Earth and the necessary means of its Unity safety and true prosperity hath proved clean contrary even the means of Church corruption in Doctrine Worship Discipline Conversation the Soil of the most odious crimes the means of tyranny suppression of true piety and persecution of Gods faithful Servants and of rebellious War and cruel bloodshed § 3. To this end I described the steps by which the Clergy ascended to the Papal height For as all Protestants justly maintain that their Corruption of Doctrine Worship came not in at once but by slow degrees so do they also of the Papal Government and discipline And they commonly shew the vanity of the Papists demand who ask us who was the man and which was the year as if the world had gone to bed in simple Christianity and awaked Papists the next morning Whereas it is most evident in all Church history that the Clergy leaving the Christian Purity Simplicity and Love did climb the ladder step by step till they ascended to the Papal height And it 's a meer dream of them that think it was the Bp. of Rome alone
begun The Scots Commissioners by degrees acquainted them with Presbytery and Mr. Burton's Protestation Protested and the five Dissenters with Independency Two or three Independents were in the House of Lords and some few in the House of Commons It was Episcopal-men that made up the main Body These were of two sorts The one sort thought Episcopacy of Divine Institution but not Chancellors Deans and Chapters Arch-Deacons Officials c. The other sort thought that Episcopacy not rampant was the best Government Jure humano But that the Magistrate being Chief might set it up or take it down as he see most for the common good These were called by some Erastians And that these at first were inconsiderable is History written in despight of Evidence Let any man 1. Read what Parliaments formerly said 2. And what many English Divines wrote for the Jus humanum against the Jus Divinum and what Testimony Prin hath given of it 3. And what Dr. Stillingfleet hath produced for it in his Irenicon 4. And how commonly it was owned by Conformists then in Conserence 5. And how commonly the Lawyers were for the Humane Right 6. Yea and the Civilians themselves and then let him take this Historian's word if he tell Posterity that the Parliament and Army were not English men IV. These Historians candidly tell the world that the Nonconformists who offered their Desires for Concord 1660. were Presbyterians and so are most of the Nonconformists now Whereas they never made one motion for Presbytery for Lay-Elders for Ruling Classes or Assemblies nor against Episcopacy but only offered the Paper called A. Bishop Usher's Reduction of Episcopacy to the Primitive Form wherein neither A. Bishops nor Bishops nor Deans and Chapters Archdeacons were taken down or any of their Revenues Lordships or Parliament-Power This is Presbytery with these Historians V. They make the world believe that the main Body of the Conformists are such as suffered for the King or complied not with the Directory and Times of Usurpation Whereas it 's publickly notorious that there are about 9000 Parish-Churches in England besides many hundred Chappels many Churches that had more than one Minister And almost all these complied with the Times or Directory as the Nonconformists did And of all these it was but about 2000 that Conformed not so that 7000 or 8000 of them that had kept in did on a sudden turn Conformists And divers that had been in Arms for the Parliament Yea some that had written for the Engagement when I wrote against it yea some that had spoken or written tantum non a Justification of the Killing of the King And of those that joyned with us in our Proposals for Concord Dr. Worth and Dr. Reignolds were made Bishops and divers others did Conform VI. These Historians would make the world believe that the Present Church and such as they did more than the Parliamentarians and Presbyterians and Nonconformists to restore the King when it is notoriously known how oft their Attempts were defeated and what the Scots Army under Hamilton underwent to say nothing of the next and of the Lord Delamore's Attempt and what the Restored Parliament did But sure I am that the Old Parliament Souldiers and Presbyterian Commanders and Souldiers in General Monk's Army with those in England and Ireland that joyned with him and Sir Thomas Allen Lord Mayor with the Londoners at the persuasion of the Presbyterian Ministers drawing General Monk to joyn with them did the main work which the Council and Parliament after finished When most of these men that will not endure the oblivion of Discords nor the Reconciling and Union of the King's Subjects do but start up to revile others and blow the Coals again and reap the fruit of other mens labours that desire but to live in Peace VII That there are able worthy men that Conform we are far from denying and we earnestly desire their Concord and the success of their Labour and I hope love them as our selves But whereas the History of this Party doth proclaim how much better and abler Ministers than the Nonconformists are generally put into their Places that are no Novices or Ignorant Youths no Drunkards nor scandalous but more laborious skilful Labourers I will say nothing but let the Countries judge VIII And whether it be true that there is no need of the Nonconformists Ministry but the Churches are sufficiently supplied without them both as to the number and quality of their Teachers I have in my Apology enquired and with godly men it 's easily judged IX And whether it be true that it was only for the Kings or Bishops cause that the Parliament put out all or most of them that were heretofore removed I leave to the Witnesses and Articles against them I am sure I and my neighbour Ministers petitioned that none that were tolerable pious Ministers might be put out for being for the King or Bishops X. It is commonly now recorded and reported that the Presbyterians and those that now conform not put down Catechizing and turned the Creed Lords prayer and Decalogue out of the Church Service Whereas if some few Independents did any of this it is more than I know but in all our Countrey and where I came I remember no Churches that did not use the Creed openly at their baptizing any and the Decalogue frequently read out of Exod. 20. or Deut. 5. and the Lords prayer frequently as we did constantly But some thought that we were not bound to use it every time they prayed And the Directory commendeth all these to them And all our Countrey agreed not only to Catechize publickly but to take larger time on the week daies to Catechize every family XI These Historians say that I and such others take the things which we conform not to to be but inconveniences and not sins And that we keep the Nation in Schisme while we confess the things to be but Indifferent And our writings are visible in which we profest the contrary and laboured by many arguments to prove it and protested that we would conform if we took them not to be sins And we gave in a Catalogue of what we judged to be sins And this before the New Conformity was imposed And since the fiercest displeasure is against us for telling them what we account Sin and how great When many years together our Rulers and the People were told that we confessed them indifferent and refused them but to avoid offending our followers XII We frequently hear from them that we oppose Episcopacy because we cannot be Bishops our selves When it s known that nothing could more put men out of all such hopes than the Presbyterians Endeavours that both their power and wealth should be taken down And he that hath any desires of a Bishoprick should sure be for the keeping of them up And the same men reprove us for refusing Bishopricks and Deanries and say we did it to please the People XIV The
Sword Whether it be true that they say that they were necessitated to do what they did against Barnevolt and Grotius for the safety of their State I am no Judge But I am sure it is of an ill sound to those that read it And so is it to read in Episcopius and others what violence the People have used against the Arminians and they were fain to tolerate them when all was done And it 's no wonder that the Dissention increased in England when the Clergy would not long stand to the decrees that by our own six Delegates were moderated Dr. Heylin tells you how Bishop Laua's Zeal was the cause of our following Contentions And how By bearing down all that were against him 2. But the meer Doctrinal Decrees of the Synod of Dort are so moderate and healing that where Violence hath been forborn and Reason used many have been pacified by them And 3. What that Synod did not a few private Peace-makers have much done The Writings of Camero Amyraldus Capellus Placeus Testardus Lud. Crocius Mat. Martinius Conr. Bergius Joh. Bergius Blondel Daile and above all Le Blank 's have for ought I hear half ended the controversie And having my self written one Book Cathol Theologie for Reconciliation I have not to this day had a word of Contradiction but the Consent of very many And as I before noted Is not even in London where other differences might exasperate yet this Controversie almost laid to sleep But if our Arminians will but get as severe Laws and Canons made against them that are not of their Opinions as be against them that dare not conform to the Diocesane Model and the rest they shall quickly see this quarrel revived The Articles of the Church of England determine not these Controversies and that is our Peace Put in but one determining Article against either side and it will break us more in pieces Doth not our own Case and Experience then confute those over-doing Councils § 34. His next Instance is that of the Westminster Assembly So far from reconciling the People that after this they were distracted into innumerable Schisms Never was there so lamentable a face of things never such variety of Heresie and such Wantonness and Extravagancy in blaspheming God under pretence of Religion and Conscience And this is the State whither the same manner of men are driving again Ans 1. I say again I knew so many of that Assembly as that I do not think that the Christian World had ever an Assembly of more able and truly pious Clergy-Men these 1300 Years at least But these Upstarts that knew them not can tell us any thing that Faction hath taught them to believe concerning them and others The Parliament was by seeming necessity drawn to gratifie the Scots The Assembly though Conformists all save Eight or Nine were as sensible as the Nonconformists of the mischiefs of silencing worthy Ministers and forbidding Afternoon Sermons and such like and they were as much against Arminianism and Popery as the Church of England was in A. Bp. Abbat's days and as much as he against the Doctrine of Mainwaring and Sibthorp And the Parliament absolutely restrained them from debating any thing but what they proposed to them so that they that were for the Primitive Episcopacy had no liberty to debate it or speak for it but on the by But when the Covenant was offered them against Prelacy they were about to enter a Protestation against it and were stopt only by limiting the renunciation to the English frame described in an explicatory Parenthesis But for my part I think them much to be blamed that they did not though against that prohibition resolve to propose such moderate healing terms to the Parliament as were agreeable to their judgments or at least have testified against the limiting of Church Concord to such narrow termes as must exclude such men as were for the English Episcopacy They might easily have known that the number of such in England was so great as that an excluding Law must needs be an Engine of great Division and that Conquest will not change mens Judgments And as I doubt not but the five Dissenting Independents were greatly to blame for making such a stir for leave to gather their Churches when nothing was imposed on them which they could accuse So I doubt not but the Assembly were to be blamed for making a greater noise against errours than they had cause for Their desire of Concord which was good itself did raise them to too great Expectations of it and too great impatience of little differences They published their Testimony against the errours of the times in which they took in Dr. Hammond and made many differences worse than they were too like the old Hereticators And they wanted that skill to compose their differences with the Independents as was needful to that end and might have been attained And will the faults of that Assembly justifie the far greater faults of others But 2. This sort of Historians do much more differ from us about the matters of Fact which our Eyes have dayly-seen yea about our own Thoughts and Minds than about the History of the ancient Church The case was very far different from that which he describeth Mr. Lawson a Conformist saith There was never better Preaching Piety encouraged and encreased c. than at that time In all the Counties where I was acquainted there were many young Orthodox faithful Preachers that gave themselves wholly to do good for one that was ten Years before and not any considerable number noted for any immorality We were in the County where I lived almost all of one mind for Episcopal Presbyterians and Independents uniting in that which they agreed in and leaving all to Liberty in the rest we lived in constant Brotherly Love and Peace without Dissention I never knew of any of a divers Religion in all the County save at the end in one or two corners about Twenty Quakers And near me were about Twenty otherwise Orthodox that denied Infant-Baptism and perhaps as many more in the whole County and Two or Three ignorant Socinians In the next County I heard not of so many Heterodox Never did I see before or since so much Love and Concord among Ministers and all religious People nor read of any Age that had so much for 1300 Years And whereas the common cry is Oh but they were all Rebels against the King I have named abundance of the Ministers in mine Apology to Dr. Good who being Episcopal was a Guide in our Meetings and after so accused the Nonconformists and challenged him to name one of them that ever meddled with Wars I knew none in all the County that was in any Army save the King 's save Mr. Hopkins of Evesham dead and my self and one that is a Conformist and one Independent dead But it 's true that they were then so set upon Parish Reformation and Concord that they were more
