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A59790 An answer to the request to Protestants, to produce plain Scriptures directly authorizing these tenets Sherlock, William, 1641?-1707. 1687 (1687) Wing S3264; ESTC R16978 12,957 22

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the Intercessions of Christ and his Prayers to God only desiring some Blessings of God as he does of his Frinds on Earth The sum of what we teach about this matter is this That we must worship none but God and therefore must not pray to Saints and Angels as our Saviour teaches Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve That there is but one Mediator between God and Man the Man Christ Jesus and therefore we must not make more Mediators to our selves nor put our trust in the Intercession of Saints and Angels Thus far we have plain Scripture proof And then we think common Sense teaches us the rest That it is an Injury to an only Mediator to set up other Mediators with him That good Men on Earth are not Mediators but Supplicants which is no encroachment of Christ's Mediatorship and that Saints in Heaven according to the Church of Rome pray as Mediators and Intercestors who appear in the Presence of God for us and this is not reconcilable with Christ's only Mediatorship in Heaven XII Honouring the Cross the Reliques and Representations of our Lord and his Saints with that degree of Reverence as we do the Gospels commonly kiss'd and sworn by Altar and other Sacred Utensils is Idolatry A. This is a very reasonable Request to require us to prove that by Scriture which we do not believe Papists indeed would excuse that Worship which they pay to the Cross to Reliques and Images by saying that it is no more than that Reverence which we allow to the Gospels and Religious Utensils which is no more than an external Respect but do those who charge them with Idolatry in worshipping the Cross and Reliques and Images charge them only with giving some external Respects to them or with giving them formal acts of Worship and Adoration As both the Decrees of their Councils and the visible Practice of their Church proves And if he would have this proved to be Idolatry he may meet with some Protestants who will be ready to oblige him XIII The Pope is Antichrist A. This indeed has been affirmed by some Protestants but is no Article of our Church and therefore we are not bound to prove it but when we have a mind to it No man ever pretended that there is any such Proposition in Scripture as that the Pope of Rome is Antichrist but some think that the Characters of Antichrist and the Man of Sin are much more applicable to him than the Universal Headship and Infallibility XIV Every Prayer us'd in Divine Offices must be in a Language vulgar and intelligible to every Auditor A. Why he should put us upon proving this from Scripture I cannot tell when he knows that St. Paul has a whole Chapter to prove it 1 Cor. 14. unless he has some reserve in expressing it by every Prayer For that indeed St. Paul does not say in Words but his Reason saies it For if the Reason he assigns against Prayers in an unknown Tongue extend to all Prayers then it proves that every publick Prayer should be in a Language understood by the People But what is this to the Church of Rome who has all publick Offices in an unknown Tongue Yes if they could prove it lawful ever to pray in an unknown Tongue they would presently prove it lawful always to do so and thus St. Pauls discourse against praying in an unknown Tongue is confuted for want of saying that we must never pray in an unknown Tongue But whether it be not more reasonable to conclude from St. Pauls discourse against praying in an unknown Tongue that we must never do so than from his not saying that we must never pray in an unknown Tongue that we may always do so let any man judg who has not renounced his own understanding XV. A Company of Christians voluntarily separating from all other Christian Societies condemning their Doctrines and Rites destitute also of any visible Correspondence with them in the Eucharist in any Religious Assemblies or Solemn Devotions can notwithstanding this perverse intire and manifest Separation be a mystical Member of Christ in Catholick Unity and a Charitable Part of the Catholick Church A. If he applies this to us it is manifestly false for tho' we do not communicate with the Church of Rome in her corrupt Worship yet there are many Christian Churches with which we can and do communicate and separate our selves no farther from any society of Christians than they separate themselves from the Primitive and Apostolick Churches But to gratifie him Suppose that all the Communions of Christendom were corrupted in their Worship so that we could not safely communicate with any one of them but our own yet if the Church of England be a true Apostolick Church in Faith and Worship and Government and separates from others only upon account of such corruptions as will justifie such a separation what should hinder her from being a mystical member of Christ in Catholick unity and a charitable part of the Catholick Church The true Apostolick Faith and Worship does certainly make us the mystical members of Christ's Body or else I desire to know what does Catholick Vnity is not violated by a just separation and dangerous corruptions in Faith and Worship are a just cause of separation Come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you 2 Cor. 6. 17. and where there are such corruptions so fatal and dangerous to mens souls how far soever such corruptions have spread it is a greater act of charity to separate than to communicate with them as it is greater charity to reprove men for their sins and forsake their company than to joyn with them in a wicked confederacy This is the true state of the case and this we can prove either from the express words of Scripture or from easie and necessary consequences and this shows that it is possible that a company of Christians not voluntarily but necessarily separating from all other Christian Societies condemning their corrupt Doctrines and Rites destitute also of any visible correspondence with them in the Eucharist in any Religious Assemblies or solemn Devotions upon account of such corruptions can notwithstanding this not perverse but just and necessary separation be a mystical member of Christ in Catholick unity and a charitablt part of the Catholick Church which is not meerly the present Church of one age but the whole Church from the times of Christ and his Apostles to the end of the world For could we suppose at any time all the Communions of Christendom to be corrupt but one that one uncorrupt Church must forsake the communion of all others and