Clara's Leander's c. But towards such as I am you have been as firm to that Principle as any one of our Enemies could wish In 1660 1661. it was most effectually improved and you have attained much of the fruits then foretold and ever since have been unmoveably and prevailingly true to it 3. But this maketh some men the Distracters of the Church if not the greatest which truly I have better thoughts of Such as Junius Paraeus Amyraldus Le Blanke Davenant Ward Usher Holdsworth Morton Hall c. And lately when we were preparing for the Kings Return Bp. Brownrig and after his death Dr. Gawden Dr. Gulston Dr. Allen Dr. Bernard and diverse such did offer themselves to a Treaty for Moderation And since then Dr. Wilkins Dr. Burton Dr. Tillotson and in diebus illis Dr. Stilling fleet have been guilty of this crime of distracting the Church by projects of Moderation But I can name the Bps. that were not guilty of it To abate or forsake the necessary points of Faith and Practice on pretence of Moderation is to destroy Christianity on pretence of Humanity or Peace But to make Laws that men shall preach with Horns on their Heads to signifie the Victory of Truth and to ruine all that will not keep these Laws much more if men should command worse and to say a Project for Moderation would distract the Church would be as far from Wisdom as it is from Moderation And some Prelates have done as bad as this § 9. He confesseth p. 296. that by force and Fraud the whole World in a manner was turned Arian And did I ever say worse of the Bishops than this § 10. He maketh Aerius to speak against Bishops because he could not be a Bishop so that he was of a Prelatical Judgment and Spirit and calleth him The Cartwright of the times by which if he mean that Cartwright would have been a Bishop it doth but tell us that he deserveth little belief in his History § 11. He is a most singular Historian p. 303. in telling us that after the Monothelites in following Ages of the Church the Devil started up but few Heresies till these Ages Swenk feldians Anabaptists c. By this I perceive he believeth neither Papists nor Protestants For the Papists name many Heresies since and the Protestants say that Popery is but a Composition of many Heresies and name us many that concur'd thereto § 12. He there giveth me this serious Admonition It is a much greater wonder that any man that makes Conscience of what he saith should against all truth of History and against his own knowledge charge the Bishops with all the Heresies in the World that a person that seems so sensible of approaching Judgment as frequently to put himself in mind of it should yet advance so malicious and groundless an Accusation There is no dallying with the all-seeing God What Plea shall be made for whole Books full of Calumny and Detraction c. Ans This is not the least acceptable passage to me in his Book I love the man the better for seeming serious in the belief of Judgment and I hope his Warning shall make me search my Heart with some more jealousie and care He seems here to believe himself but being my self far more concerned than he is to know how far I am guilty of what I am accused as far as I can know my Heart and Writings I 'le tell the Reader what to judge of his words and me 1. That I charge the Bishops with all the Heresies in the World never was in my mind nor can I find it in any of my Writings Yet this he very oft repeateth And should a man so often write a falshood about a thing visible and never cite the place where I say it and this while he is thus seriously mentioning Calumny and Judgment 2. Can he make men believe at once that I do persuade men that Bishops or Diocesanes came not up till about 150 years after Christ and yet that I make them the Authors of the Heresies that were in those times Non entis non est actio Could Bishops be Hereticks when there were no Bishops 3. If I had charged the Bishops with all the Heresies it followeth not that I had charged no one else with them and made the Bishops the sole Authors and acquit People Priests and Princes why then doth he name many Monks and Priests that were Hereticks Or Emperours that promoted them as if this crossed what I say Did he think that I excluded the Army if I blame the General or the Prelatical Priests when I blame the Prelates If I took the Bishops of England to be the chief cause of our Church-Schisms and Calamities doth it follow that I acquit such as you and all the Clergy like you 4. That I have done this against all Truth of History which I transcribed out of the Councils and Historians most partial for the highest Prelacie is either a great untruth and unproved by him or I know not what I read or write 5. That I do this against my own Knowledge I am certain is an untruth 6. That my Accusations are malicious I am certain is untruth as being able to say that I speak in pitty to the Church and to save Souls from deceit and malice no man but pray with the Liturgy that God will forgive our Enemies Persecutors and Slanderers and turn their Hearts 7. That I have brought any Groundless Accusation I must take for an untruth till my Grounds produced are better confuted 8. Much more that I write whole Books full of Calumny and Detraction All these and more untruths being heapt up with the mention of Death and Judgment tells us whither Faction and Prepossession may carry men 2. But what is the truth I shall again briefly tell the Reader 1. About 2000 of such Ministers as I confidently take for the most spiritual and conscionable and devoted to God and the good of Souls are silenced and in Law imprisoned and ruined and all the People of their mind are ipso facto if they confess it excommunicated besides their other penalties I accuse not the Law but mention only the matter of Fact which the K. once commissioned Bps. to have prevented 2. The Kingdom is dolefully divided and alas the sad consequents are not to be named 3. Besides all our Penalties the Bishops accuse us as the causes of all and as wilful Schismaticks and call for the Execution of the Laws against us 4. We say we dare not do that which when ever they will give us leave we are ready to give our reasons why we take it for heinous sin against God and tending to the ruine of the Church nor dare we forsake our Ministry while the Churches necessities are to us past doubt 5. We beg of them but to abate us some needless Oaths and Covenants and Professions and a few things called indifferent by the Imposers that we may all live
very few if any one were Bishops when they turned Hereticks I have enquired in the Preface though if they ascended from Heresie to Prelacy it 's all one to me But by this I conjecture that he taketh fewer for Hereticks than others do and that he pretends acquaintance with their minds in that antecedent part of their Lives which no History mentioneth I confess I think that for the most part men are Papists before they are Popes or Papist Bishops And yet I think that it is first the desire of Papal and Prelatical Grandeur and next the Exercise of it which is the cause of Schism and Persecution § 17. I verily believe as he doth that Platonick Philosophy and a willingness to win the Heathens by compliance had a great hand in corrupting many Doctrines and not only Monks but others of the most religious Christians had a great hand in many of the ancient Superstitions especially those that tended to the over-honouring of their Martyrs and too much advancement of their Bishops when they came newly from under the Persecution of the Heathens But it came not to be universal nor the Engine of great Corruption and cruelty till the Bishops turned all into a Law Who could make any of all this necessary but Pope Prelates or Princes who pretended a Legislative Power hereto Even Luther and Melancthon were indifferent to diverse Ceremonies so they were made to be indifferently used But when they are made necessary by a Law specially more necessary to a Minister than his Ministry and to a private Christian than his Church Communion who doth more vehemently condemn them than they § 18. That Paschasius Radbertus was the first that broached the Doctrine of Transubstantiation is a doubtful expression Either he meaneth the Name or only the Thing under another Name If the latter he will do more than Edm. Albertinus or Bp. Consius have done if he prove it If it be the name that he meaneth I think by my Memory for I will not for that go read him all over that he will not find the name in Radbertus nor any where before Stephanus Eduensis about 130 years after him and that all that he can truly say is but as Bellarmine doth Hic Author primus suit qui seriò copiosè scripsit de veritate Corporis Sanguinis Domini in Eucharistia contra Bertramum Presbyterum § 19. That the Bishops charged by me with these Corruptions were the only Opposers of them that we find in antiquity as we may see in the Canons of Africk and Spain is a saying very near kin to much of his History I confess that so few Presbyters in comparison of Bishops were publick Actors whose Judgments were notified to the World that it 's no wonder after Constantine's time if there be more proofs of their words and deeds than of other mens But there are a great number of excellent men here slandered against the credit of all Church-History and their own Writings yet in our hands Would it be worth the Readers Price and Labour I could swell my Book with the proof that what he speaketh is untrue Did he think that I could not prove that Justin Martyr Athenagoras Tatianus Tertullian Clemens Alexandrinus Origene Arnobius Lactantius Macarius Maternus Firmicus Ephrem Syrus Faustinus Hierome Ruffinus Prudentius Sulpitius Severus Sedulius Mammertus Cassianus Vincent Lirinensis Socrates Sozomen Isodore Pelusiota c. did something in opposition to some Church-Corruptions Though some of them promoted some others Yea Antonie and abundance of Monks that furthered some opposed others no less dangerous Though many of them may be accused as Bellarmine doth Sulpit. Severus for saying Ecclesiam auro non strui sed destrui Judge of time past by what we see Is it only the Bishops that are against the Popes Church-Corrupting Usurpation in Italy Spain France c. Is it only the Bishops that are against the Mass Corruptions and against all their corrupt Doctrines of Indulgences Purgatory Images c. and against all their Ceremonies and prophane abuse of holy things Was it only the Bishops at Constance and Basil that were against suppressing the Bohemian and Moravian Reformation In the end of Lydius upon Prateolus you may read a Letter subscribed by so great a number of Lords and great men for John Hus and Hierome and the Reformation which yet prevailed not with the Bishops as will tell you who was then the greatest Opposers of Church-Corruption And I think Princes and Drs. opposed it more than Bps. in Luther's time Is it only the Bishops that have opposed warping towards Rome for Church-Unity Have none but Bishops been against corrupting the Churches by silencing good Ministers and ordaining bad ones The things that are have been I confess our difference is great on the case what is to be accounted Church-Corruption For that which in one Country goeth for Corruption in another yea the same goeth for Church-Glory Strength and Beauty Our main difference is about what 's good and what 's bad what 's Virtue and what 's Vice § 20. He next comes to Sedition and asketh What Reign have they disturbed here with their Sedition And because he knoweth that I can refer him to the large Volume of their Treasons written by Prin and abroad to the many Volumes in Goldastus and the many Histories of the Wars of Popes and Councils against Emperours he prevents all my Proof with a downright Untruth that If a man be not blind he may see that my History is only designed against Protestant Bishops under a general name Ans Was it not enough so grosly to write this Untruth of me but he must also reproach all the Readers as blind that will not judge falsly of what they read Doth he know my meaning better than my self He knoweth that I plead for the Primitive Episcopacy and that I profess to intend this History most to discover the Rise Growth and Maturity of the Popish destructive sort of Prelacy Readers can you believe this man that I wrote the case of the Bishops before and under Popery and of the Popes and of above Five hundred Councils and all these before the name of a Protestant Bishop was known in the World and as he saith gathered their faults and all this only against the Protestant Bishops and not against Popes or Prelates or any of the Councils that I named Perhaps he would tempt me to refer him to the History of Bishop Laua's Trial or to what Bishop Abbot George and Robert Bishop Hall and others said against him Or to tell him of A. Bp. Williams Arms for the Parliament But these are not Subjects fit for our Debates § 21. P. 318. When I say that where Prelacy with the Papists is at the highest Princes are at the lowest He asketh Is it the Bishop or the Papist that is here to blame Is this the effect of their Order Ans 1. I thought the Pope of Rome and the Bishop of Rome had been
THE TRUE HISTORY OF COUNCILS Enlarged and Defended Against the Deceits of a pretended Vindicator of the Primitive-Church but indeed of the Tympanite Tyranny of some Prelates many hundred years after Christ With a Detection of the false History of Edward Lord Bishop of Corke and Rosse in Ireland And a Specimen of the way by which this Generation confuteth their Adversaries in several Instances And a Preface abbreviating much of Ludolphus's History of Habassia Written to shew their dangerous Errour who think that a general Council or Colledge of Bishops is a supream Governour of all the Christian World with power of Universal Legislation Judgment and Execution and that Christs Laws without their Universal Laws are not sufficient for the Churches Unity and Concord By RICHARD BAXTER a Lover of Truth Love and Peace and a Hater of Lying Malignity and Persecution To which is added by another Hand a Defence of a Book Entituled No Evidence for Diocesan Churches Wherein what is further produced out of Scripture and ancient Authors for Diocesan Churches is discussed London Printed for Tho. Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns at the lower end of Cheapside near Mercers Chappel 1682. To the Pious and Peaceable Protestant-Conforming Ministers who are against our Subjection to a Foreign Jurisdiction The notice of the Reason of this Book with a Breviate of Ludolphus's Habassian History Reverend Brethren WHen after the effects of our calamitous divisions the rejoycing Nation supposed they had been united in our King newly restored by a General and Army which had been fighting against him invited strengthned by the City many others an Act of Oblivion seemed to have prepared for future amity some little thought that men were about going further from each other than they were before But the Malady was evident to such of us as were called to attempt a Cure and neither the Causes nor the Prognosticks hard to be known A certain and cheap Remedy was obvious but no Pleas no Petitions could get men to accept it The Symptomes then threatned far worse than yet hath come to pass God being more merciful to us than mistaken men We were then judged criminal for foreseeing and foretelling what Fruit the Seed then sown would bring forth And since then the Sowers say the Foretellers are the cause of all We quickly saw that instead of hoping for any Concord and healing of the Bones which then were broken it would become our Care and too hard work to endeavour to prevent a greater breach Though we thought Two Thousand such Ministers as were silenced would be mist when others thought it a blessing to be rid of them we then feared and some hoped that no small number more would follow them It was not you that cast such out nor is it you that wish the continuance and increase of the Causes We agree with you in all points of the Christian Reformed Religion and concerning the evil of all the sins which we fear by Conforming to commit though we agree not of the meaning of those Oaths Promises Professions and Practices which are the matter feared We live in unfeigned Love and Communion with those that love Truth Holiness and Peace notwithstanding such differences as these God hath not laid our Salvation or Communion upon our agreeing about the meaning of every word or Sentence in the Bible much less on our agreeing of the sense of every word in all the Laws and Canons of men Two things we earnestly request of you for the sake of the Christian Religion this trembling Nation and your own and others Souls 1. That you will in your Parish Relations seriously use your best endeavours to promote true Godliness and Brotherly Love and to heal the sad Divisions of the Churches We believe that it must be much by the Parochial Ministers and Assemblies that Piety and Protestant Verity must be kept up And what we may not do we pray that you may do it who are allowed 2. That you will join with us against all Foreign Jurisdiction Ecclesiastical or Civil The Party which we dread I have given you some account of in my Reply to Mr. Dodwell By their Fruits you may know them 1. They are such as labour to make our Breaches wider by rendring those that they dissent from odious which commonly is by false accusations They call out for Execution by the Sword against those that dare not do as they do and cry Go on abate nothing they are factious Schismaticks rebellious They might easily have learnt this Language without staying long in the Universities and without all the Brimstone Books that teach it them An invisible Tutor can soon teach it them without Book He that hateth his Brother is a murtherer and hath not eternal Life abiding in him 2. They are for an universal humane Government with power of Legislation and Judgment over the whole Christian World How to call it they are not yet agreed whether Aristocratical or Monarchical or mixt Some of them say that it is in the Collegium Episcoporum governing per Literas formatas for fear lest if they say It is in Councils they should presently be confuted by the copious Evidence which we produce against them And yet they may well think that men will ask them When did all the Bishops on Earth make Laws for all the Christian World or pass Sentences on Offenders without ever meeting together And how came they to know each others minds and which way the major Vote went And what and where are those Laws which we must all be governed by which neither God nor Councils made The Canons were all made by Councils If you say that I describe men so mad as that I must be thought to wrong them I now only ask you whether our Case be not dismal when such men as you call mad have power to bring us and keep us in our ` Divisions or to do much towards it without much contradiction But others who know that such palpable darkness will not serve their cause do openly say that it is General Councils which are the Legislative and judging Governours to the whole Church on Earth as one Political Body For they know that we have no other Laws besides Gods and theirs pretended to be made for all the World But when the Cases opened by me in the Second part of my Key for Catholicks and else where do silence them this Fort also is deserted by them Even Albert. Pighius hath rendred it ridiculous 1. If this be the specifying or unifying Head or summa Potestas of the Universal Church then it is not monarchical but Aristocratical 2. Then the Church is no Church when for hundreds of Years there are no General Councils an essential part being wanting And they that own but the 4 or 6 first General Councils make the Church no Church or to have been without its essentiating Government these Thousand Years And by what proof besides their incredible Word
Whore to go in to Bishop Euphratas and this Euphratas after turned Photinian XXVIII An. 353. A Council at Arles condemn Athanasius XXIX An. 355. A General Council at Milan of above 300 Western Bishops though the Eastern that were most Arian could not come where Athanasius was condemned and communion with the Arians subscribed XXX An. 356. A Council at Byterris condemned and banished Hilary and condemned them as Separatists or Schismaticks that renounced the Arian Communion XXXI A General Council at Sirmium of 300 Western Bishops besides the Eastern made three different Creeds condemned Athanasius left out the word Substance made P. Liberius and old Osius subscribe against Athanasius XXXII The Oriental Bishops at Ancyra were only for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and with Macedonius against the Godhead of the Holy Ghost XXXIII A General Council 400 Bishops met at Ariminum of whom most at first were Orthodox but after when the Emperour interposed subscribed to the Arian Party XXXIV The rest sate at Seleucia and were more Orthodox but divided into Acacians who were for leaving out Substance and Semi-Arians who were for Like Substance Sulp. Severus tells us that many Bishops quieted their Consciences by subscribing in their own sense and so deceived the Arians that thought they had won them XXXV A Council at C. P. made a Ninth Creed leaving out Substance and Hypostasit The Semi-Arians for this banished the Authors XXXVI A Council at Antioch cast out Miletius and made a Tenth Creed worse than the rest XXXVII Julian Reigning Athanasius calls a Council at Alexandria which had almost divided East and West about the names Hypostasit and Persona but that some wise men persuaded them that the words were both of the same signification which yet was hardly entertained afterward XXXVIII A Council at Antioch of Semi-Arians Petitioned Jovianus to cast out the Acacians till they knew his mind and then the Arian Bishops turned Orthodox XXXIX At a Synod in Tyana Eustath Sebast denied 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the Godhead of the Holy Ghost XL. An Arian Council of Bishops in Caria under Valens And another at Singeduni in Misia XLI Damasus in a Roman Council condemneth Sisinnius for Conventicles For at the Election in the Church they fought for these two And Damasus his Party one day left 137 dead bodies behind them and got the better XLII Valens by cruelty set up Arian Bishops in a great part of the Eas◠XLIII The first General Council at C. P. is commonly called the Second General when yet that at Sardica Ariminum Sirmium Milan were General also They were many good men and did good But how they used Nazianzen to the great grief of the Church of C. P. and how Nazianzen describeth them I desire the Reader to take from his own words and not from mine or Mr. M. XLIV The Council at Caesar Augusta did that which made Martin separate from them and all their Councils after to his death XLV A Council at C. P. set up Flavian at Antioch and a Council at Rome were for Paulinus The former advance C. P. and Jerusalem XLVI Many Schismatical Councils of Donatist Bishops followed XLVII For Theophilus case I refer you to Socrates and Sozemene XLVIII Epiphanius his Schismatical usage of Chrysostom is unexcusable XLIX And so is Theophilus prosecution of him and a Synod of Bishops casting him out and Cyril's resisting the restoring of his name when dead and reviling the Joannites that kept separated Meetings for his sake L. The Diospolitan Council absolved Pelagius Divers Carthage Councils condemned him P. Innocent condemned him Zosimus once absolved him and condemned his accusers The Bishops cast out for Simony I will not number here LI. The Contentions between Bonisace and Eulalius and others after them to get the Bishoprick of Rome are so many as I will not number them And the striving of three Bishops successively against the African Fathers for the Roman super-eminence and Appeals to Rome are commonly known LII One of Bishop Boniface's Decrees is That No Bishop shall be brought before any Judge Civil or Military either for any Civil or Criminal Cause LIII What the first General Council at Ephesus did in the Cause of Nestorius I have fully opened Derodons Evidence is undeniable that Nestorius was Orthodox as to the Matter though he mistook as to words in thinking that Mary should not be called The Mother of God but of Christ who is God which Luther also shews Yet since that Councils anathematizing him a great body of Christians in many Eastern Kingdoms to this day are a party hereticated by the rest Is not such an effect of 1200 years continuance a witness of the failing of that Council LIV. The Bishops of C. P. and Alexandria striving which should be greatest a Council at C. P. decided it for C. P. where Theodoret was for Alexandria and fell under displeasure LV. Leo M. Bishop of Rome claims the title of Head of the Catholick Church LVI Two Councils at C. P. one against Eutyches the other for him LVII The second Council at Ephesus is so heavily accused by Mr. M. and such others that I need not accuse it more Flavianus of C. P. was there hurt to death Yet Bellarmin confesseth it wanted nothing of a true General Council but the Pope's approbation LVIII A Council at Alexandria under Dioscorus excommucateth Leo. LIX What the Council of Calcedon hath done I have shewed Instead of reconciling the Nestorian and Eutychian Controversies by a skillful explication of their ambiguous unfit words they Anathematized both and banished Dioscorus And ever since to this day the Eutychians and Nestorians are separated Dissenters LX. At Alexand. the Bishops party that the Council was for Proterius and Timothy whom Dioscorus party were for so reged that they murdered Proterius and dragg'd his carkass in the streets and bit his flesh And each party still accused the other LXI Pulcheria Theodosius's Sister and Martian's Wife being for the Council and Eudocia Theodosius's Widdow for Dioscarus they animated the several Parties of Bishops and Monks And in Palestine Juvenal Bishop of Jerusalem was expelled Severianus Bishop of Schythopolis killed c. LXII Leo the Emperour commanding obedience to the Calcedon Council at Alexandria and Antioch the Armies of contending Bishops were in continual war calling each other Nestorians and Eutychians one Bishop banished by the Emperour the contrary Bishop murdered by the people and cast into the River the next getting the better again c. LXIII In Martian's and Leo's daies most Bishops subscribed to the Council When Basiliscus usurped and was against the Council saith Niceph. three Patriarchs and five hundred Bishops renounced it most before having damned its adversaries Basiliscus recanteth his Commands and commandeth all to be for the Council and the Bishops obey him save those of Asia Zeno recovereth the Empire and is for the Council and the Asian Bishops turn for it and say they subscribed
them where and when and with what success the aspiring humour did begin If we have small visible probability of escaping we must yet before we come to Smithfield satisfy our Consciences that we betrayed not the Church CHAP. III. Of Mr. M's notice that I am Unlearned § 1. MR. M's Preface Contracteth the Chief things which he hath to say against me in his book that the Reader may find them there all together And of these that I am unlearned is not the least And if that be any of his question I assure him it shall be none of mine I am not yet so vain as to plead for my Learning Yea I will gratify him though he accuse me of being against repentance with an unfeigned confession that my ignorance is far greater than his accusation of unlearnedness doth import Alas I want the knowledge of far more excellent things than languages I do but imperfectly know my self my own soul my own thoughts and understanding I scarce well know what knowing is Verily if no knowledge be properly true that is not adequate to the object I know nothing And subscribe to Zanchez quod nihil Scitur by such as I. Alas Sir I groan in darkness from day to day I know not how to be delivered How little do I know of that God whom the whole Creation preacheth and of that Society which I hope to be joyned with for ever and that world which must be my hope and portion or I am undone Many whom I am Constrained to dissent from upbraid me with my ignorance and I suppose it is that for which they silence me reproach hate and prosecute me even because I have not knowledge enough to discern that all their impositions are lawful or else I know not what it is for But none of them all can and will tell me how I should be delivered from this ignorance If they say It must be by hard study I can study no harder than I have done If they say I must be willing to know the truth I take my self for sure that I am so If in that also I am ignorant in thinking that I know my own mind when I do not what else then can I hope to know If they say You must be impartial I think I am so saving that I must not deny or cast away the truths already received If they say You should read the same books which have convinced us I read far more of the Papists and Prelatists and other sects that write against me than of those that are for me And the more I read the more I am confirmed And when these men preach and write against the Calvinists they render them odious as holding that men are necessitated to sin and to be damned and that it is long of Gods Decree which cannot be resisted Therefore I suppose they will not lay the Cause on God I do then confess my Ignorance of matters a thousandfold greater and more needful than those which they mention in their accusations I confess my self unlearned But I intreat them that tell me of my disease which I know to my daily grief much better than they to tell me also how I may be cured If they say that it must be by Fines and Imprisonment it hath been tryed I am yet uncured I hope they will not pronounce me remediless and not tell me why who use themselves to speak against those that preach men into desperation would they but tell me the secret how so many thousands of them came to be so much wiser than I in far shorter time and with far less study it would be if true an acceptable deed of Charity rather than to tell me of the Ignorance which I cannot help Could I but know needful truth in English I would joyfully allow them to glory of being more skilful in all the Oriental Tongues and also in French Irish Spanish and Italian than I am CHAP. IV. Of his Accusation that I vainly name Historians which I never saw or read § 1. I Must profess that it never was my purpose to tell the world how many Historians I have read nor to abridge all that I have read And those that I have most read I have there made no mention of as not being for my intended end And multitudes that stood by me I never opened to the writing of this history my design being chiefly against the Papists and those Protestants who most esteem their writings and had rather unite with the French Papist Church than with us Nonconformists Therefore when I was past the first 400 or 500 years it was the greatest and most flattering Popish historians that I abriged as ad hominem being likest not to be denyed I told the reader that I made not use of Luther the Magdeburgenses nor the Collections of Goldastus Marquardus Freherus Reuberus Pistorius c. And the Printer having put a Comma between Marquardus and Freherus he Conjectures that I took him for two men because I added not the Christian names of the rest And he concludes that whoever this mistake belongs to it 's plain that M. B. had but little acquaintance with those Collections For I name some of the Authors therein Ans Seeing these things are thought just matter for our accusers turn I will crave the Readers patience with such little things while I tell him the truth It is about 25 years since I read the Germa History in the Collections of Freherus Reuberus and Pistâ—rius and about 30 years since I read the Collections of Goldastus The Magdeburgenses Osiander Sleidan or any such Protestants I thought vain to alledge to Papists About seven or eight years ago as I remember I was accused for Preaching and Fined by Sir Thomas Davis and the Warrant was sent by him to Sir Edm. Bury Godfrey to levy it on me by Distress I had no way to avoid it but bona fide to make away all that I had Among the rest I made away my Library only borrowing part of it for my use I purposed to have given it almost all to Cambridge in New-England But Mr. Knowles yet living who knew their Library told me that Sir Kenelme Digby had already given them the Fathers Councils and Schoolmen but it was History and Commentators which they wanted Whereupon I sent them some of my Commentators and some Historians among which were Freherus Reuberus and Pistorius Collections and Nauclerus Sabellicus Thuanus Jos Scaliger de Emendat Temp. But Goldastus I kept by me as borrowed and many more which I could not spare and the Fathers and Councils and Schoolmen I was stopt from sending Now whether I was unacquainted with those that partly stand yet at my Elbow and which I had read so long ago must depend on the Credit of my Memory and I confess my Memory is of late grown weak but not so weak as to think that Marquardus Freherus was not one man and a Palatinate Councillor though it be
none of their virtues though it was not my work to record them While I am confuting the Errours of your book do I wrong you unless I write a Catalogue of your good works Morney Illyricus and many others have gathered a Catalogue of old witnesses for Protestant Verities And Bishop Morton hath cited multitudes of Papists against their party Have they wronged them because they have not also cited all that the same said for the Roman cause I have mentioned the virtues of some of the Popes even of Greg. 7. but of many others I have only mentioned their vices This is not to deny any good that is in them Nor do you accuse your selves of any injustice when you tell the world how bad men the Parliaments have bin and how bad Cromwell and the Armies and how bad the Nonconformists are and I in particular without naming any of their good deeds or virtues Because it is not your business CHAP. XII Of his Accusation that I do all in spite and malice against Bishops and as using ill language of them § 1. ANsw 1. Spite and Malice are heart sins If the same effect may come from other Causes how know you that these are the Cause Ans 2. Is it from Spight and Malice that Protestants commonly describe the vices of the Popes such as Greg. 7. Sergius Alexandr 3. Boniface 8. Joh. 12. and 13. 22 23. Eugen. 4. c. And also that they so hardly speak of the Jesuites Yea and Papists commonly Sure it may come from some other cause Ans 3. Is it from Spight and Malice that you recite the tumults of the German Anabaptists the faults of those at Munster the Errours of David George the many Enthusiastick Sects described by Beckman Exercit. of whom many as Thaulerus Kempis Behmen had much very commendable and Grotius praised Job Arâ—dt Is it from Malice that the Familists Seekers Quakers Anabaptists c. are usually by your party described by their faults without any mention of their goodness Ans 4. Is it from Spight and Malice that your Party have written what they have done of the great faultiness of the Nonconformists both former and latter and that Calvinists are so odiously represented that the Reformation by them is described by Heylin and others as Rebellious That such books are written as Heylins Aerius Redivivus H. Fowlis the Evangel Armatum The Eccles Polit. the Friendly Debate the Counterminer the Vindicaâ— of Dr. Stillingfleet the pretended second part which is a continued Calumny against my self so full of particular falshoods as are not to be without a tedious Volume answered And a multitude such written to render the Nonconformists odious and unsufferable If all these be not written in Malice how know you that mine were Ans 5. And whereas some pretending moderation accuse me of too bad provoking language 1. Is there any Comparison between the language of any of these books or yours and Dr. Sherlock's and mine Read but Learned Godly moderate Bishop Downam his Defence of his Visit sermon his frequent charges of shameless impudent Lying and much more against a Nonconformist that gave him no such language Read but the ordinary Writings of such as Bishop Bancroft Dr. Sutcliff and most others against the Old Nonconformists and of the Lutherans against the Calvinists even men that I am persuaded meant honestly but by Faction were exasperated as Hunnius Brentius Morlinus Mâ—rbackius Snepfius Wigandus Heshusius Andreas Seâ—necerus Heerbrand Caloviâ—s and many such Read but our Grammarians such as you may find in the many Volumes of the Collections of Janus Gruterâ—s even those of Cramer and Phil. Paraeus and others against himself where Fools Knaves Lyars Sots and worse make up much of the style Read but our Old Grammarian Reformers against the Popish Priests and Schoolmen I mean Erasmus Hutten Faber and the rest what Scorns their Writings do abound with I will not refer you to the Queen of Navarrâ— and Stephanus his World of Wonders against the Priests lest you think I approve of the excess Yea read but the Writings of our famous Learned Criticks Jul. and Joseph Scaliger Heinsius Salmasius c. from whom the railing Jesuite Labbe took advantage to say Tom. 1. p. 820. Rivâ—â—o praeâ—vâ—â—at Josephus Scaliger homo utique modestissimus qui Editores S. Iraeâ—aeâ— vocat clamosos maledicentissimos Câ—rcopâ—s Tartareos Pyriphlegetâ—oâ—tas virâ—lentiae probrorum coâ—câ—â—nâ—tores editionem coloniensem cloacam Sycophantiarum lâ—â—â—inâ—m convâ—tiâ—â—â—m staâ—â—lâ—m inscitiae Through God's great mercy while Malignity is the Complexion of the Serpent's Seed and Lying is their Breath and Murder is their Work the names of all these sins are odious in the world and guilt is impatient and cannot endure its own name Should I but mention the Language of Papists how they represent the holiest Protestants as Lyars Deceivers Devils intollerable whom it is as lawful to kill as Dogs Foxes or Toads it would concern none but those of you that use to say I had rather be a Papist than a Puritane or Presbyterian oâ— those that renounce Communion with us and own it with the Church of Rome who are alas too many Such Language as â—aâ—â—â—'s Vol. 1 p. 819. is of the sweeter sort viz. Quisquis es sâ—lutis tâ—â— amans Omnes illicâ— Calvinistas Lutheranos Socinianos Anabaptistas similesque generis humani pestes Cacodamonâ—m instar execrabere This is but what we daily hear But while we hear it in a Language so very like from the Papists and the Pulpits and Press and Roger Le Strange is become the Church's Advocate and Mouth it will harden them that did ill joyn together Popery and Prelacy in their rejections Honest Thuanus is amiable and honourable for Speaking well of all that deserved it without partiality But Gerb. Vossius is put to defend his Father-in-law Junius against his unjust censure Indeed Junius was a man of Eminent peaceableness and moderation I would Arminius and he had been the utmost prosecutors of that Controversie notwithstanding Dr. Twisses undervaluing his skill in School Divinity And few men were more unlike Thuanus his ill Character than Junius But Dr Manton hath told me that he hath been fully informed that it was not Junius that Thuanus meant but another that dyed that year which Junius did not and that by some ill chance a wrong name was put in Contrary to Thuanus intent § 2. Dr. Burnet is a man whom I much value and honour and pleadeth much for peace and moderation and therefore much the more amiable to me I thank him for his reproof of me to my face but because he goeth on to vend it as just behind my back where I cannot answer him I must do it here He saith that I began and that with unchristian provoking language against the Conformists in my first Plea for peace which caused all the succeeding heats Ans 1. I have to him and oft in print appealed to humanity and common sence
' s Plain Man's Path Way and Dod on the Commandments c. They used to pray in their Families and alone some on the Book and some without They would not Swear nor Curse nor take God's Name lightly They feared all known sin They would go to the next Parish-Church to hear a Sermon when they had none at their own would read the Scripture on the Lord's Day when others were playing These were where I lived about the number of two or three Families in twenty and these by the rest were called Puritanes and derided as Hypocrites and Precisians that would take on them to be Holy And especially if they told any one of his Swearing Drunkenness or Ungodliness they were made the common scorn Yet not one of many of them ever scrupled Conformity to Bishops Liturgy or Ceremonies and it was godly Conformable Ministers that they went from home to hear And these Ministers being the ablest Preachers and of more serious Piety were also the Objects of the Vulgar Obloquy as Puritanes and Precisians themselves and accordingly spoke against by many of their Tribe and envyed for being preferred by godly men This being the Condition of the Vulgar where I was when I came into the acquaintance of many Persons of Honour and Power and reputed Learning I found the same seriousness in Religion in some few before described and the same daily scorn of that sort of men in others but differently cloathed For these would talk more bitterly but yet with a greater shew of reason against the other than the ignorant Country People did And they would sometime talk of some Opinions in Religion and some of them would use some of the Common-Prayer in their Houses and some of them would swear but seldom and small Oaths and lived soberly and civilly but serious talk of God or Godliness or that which tended to search and reform the Heart and Life and seriously prepare for the Life to come or to awaken Souls to a care of their State and Salvation they would at least be very weary to hear if not deride as Puritanical Mr. Robert Bolton a Conformist hath fully opened all this of both sorts in his Discourse of True Happiness and Directions for walking with God And how the name Puritane was then used This being the Fundamental Division where I came some of these that were called Puritanes and Hypocrites for not being Hypocrites but serious in the Religion they professed would sometimes get together and as Drunkards and Sporters would meet to drink and play they would in some very few places where there were many of them meet after Sermon on the Lord's Daies to Repeat the Conforming Ministers Sermon and sing a Psalm and Pray For this and for going from their own Parish-Churches they were first envied by the Readers and dry Teachers whom they sometime went from and next prosecuted by Apparitors Officials Archdeacons Commissaries Chancellors and other Episcopal Instruments For in former times there had been divers Presbyterian Nonconformists who earnestly pleaded for Parish-Discipline as Bucer also did in Oper. Anglic. And to subdue these divers Canons were made which served the turn against these Meetings of the Conformable Puritanes and going from their own Parish-Churches though the Old Presbyterians were dead and very few succeeded them About as many Nonconformists as Counties were left and those few most stuck at Subscription and Ceremonies which were the hinderance of their Ministry and but few of them studied or understood the Presbyterian or Independent Disciplinary Causes But when these Conformable Puritanes were thus prosecuted it bred in them hard thoughts of the Bishops and their Courts as Enemies to serious Piety and Persecutors of that which they should promote Suffering bred this Opinion and Aversation And the ungodly Rabble rejoyced at their troubles and applauded the Bishops for it and were every where ready to set the Apparitors on them or to ask them Are you holier or wiser thâ—◠〈…〉 Bishops And their Accusations were readily entertained This much inclined them to hearken to them that were averse to Conformity when such rose up and to such as were more against the Bishops than there was cause so that by this time the Puritanes took the Bishops to be Captains and the Chancellors Archdeacons Commissaries Officials and Paritors their Officers and the Enemies of serious Godliness and the vicious Rabble to be as their Army to suppress true consciencious Obedience to God and care of mens Salvation And the censured Clergy and Officers took the Censurers to be Schismaticks and Enemies to the Church unfit to be endured and fit to be prosecuted with reproach and punishment so that the said Puritanes took it to be but the common Enmity that since Cain's daies hath been in the world between the Serpent's and the Woman's Seed And when the persons of Bishops Chancellors Officials Apparitors c. were come under such a repute it was easie to believe what should be sail against their Office And the more the Bishops thought to cure this by punishment the more they increased the Opinion that they were persecuting Enemies of Godliness and the Captains of the Prophane And when such sinful Beginnings had prepared men the Civil Contentions arising those called Puritanes mostly were against that side which they saw the Bishops and their Neighbour Enemies for And they were for the Parliament the rather because they seemed desirous to Reform the Bishops and Restore the Liberty of those whom they prosecuted for the manner of their serving God Yet they desired where-ever I was to have lived peaceably at home But the Drunkards and Rabble that formerly hated them when they saw the War beginning grew inraged and if a man did but Pray and Sing a Psalm in his house they would cry Down with the Roundheads a word then new made for them and put them in fear of sudden violence and afterwards brought the King's Souldiers to plunder them of their goods and they were fain to run into holes to hide their persons Martin Crusius in his Turco-Gracia describeth much the like Case of his Father And when their Goods were gone and their Lives in continual danger they were forced to fly for Food and Shelter To go among those that hated them they durst not when they could not dwell among such at home And thus thousands run into the Parliaments Garrisons and having nothing there to live upon became Souldiers We had an honest very Old Arminian Mr. Nayler in Coventry that was against the Parliaments Cause and he would say The King hath the best Cause and the Parliament the best Men. And that he wondred how it came to pass that the generality of sober Religious men should be all in the wrong and the most Irreligious and Prophane and Debauched be in the right But he knew but the Vulgar and not the Grandees who no doubt were many of them men of very laudable accomplishments And as the feud of the Bishops and
with them know them all better and that infallibly by sense it self § 2. II. Because I say the History of the Gospel is certainly credible it is ground enough to say That All is not Gospel that I write as if I had said it is § 3. III. Because I say Prophets were sure of their Revelation he saith It may be Mr. B. heard a Bene scripsisti As if I had pretended to be a Prophet § 4. IV. I said that History is certain even by Natural Evidence when it is the common Agreement of all men of most contrary Interests c. in a matter of fact and sense to all that knew it To which he saith The Superiority of Bishops over Presbyters is acknowledged by Catholicks and Schismaticks and Hereticks men of very contrary minds dispositions and interests and yet this Church-History would have us believe the contrary Answ This is our credible Historian 1. He doth not tell us in what Ages it was so acknowledged when those who doubt of the matter of fact doubt but some of 100 some of 150 or 200 years Doth any doubt whether it be so now 2. He tells us not either what Species of Bishops the question is of nor what Species of Presbyters nor what the Superiority was 3. He speaks without distinction or Exception and so must be understood to say that this Church history would have us to believe that even President Bishops Ejusdem Ordinis had de facto no Superiority at all over Presbyters in the same Churches and of the same order with them which is an untruth so gross as is no Credit to our Historian I have named both more than one ranck of Bishops whose Superiority de Jure I deny not Popes Patriarchs Primates Diocesans who deposed the Bishops of single Churches whose Superiority de facto I fully enough affirm in the ages and degrees in which they did ascend If he say that he meant it Even from the Apostles time and that of such Diocesans as have scores or hundreds of true Churches and Altars without their particular Bishops or any Presbyters that were Ejusdem Ordinis with the Bishops and were Episcopi Gregis and that had such Power of the Keys over their flocks as ours have not or that had so many such Assemblies that were no true Churches if he will be proved a Historian worthy Credit Let him give us any proof that all men described by him agreed de facto that there was so long such a superiority of such Bishops But these men deride distinguishing and banish Logick that is Reason from their History § 5. V. The next Evidence of certainty which I mentioned was from continued Existent visible Effects which prove their Causes And here this undistinguishing Historian is at it again The Superiority of Bishops over Presbyters is proved by the Laws and Customs of all Churches This hath the same answer which I will not repeat Either it falsly reporteth my denyal or it falsly affirmeth that all Churches in all ages have left us visible Effects of the foresaid species And I would he would help us that are ignorant therein with such History and Evidence from the begining of the Churches in Scotland and in the Southern and Eastern Countries that were without the Empire § 6. VI. I said that History is credible which speaketh consentingly against the known interest of the authors and therefore I named few testimonies of the sins of Popes and Councils but of those that are their most Zealous Friends To this he saith that my Characters of ancient Bishops are taken from their professed Enemies as my account of Athanasius Theophylus Cyril and divers others Ans 1. My account of Athanasius is almost all if not all in his praise and is not an enemies testimony there valid If I mention the displeasure of Constantine against him it is not any Character of him but of Constantine the Agent Nor do I think Constantine or Eusebius Caesar meet to be numbred with his Enemies why did he not instance in some words of mine As to Theophylus and Cyril I do not believe that he can prove that Socrates and Sozomen and the Historians that Concur with them were their Enemies And if in reciting the Acts of the Councils I recite their Enemies words so doth Surius Nicholinus Binnius Baronius and all just writers of those acts And I do not find that Chrysostom himself or Isidore Pelusiota had any Enmity to them nor Pope Innocent neither Of the rest before § 7. VII The next degree of credibility that I mentioned is that which dependeth on the Veracity and fitness of the reporter Of which I named nine things requisite Here he supposeth me one that is unfit and particularly saith Whether any hath â—ailed with greater intemperance and less provocation Ans 1. I am not the Author of the History of the mentioned Councils or Popes or Bishops but the Transcriber Let me be as bad as you or any of your tribe have made me that proveth not that Socrates Sozomen Theodorite Nitephorus c. or Binnius Baronius c. have misreported what they write If I have misreported these authors in any material point prove it and I will soon retract it As for my railing I expect that title from all such whose faults I name and call them to repentance He that calls men to Repent calleth them sinners and that is Railing he it never so great His first instanced railing is Pag. 19. A few turbulent Prelates Persecute good men He saith thus I call the present Bishops of the Church of England Doth he mean All or some If All he is an untrue Historian He may see many named before my Apology whom I except And if I have named two I have annexed the proof The next is Pag. 46. silencing destroying Prelates Ans Are there none such Were not about 2000 here silenced Do we not continue so and impoverished almost 20 years Have none perished in prisons or with want Do men call out for the execution of the Law and plead for our Silencing as a good work and take it for railing to have it named Doth not Conscience recoil in these men when in Pulpits press and Conference they maintain it to be a good work and tell the world how sinful a thing it is for rulers to suffer us out of Gaols What are you now ashamed of your meritorious works Sure they are sâ—ant good if it be railing to name them You will not say I rail if I call you Preachers And why do you say so if I call you Silencers if that be as good The next railing is Pag. 73 If all the proud Contentious ambitious Hereticating part of the Bishops had been of this Christian mind to endure each other in small tollerable Differences What sins Scandal and shame what Crimes confusion and miseries had the Christian world escaped And is this railing Hath the Christian world had no such Bishops these 1000 years
praised God 45. The 88 Heresie thought that the Levitical Feasts were litterally to be understood not knowing that it was the 8 Feasts of the Church that were meant 46. The 90 Heresie preferred Aquila's Translation before the Septuagint 47. The 91 preferred a Translation of thirty men before the Septuagint 48. The 92 preferred another Translation of six men before it 49. Another Heresie preferred the Translation of Theodotion and Symmachus before it 50. The 94 Heresie preferred the Scriptures found in a Vessel after the Captivâ—â—y before it 51. The 96th ought that Melchizedeck had no Father or Mother not knowing that it 's spoken of him as learning that which his Father and Mother never taught him 52. The 97 hold that the Prophet Zachariah of Fasts is to be properly understood when as it is but for the four Fasts of the Church viz. for Christmas Easter Epiphany and Pentecost 53. The 98 Hâ—râ—sie holdeth that Solomon ' s great number of Wives and Concubines is literally to be understood whereas it is meant but of diversity of Gifts in the Church 54. The 100 Heresie thought that the Measuring Cord in Zachary was to be understood of measuring Jerusalem literally whereas it meant the choice of Believers 55. The 101 Heresie not understanding the Mystical Sense of the Cherubim and Seraphim in Isaiah are troubled about it and in doubt And here he Mystically tells you the Mystical Sense 56. The last Heresie thought that one of the Cherubims came to Isaiah and with a Coal touched his Lips and that it was an Angel or Animal with Fire whereas it is the Two Testaments and the Fire of God's Grace To these you may add if you please the Heresie of holding Antipodes determined by Pope Zachary by the Mediation of the holy Bishop Boniface I think an English man And of what peril it is for Christians to eat Jayes and Rooks and Badgers and Hares and Wood horses And Lard must not be eaten before it is dryed in the Smoak or boiled on the Fire Or if it be eaten unboiled it must not be till after Easter And there must be three great Lamps set in a secret place of the Church after the similitude of the Tabernacle which must be kept burning and at Baptism others lighted by them Reader remember 1. That Philastrius as well as Epiphanius was a Bishop 2. Yea and a Saint whereas very few Bishops of all the Councils had the honour to be Sainted Therefore if you say that all these were not Anathematized by Councils I answer 1. All these are Registred as Hereticks 2. And they held as Mr. Dodwell and his Company here do that he that communicateth with Hereticks is to be judged a Heretick 3. And that Hereticks are no parts of the Church And forget not above all the Henâ—ician Heresie which determineth not only our King but many Papist Princes to be Hereticks for claiming Investâ—tures And now Reader I unâ—eignedly hate uncharitableness and therefore deny no good that was in such Bishops But I must no more be indifferent between Good and Evil than between Heaven and Hell not may I judge Christ a Railer for saying to his prime Apostle Get thee behind me Satan thou art an offence unto me c. If the name of Hereticators that is too rash pronouncing men Hereticks be railing I will give thee no Character censure or name of the aforesaid practice for I can devise no name which may not be called Railing But judge of it and call it what you see cause And again if you say These are not the Decrees of Councils I answer These are but Flea-bitings to the wounds that the Church hath received from Councils by Anathematizing The next Instance of Railing in these words which he half repeateth Either credible Socrates and others were gross Lyars or this Patriarch and St was a dowâ—right Knave Ans He himself is so far from denying this that he makes Socrates and Sozomen not only Lyars but Lovers of a Lie for what they say of St. Theophilus And who is it then that is the Railer Read the Story The next Instance is p. 95. that I call Bishops the Firebrands of the World Ans The words are these I take them to be the Firebrands of the World and unworthy the regard of sober men who pretend to know mens Judgments better than themselves and allow not mens own aâ—liberate professions to be the notice of their Faith If they will say that you are Hereticks in heart though your Tongue and Life prâ—fess sound Doctrine what means hath any man to clear himself against such and keep from their Inquisition Racks or Flames Is this Railing The next Instance is the Word Self-conceited Bishops P. 98. Having mentioned the many Logical Niceties necessary to decide the Question between the Nostorians Eutychians and the Orthodox I said Is it not pâ—ty that such Questions should be raised about the Person of Christ by self conceited Bishops and made necessary to Salvation and the World set on fiâ—e and divided by them Reader remember the Division made by it conâ—inueth to this day to the Separation and Condemnation of a great part of the Christian World And is the name self-conceited in describing the cause of this a railing How much worse râ—â—ers are they that will call a Drunkard a Drunkard or a Forâ—â—cator a Fornicator Read the sadder words of Ludolphus The next railing is merciless furâ—â—us Bishopâ— pag. 196 Ans There is no such word When I find where it is I shall see the occasion of it Italy Piedmont Ireland c. have tried that there have been such The last is pag. 183. The Confounders of Churches Ans I thought I had merited of them by my impartiality and lenity As after I commend the Wisdom peaceableness of Pope Hâ—norius though a General Council even for that made him an Hâ—retick so I here justly commend the Wisdom and Peaceableness of Pope Vigilius who advised the Council to leave dead men to God Theod. Mâ—ps Theodorite and Ibis and not damâ— them when God hath judged them already and yet not to admit any of their wrong opinions I â—â—y Tâ—is was the right way If they had all dealt as visely and Christianlike Councils â—ad not been the Consounders of the Câ—uâ—châ—â— Is this railing At last they forced Pope Vigâ—lius to subscribe to them and it so consounded the Churches that a great part of Italy itself forsook the Church of Rome for it and set up another head against the Pope aâ— 100 Years Was not this confusioâ— And must it not be known Reader as far as I understand them the Paraphrase of these mens words is If we kindle a fire in the Church name it nor much less call any to quench it or else we 'll say it 's you that kindle it say not you are excommunicate or silenced when you are though it be by Thousands else we will prove that you are railerâ— If we lay you in Gaols and
for nought because I say that the reason why the West was freer from the Arian Heresie than the East was not as the Papists say that Christ prayed for Peter that his Faith might not fail but because the Emperours in the West were Orthodox and those in the East Arians And the Bishops much followed the Emperour's will What saith he can be more unchristian Answ 1. I never said that this was the Only Cause 2. I proved that this Priviledge of Rome was not the meaning of Christ's Prayer 3. Is not this the same man that even now â—â—id the fall of far more Bishops even most in the World on the Emperour as overcoming them by force and fraud 4. Doth not God himself keep men usually from strong temptations when he will deliver them from sin 5. Were not the Eastern Bishops and the Western of the same mold and temper And if the Eastern followed the Emperours had not the Western been in danger if they had the like temptation 6. Doth not Basil that sent to them for help complain of them as proud and no better than their Brethren 7. Did not Marcellinus fall to Idolatry and Liberius to subscribe against Athanasius with the Arians 8. Did not the West actually fall to Arianism when tempted for the most part Judge by the great Council at Milane and by Hillary's complaints 9. Hath Rome and the West stood faster to the Truth since then What! all the Popes who are by Councils charged with Heresie or Infidelity and all wickedness and those many whose Lives even by Baronius and Genebrard are so odiously described Is the West at this day free from Popery and its fruits 10. Do you think in your conscience that if we had not here a Protestant King but a Papist many of the Clergy would not be Papists Why then are they so in France Spain Italy Poland c And why did the most of them turn in Qu. Mary's daies I do not insult but lament the Churches Case which ever since Wealth and Honour and too much Power corrupted it have had Bishops far more worldly and less faithful than they were the first three hundred years Though I still say that ever since God hath in all times raised some serious Believers that have kept up serious Piety in the Church And as I doubt not but there are so many such among the Conformists as is our great Joy so I hope that though foully blotted with Superstition and Errour there are many such among the Papists themselves § 2. Yet he saith I do the Bishops Right again without thinking of doing them Justice while I tell how many were murdered Answ 1. Doth he know my thoughts 2. It 's true I intended not to do any other Justice than to praise Christ's Martyrs and Confessors while I lament the Case of Persecutors and Revolters Is the praise of Confessors any honour to the Hereticks But perhaps he means I right the Order of Bishops Answ Did I ever say or think that there were no Bishops that kept the Faith Do I say All fell when I say Most fell The Man speaks as his imagined Interest leads him and so interpreteth my words to his own sense not as written And if that be the right way I think he will grant that there were more Martyrs and Sufferers under Valens Constantius Hunnericus and Gensericus in the East and in Africk by far than were when their Tryal came in all the West that is now subject to the Pope And what moved the man to dream that when I so describe and praise their constancy in Suffering I did it as at unawares That the greater part of the Bishops of the Empire were Arians I will not offer by Testimony to prove when it is so commonly by Fathers Historians by Papists and Protestants agreed on How many of them were Bishops before and how many but Presbyters or Deacons I 'le not pretend to number The turning of multitudes all agree on The Constancy of many he falsly intimateth that I deny and saith I injuriously represent them and cannot tell a word wherein that Crime is found § 3. Naming the things that were done by the Council at Constantinople I mention both the setting up and after the putting down of Gregory lest any Caviller should carp at the word putting down I presently open particularly what it was that they did toward it that resolving on his deposition they caused him though unwilling rather to give it up than stay till they cast him out This great Historian had no more manlike an Exception here than to say that against all History and against my own Explication I say that They Deposed him I said They put him down in the manner and as far as I explained § 4. While he here himself accuseth the Times then of General Corruption and the Church of Divisions adding What Age hath been so happy as not to labour under those Evils he accuseth me of making misuse of Gregory's words to represent the Council in an odious manner Answ It is to represent the worser part in a lamentable manner as far as Gregory did and no further And as to his quarrel at my citation I shall say no more but if the Reader will but read Gregory's own words I willingly leave all that Cause to his Judgment If he will not my words cannot inform him Yet he himself saith He doth indeed in several places find fault with this Council And can you forgive him I think I find no more than he did But for this you find fault with him He did resent the Injury And was it an Injury and did not bear the deprivation of his Bishoprick with the same generosity he proposed which made him a little more sharp than was decent in his representation of the Bishops What wonder if sharpened with discontent he exclaim with somewhat too great a passion against the administration of the Church which he had been forced to quit Ans All will be confest anon when I have been accused for saying it before him That 's his way But it was not for leaving a high and fat Bishoprick that he was grieved but for being separated from the People that he had partly served in their lower state and partly won from Heresie and who came about him with tears intreating him not to forsake them And though it were morethan generosity to set light by the Honour and Wealth it is treachery to set light by Souls And they changed to their great loss He resigned much to quiet the People lest they should do as they did for Chrysostom after him It is no new thing for the Major vote of the Clergy to Envy those few that are better and more esteemed than themselves nor yet for the Godly People to be loth to leave such pastors § 5. He saith His censure of Councils that he knew none of them that have any happy End was not the fault of the expedient but of
the men Ans And what did I ever say more It is his custom when he hath stormed at me to say in Effect the same that he stormed at Some Papists would persuade men that it was only Arian Councils that he meant but most Protestants that Write about Councils against them do cite vindicate these words of Gregory And the impartial Papists confess that it was the Councils also of the Catholicks that there and else where he spake of § 6. In the Case of Meletius and Paulinus two Bishops in a City and the Case of Lucifer Calaritanus made a Heretick for separating from lapsed Arians he saith over the same that I do that good men cannot rightly understand one another and so it ever hath been and it 's the Effect of humane frailty and not Episcopacy In all this I agree But 1. If humane frailty make Bishops swell in pride and ambition and domineering it hath far worse Effects than in other men 2. And Bishops are bound to excell their flocks in Piety humility Selfdenyal peaceableness as well as in knowledge If the Physicians of this city should prove unskilful and yet confident where they err it is not quatenus Physicians that they are such But if it be qui Physicians that are such they may kill thousands while the same faults in all their neighbours may kill few or none If your Interest made you not smart and angry without cause you would not cavil against such plain truth § 7. About the Priscillianists he saith I all along observe this Rule to be very favourable to all Hereticks and Schismaticks be they never so much in the wrong and to fall on the Orthodox party and improve every miscarriage of theirs into a mighty crime Ans If all along this accusation be false then all a long your History serveth such a use But in France Spain Italy he is favourable to Hereticks that takes not the orthodox for such or that is not for racking and burning them And in England he is favourable to Schismaticks that taketh not the greatest lovers of Piety and peace for such and the Church Tearers for Church-Healers As Mr. Dodwell phraseth it they are Schismaticks that suffer themselves to be excommunicate for unsinful things in the Bishops account and heinous sin in theirs and so that are not so ripe in Knowledge as to know all the unsinful things to be such which may be imposed § 8. What would this enemy of railing have had me said more than I did of the Priscillianists viz. that they were Gnosticks and Manichees Was not that bad Enough No I favour them still And what say I more of the Bishops and the whole cause than Sulpitius Severus the fullest and most knowing Describer saith Why doth he not accuse him for the same description Yea and their Mr. Ri. Hooker who in the Preface to his Eccl. Pol. saith of Ithacius the like Yea Baronius himself consenteth Where I say that to the death Martin separated from the synods of these Bishops I said not from all Bishops in the world he saith he renounced only the Communion of Ithacius his Party and that others did as well as he Reader it will be thy folly to take either his word or mine what an Author saith when we differ without looking into the Book it self Read Sulpitius Severus I will transcribe some words lest he say I mistranslate them Priscillianus familia nobilis praedives opibus acer inquies facundus multa lectione eruditus disserendi disputandi promptissimus vigilare multum famem sitim ferre poterat habendi minime cupidus utendi parcissimus Was it a crime to say so much good of him But proud of his Learning set up a Heresie and two Bishops Instantius and Salvianus ioyned with him and made him a Bishop At Caesar Augusta one Synod was gathered against him The Story I before recited Next a Synod at Burdeaux tryeth them Saith Sulpitius Ac mea quidem sententia est mihi tam reos quam accusatores displicere Certe Ithacium nihil pensi nihil sancti habuisse definio suit enim audax loquax impudens sumptuosus ventri gulae plurimum impertiens Hic stultitiae eo usque processerat ut omnes etiam sanctos viros quibus aut studium erat lectionis aut propositum erat certare jejuniis tanquam Priscilliani socios aut discipulos in crimen arcesseret Ausus etiam miser est ea tempestate Martino Episcopo palam objectare haeresis infamiam Imperator per Magnum Ruâ—um Episcopos depravatus à mitioribus consiliis deflexus So he tells how many were put to death Caeterum Priscilliano occiso non solum non repressa est haeresis sed confirmata latius propagata est Namque sectatores ejus qui eum prius ut sanctum honoraverant postea ut Martyrem colere câ—pâ—runt Ac inter nostros perpetuum discordiarum bellum exarserat quod jam per quindâ—â—im annos â—oedis dissensionibus agitatum nullo modo sopiri poterat Et nunc cum maxime discordiis Episcoporum turbari aut misceri omnia ceâ—nerentur cunctaque per eos odio aut gratia metu inconstantia invidia factione libidine avaritia arrogantia somno desidia essent depravata Postremo plures adversus paucos bene consulentes insanâ—s consiliis pertinacibus studiis certarent Inter haec Plebs Dei Optimus quisque probro atque ludibrio habebatur So ends Sulpitius History Do you not see Mr. Morrice that there have been Prelates and Puritanes even Episcopal Puritanes before our Times Doth not your stomach rise against Sulpitius as too Puritanical and severe Is not my Language of most of the Bishops soft in comparison of his Yet he was so early as to live in that which you now call the most flourishing Time of the Church Sir I hate Discord and love Peace but I never look that the Enmity between the Woman's and the Serpent's Seed or Cain and Abel should be ended or that the holy Title of Bishops and Priests should reconcile ungodly men to Saints Sir England knoweth that though some factious persons have done otherwise the main Body of those that your Law doth Silence Ruine and Revile have a high esteem of such Bishops as have been seriously godly such as were many in Antient and late Times And deride it as long as you will the seriously religious People in England are they that are most against Church-Tyranny and which Party most of the debauched and prophane are of hath long been known § 9. But the Reader shall further hear how little you are to be trusted Saith Sul. in Vita Mart. Apud Nemausium Episcoporum Synodus habebatur ad quam quidem ire noluerat There 's another Synod Et pag. 584. In Mon. Pat. Maximus Imperator aliâs vir bonus depravatus consiliis Sacerdotum post Priscilliani necem Ithacium Episcopum Priscilliani accusatorem caeterosque illius socios quos nominare non est necesse
take any impressions and upon false information chargeth Cyril with prosecuting his private quarrells with Nestorius under pretence of zeal for the faith I leave all men to believe our Accuser as they see cause And the same I say of that which is so great a Controversie among the Critical Historians whether Theodorets Epistle to Job Aut. against Cyril be Counterfeit or were written on a false rumour of Cyrils death Their 5th General Council hath it Baronius and Binnius say some Eutychian knave hath corrupted the Acts of that Council Must Councils be the Laws of all the world and hath the Church and Tradition kept them no better that we know not when we have them truly Leave us then to the universal Laws of God § 14. He saith truly that the Council of Ephesus was chiefly directed by the authority of Cyril Ans And so was that at Trent by the authority of the Pope And when he hath confuted the credible History wich tells us of the womens and Courtiers hatred of Nestorius and proved that the Emperour and Pulcheria the Empress were but one I will grant that the authority of the Court directed not Cyril and that then and now Bishops neither were nor are directed by the Civil powers § 15. When I spake against Nestorius his cruelty to Sectaries he asketh What Hereticaters were hotter than the Presbyterians in 1646. The inquisition is not more severe than their ordinance against Heresies which they desired should be made felony and punished by death c. Ans Reader Judge of the mans Credit as to ancient History still by his truth about the Present age 1. The Inquisition he saith is not more severe Do I need to answer this to any man of 50 years of age It 's Capable of no answer but what he will call by some name deserved by his own 2. I can find no such ordinance He saith It was offered Is that all And by whom Was it the body of the Presbterians or who 3. What were the Heresies named by them Were they not down right Blasphemy 4. Who and how many were ever either tormented or put to death for Heresie from 1641 till 1660 I remember not one save that James Nayler was imprisoned and whipt and had his Tongue bored for blasphemous Personating Christ and that not by the Presbyterians 5. Why are they so ordinarily reproached by the Prelatists for tolerating all Sects here in England 6. What if all this had been true What is it to me or any of my mind I never had a hand in persecuting one man to my remembrance How few can you name of all the Nonconformists now in England that had any hand in the Severities you mention I know not four in England that I remember And what 's this to us any more than to you 7. And was it well done or ill If well why do you liken them to the Inquisition Are you for it If ill why do you plead for it in others Imitate it not if you dislike it For my part as I am against all Sects as such I am much more against the cruelty of any I stick no more at the disgracing the Presbyterians sins than yours And I am readier to disgrace my own than either if I can know them I would cherish Errours no more than you but I would not ruine or imprison even such of your selves as have too many Heresie must have its proper cure I thank God I had once an Orthodox agreeing Flock But again I say the Presbyterians were too impatient with Dissenters and it 's better have variety of Fish in the Pond than by the Pikes to reduce them to special unity § 16. He saith that Nestorius consequentially denyed the God-Head of Christ p. 192. Next he hath found a contradiction in my words that the Emperor was weary of this stir And yet that Cyril did it to please the Court These critical men can make their two hands enemies to each other How came he waking to dream that this was a contradiction when Historians tell us that the Women and Courtiers hated both Chrysostome and Nestorius He implyeth that the Emperor and the Court were all one or of one mind But I am not bound to believe him no more than of many other Emperours whose Wives kept up one party and they another And I pray you why should we be confident that Theodosius 2. himself called an Eutychian by the hereticating Bishops was not against Nestorius when he called that Council at first Condemned both him and Cyril and after him alone I did but recite the Historians words and was that forgetfulness § 17. His many words about this controversie with Nestorius are the most unworthy of any answer of all his Books sometime he saith as I as p. 193. It had been happy for the Church if the mysteries of our Religion had never been curiously disputed sometime he confesseth that Nestorius spake the same thing with Cyril that Christ had two natures in one Person ibid. And that he expresseth himself one would think very orthodoxly p. 202. But the Heretick dissembled and hid his sence And so this man after above 1000 years knew the mans mind to be contrary to his words whereas it's palpable to him that readeth the Histories that the man was so far from hiding and dissembling that he was sowrly and morosely addicted to stick to the words and Notions he had espoused and too little to regard a peaceable complyance to mollifie his accusers His fault lay on the clean contrary side But he proveth him a Heretick that meant Christ was two Persons though he said the contrary 1. Because he saith that the Humane Nature was united in dignity and honour to the Divine Ans As if either the hypostatical union were denyed by those words or he knew that Nestorius meant not to include it in those terms But he saith he useth the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ans As if 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 never signifyed more than a Relative or official Person when besides the many places cited by Derodon Nestorius oft explaineth himself in the common orthodox sence But the foulest charge is that he seems once or twice to distinguish Christ from the Divine Nature Ans By Christ he expresseth himself to mean the humane nature anointed to his Office And the man thought that the Divine Nature was not so anointed and distinguishing is not dividing It is not his Nay and my Yea that can inform any Reader what Nestorius said and meant without reading his own words rather than Cyrils of him And if such as Mr. M. will pretend Charity and contrary to plain evidence face down the world that a Man denyeth consequentially Christs God-Head and the Unity of his Person while he profest the contrary no mans innocency is sufficient to escape the fangs of such hereticaters And let him call me what his list inclineth him to call me
matter made of it but they are Members of the Church of England the purest Church in all the World Whereas in those licentious times if one Souldier had spoken such a Word it would have rung out through the Land and perhaps his Tongue would have been bored with an hot Iron It was the errours of the proud rebellious Soldiers that made most of the noise that had no considerable number of Ministers left with them I had a hand in Mr. Edwards Book thus An Assembly of Ministers after Naseby Fight sent me into the Army to try if I could reduce them Dayly disputing with them a few proud selfconceited Fellows vented some gross words At Amersham a few Country Sectaries had set up a Meeting in Dr. Crooks Church to dispute and deceive the People A few of Major Bethel's Troop that afterwards turned Levellers and were ruined joined with them I met them and almost all day disputed against them and shamed them and they met there no more I gathered up all the gross words which they uttered and wrote them in a Letter to Francis Tyton and after I found them cited in Mr. Edwards Gangrena And what 's the absurd Speeches of a few ignorant Souldiers that are dead with them to the Heresies and Schisms that these 1000 or 1200 Years continue in all the Roman Communion and they say in all the rest of the Christian World One cheating Papist as a converted Jew got into an Anabaptists Meeting one Maxwell a Scot and all England rung of it But when Bishops have made and keep France Spain Italy c. in the same Errours Dr. Heylin and Bp. Bromhall and such others took them for such with whom a Coalition on the terms by them described was very desirable CHAP. XXIV His 7th Chapter considered § 1. THE Man had not the courage to defend the surgent Prelacy in its Manhood and Maturity but only in its Infant and Juvenile State nor to defend the many hundred Councils which I mentioned after the Council of Calcedon in which either his Modesty or Cautelousness comes short of his Rd. Fathers who some of them own the six first General Councils and some of them eight and some would unite with the Church of Rome if they will abate but the last 400 Years additions § 2. In his Gleanings in this 7th Chap. he over and over and over persuadeth his Reader that I make or affirm that the Bps. were the cause of all the Heresies in the world and of all the Heresies Schisms and Evils that have afflicted the Church And hath this Historian any proof of this Or is it the melancholy fiction of his Brain Yes this is his proof contrary to my manifold Instances because I say in one age We have a strange thing a Heresie raised by one that was no Bishop which I have answered before To be then strange and never to be at all are not words of the same sense But his Answers throughout do mind me of Seneca's Words that a man that is sore complains or cries Oh when he doth but think you touch him § 3. He thus himself accuseth the Bishops p. 276 There have been wicked men and wicked Bishops in all times And p. 277. That some Bishops have abused their Authority and Office and been the cause of Heresie and Schism cannot be denied But yet He hath shewed sufficiently that most of my particular Accusations are void of all truth and Ingenuity Ans Or else those words are so § 4. He saith All Ecclesiastical Writers agree that Simon Magus was Author of the first Heresie in Christian Religion Ans All confess that Judas was before him And if it be a Heresie to buy the Spirit for Money it is a Heresie to sell Christ for Money But I confess some tell us of his after pranks at Rome and imitating Icarus at Peters Prayers If you would see why Dr. More takes this for a toyish Legend see his Mystery of Iniquity Lib. 2. C. 19. § 6 7. p. 447 448. § 5. P. 286 287. Baronius first and Philastrius after are made guilty of Forgery and disregardable History so that I may well bear some of his Censures § 6. P. 290. To confute me effectually he saith much what the same which is much of the sum of all my Book And yet it 's false and malicious in me and true and charitable in him viz. Praising the first 300 years when the Bishops were such as we offer to submit to he adds The following Ages were not so happy but as Christians generally degenerated so did the Bishops too Ans What! Before the Council of Nice That 's a sad Confession I was ready to say as a Roman Emperour said to a flatterer that still said all that he said Dic aliud aliquid ut duo simus But his next words allay it But yet not so much as our Author would make it appear As the Dominicans and Oratorians must say some falshood of Calvine lest they be thought Calvinists And yet he addeth The beginning of the 4th Century was very unhappy to the Church for Persecution without and Heresie and Schism within Meletius an Egyytian began a Schism forsook the Communion of the Church c. Next the Donatists Arians c. Ans It seems that the Emperours Constantius and Valens were without the Church and yet the Arian Priests and Bishops were within it When he defineth the Church we may understand this But is it not this 4th Century that is made the Churches more flourishing state by others § 7. Even the great Historian of Heresies Epiphanius is said p. 292. to be unaccountably mistaken in several things relating to that History And 293. hath a strange unaccountable mistake in diverse other things relating to that matter If I had at any time erred with such a Bishop and Father I might have been excusable for reciting his History § 8. Pag. 295. He opens the very Heart of his Parties Principles and saith The Church is never distracted more by any thing than Projects of Moderation Ans Experience proveth that you speak your Heart The words are no wilful Lye which agree with a mans Mind be they never so false as disagreeable to the matter No man was more of that Opinion than Hildebrand that would not yield the Emperours the Investiture nor as I before said abate the Prince of Calaris the shaving of his Bishops Beard to save his Kingdom Victor began with that Opinion too soon but his Successors have these Thousand Years been as much for it as you can wish 2. But to whom is it that you intend this Sure not to all Was Bishop Laud of that mind toward the Papists if Dr. Heylin say true Was Grotius of that mind toward them Was Arch-Bishop Bromhall Forbes Beziar Thorndike and many more such of that mind No I 'le excuse you that you meant not them and their Projects of Moderation Nor I believe neither Cassander's Erasmus's Wicelius's Sancta
Very good but cried Pretty good Ink Pretty good Ink and no body would buy of him and he lost his Ink. And if you cry up An indifferent Religion whatever you have for numbers you will have for quality but an Indifferent Church save our Rulers XV. But he adds Many of them would preach against it and their Governours too Ans 1. You tempt them towards it If I ask the Butcher Is your Meat sweet and he say it is indifferent I am excusable if I think it stinks 2. They judge by the effects They thought that when an indifferent thing casteth out a necessary thing it becomes naught 3. But yet your Accusation is unfaithful Why did you not say then that it was not for Non-conformity that men were cast out but for preaching against your Religion Who were those Was it proved If so what was that to the rest Do you punish many learned moderate men for the fault of a few others that they were not concerned with You now alledge Mr. Hildersham Ball Bradshaw Baine Knewstubs and abundance such for being against Separation and persuading men to come to the Common Prayer and many of them to kneel at the Sacrament and yet when you plead for their Silencing even other mens words may serve against them XVI To conclude in all he layeth the cause of their silence on themselves for not conforming and yet will not tell us what we should do to help it Would they have us Conform while we judge it as sinful as I have mentioned in my first Plea for Peace No they profess the contrary Would they have us believe all to be lawful We cannot Our Judgments are not at our Command What would they have us do to change Worldly Interest maks us too willing We study as hard as they We earnestly beg Gods Illumination to save us from Er rour We read all that they write to convince us And the more we read study and pray the more heinous the Sin of Conformity seems to some I askt Bp. Morley the same question when he forbad my preaching before the ejecting Act and he bid me read Bilson and Hooker I told him that was not now to do and in both of them I found the Principles which are made the cause of my Silencing my greatest Crimes and in one of them worse He then told me If God would not give me his Grace he could not help it And yet most of these men are against fatal reprobating necessitating Decrees The imposing Papists use men worse Of whom will you pardon a Fable A Bee and a Flie were catcht together in a Spiders Web The Spider when they were tired with striving claimed them both for her Food as a punishment for breaking into and troubling her Web And against the Bee she pleaded that she was a hurtful Militant Animal that had a Sting and against the Flie that she was noisome and good for nothing The Bee answered that her mellifying Nature and work was profitable and Nature had armed her with a Sting to defend it And the Flie said as she did little good so she did little harm and could make her self no better than Nature had made her And as to the Crime alledged against them they both said that the Net was made by a venomous Animal spun out of the Air and the Venom of her own Bowels made for no use but to catch and destroy the Innocent and they came not into it by malice but by ignorance and mistake and that it was more against their Will than against the Spiders for they contrived not to fall into it but she contrived to catch them and that it was not to break the Net that they strove but to save their Lives The Master of the House overheard the Debate but resolved to see how the Spider would judge which was quickly done without more words the took them for Malefactors and killed them both The Master of the House so disliked the Judgment that he ordered that for the time to come 1. The Bees should be safely hived and cherished 2. And the Flies if not very noisome should be tolerated 3. And all Spiders Webs swept down I need to give you no more of the Exposition of it than by the Spider I mean the Papal noxious Canon-makers and that by the Net I mean their unnecessary and ensnaring Laws and Canons which are made to catch and destroy good men and are the way to the Inquisition or Bonner's Coal-house or Smithfield Bonefires But I must desire you not to imagine that I speak against the Laws of the Land § 27. As to the Conclusion of his last Chapter I shall now add no more but this If what I said before and to Mr. Hinkley satisfie him not of what Religion and Party both sides were that began the War and Mr. Rushworths Collections and other Histories of former Parliaments be not herein useful to him let him but secure me from burning my Fingers with Subjects so red hot by mens misinterpreting and impatience and I will God willing give him so full proof that to say nothing of latent Instigators and consequent auxiliaries on either side nor of the King himself whose Religion is beyond dispute the parties else that begun the War in England did differ in Religion but as A. Bps. Laud and Neal and Bromhal and such others and A. Bps. Abbot and Williams and Bp. Bilson on the other side and as Dr. Mainwaring Sibthorp c. on one side and Mr. Ri. Hooker and such on the other side differed And if my proof be confutable I will not hereafter undertake to prove that English is the language of England But my Bargain must be thus limited 1. I will not undertake that from the beginning there was no one Papist on the Kings side or no one Presbyterian on the Parliaments I could never yet learn of more than one in the House of Commons and a very few Independents but I cannot prove that there was no more 2. You must not put me upon searching mens hearts I undertake not to prove what any mans heart in England was but what their Profession was and what Church they joined with in Communion 3. And you must not equivocate in the use of the name Presbyterian or Nonconformist and tell me that you take some A. Bps. and Bps. and such Divines as Ri. Hooker and Bilson and Bp. Downame the Pillars of Episcopacy and Conformity for Presbyterians And if it may be I would beg that of you that you will not take the long Parliament for Presbyterians and Nonconformists who made the Acts of Uniformity the Corporation Act the Militia Act and those against conventicles and for banishment from Corporations c. Notwithstanding their high Votes about the Succession and Jealousies of Popery and that which they said and did hereupon For I confess if it be such Nonconformists or Presbyterians as those that you mean I 'le give you the better And I must
I found as followeth 1. That none are able to do so much hurt as those that have the greatest Parts Power Interest and Trust None kill so many except Souldiers as those Physicians who are entrusted to heal and save them If five hundred neighbours mistake a man's Disease whom he never trusted it hurts him not But an unskilful Nurse or Parent may kill a sick Child and an unskilful or unfaithful Physician may kill multitudes 2. And there goeth so much to make a man a skilful faithful Pastor as that such are rare As a Physician is like to kill his Patient if he mistake but some one thing in his Disease or some Ingredient in his Medicine though he were right in all the rest So if a Guide of Souls were excellent in all other things what work one Opinion yea or unskilful word may make not only the case of the Nestorians Eutychians Monothelites c. tell us but even the strife that arose in the Church about Hypostasis and Persona which had almost hereticated Jerom himself for all his skill in the Languages And the case of the Greeks and Latines about Filioque and abundance such 3. And Pride is the Heart of the Old Man first living and last dying And great Power great Parts and great Esteem do feed it if true Grace do not mortifie it Knowledge puffeth up and especially when men live among the ignorant and unlearned and are but half Learned themselves and are thought by the people and themselves to be much wiser than they are Inter coecos luscus Rex 4. And Selfishness is the very sum of all positive iniquity And Pride and Selfishness make men desirous to be the Idols of the World and to seem as Gods knowing good and evil and to have their will of all that they have to do with 5. And the strongest temptations use to cause the greatest sins § 14. These Generals presupposed it is most clear 1. That the remnant of these sins even in Christ's Apostles set them on striving who should be greatest and made James and John desire preheminence and also to have called for Fire from Heaven and made them after Christ's Resurrection hope that he would have restored the Earthly Kingdom unto Israel And it put Paul to vindicate his Apostleship against many that disparaged him As it made Diotrephes who loved to have the preheminence to cast out the Brethren and speak evil of John It gave Peter occasion to warn the Bishops not to Lord it over God's Heritage but to be Examples to the Flock overseeing them not by constraint but willingly 2. Even in good men this fault though not in a reigning degree did live more in others afterwards that had not that measure of the Spirit as the Apostles had to overcome it And if even in Paul's daies he had none like-minded to Timothy who naturally cared for the good of all for all too much sought their own and not the things that are Jesus Christ's as Demas forsook him for some worldly Interest what wonder is it if afterward Pride and Worldliness grew greater and Heresies and Strifes increased 3. Yet while Christianity was a suffering and laborious State the Pastors of the Churches were commonly the best men that had more Knowledge Holiness and Love than others and the Churches prospered under the Cross They that spared not their labours but imitated the pattern set by Paul Acts 20. did not strive who should have the largest Diocess and undertake that which they could not do but they strove to do as much as they were able and to increase and edifie the Flock 4. But when extraordinary Gifts abated and acquired Ones became more necessary and few Philosophers turned Christians able Taking Preachers or Orators grew fewer and those few that were eminent in Knowledge and Speech were justly preferred before the rest And usually some one man had the chief hand in converting men and gathering a Church in each particular Town and then he rightfully was taken for their Pastor And it being found that the publick and private care of Souls required in each Church where were fit men more than one Pastor It was not meet that more should be brought to â—im that was there before without his approbation and consent but that he were to the Juniors as a Father And because the rest were usualiy below him in Gifts and Worth it was thought but meet that they should do what they did by his consent And also to avoid Divisions to which they were over-prone it was judged fit that one should have the preheminence and a negative and partly ruling Vote 5. The Churches which in the beginning had these Bishops and Fellow-Presbyters were single Congregations And shortly they grew to be more than could meet together in some few great Cities Persecution hindering them from very large Assemblies besides their want of large capacious Temples Dr. Hammond thinks that there is no evidence that in Scripture-time there were any other Presbyters than Bishops and consequently a Bishop had but one Congregation unless he went one hour to one and another to another which was not their use But doubtless in this he is mistaken as the many Speakers as Corinth shew 6. The Greatness of the Roman Empire was prepared by God to be then an exceeding great fortherance of the Gospel For under the same Civil Laws and Powers where one or two Languages were understood by most Christians had the far greater advantage for Communication Want of forreign Languages is now our great hinderance from Preaching the Gospel to other Nations of the World And the Confusion at Babel was an unspeakable Judgment But as Ships yea Navies can sail on the Ocean when small Barks or Boats only can pass on Rivers so the vastness of the Roman Empire was a great help to the Church by Communication Language and Accesses But especially when the Emperour became Christian the advantage was exceeding great Whereas now the Greatness of the Turkish Tartarian Indostan Empire are great Impediments to the Gospel because the Barbarians are more cruel Enemies than the Civil Romans notwithstanding the ten Persecutions were and their opposition is the more extensive by the extent of their Dominions and the Christian Churches having now more scandalized the Infidels by their corruptions While they were not corrupted by worldly power and wealth the great holiness of the Churches convinced the sober part of the Empire Albaspineus shews us clearly that their strictness was so great that they endured no notable scandalous sin among them yea and came very near to the Novatians in their Discipline And that it was not for greater strictness that the Novatians were condemned but for denying the Power of the Church to absolve men penitent that sinned after Baptism And their Canons shew it And it is certain that Christians obeying Paul avoided the Heathen Judicatures as much as might be and censured those that did not and ended their Differences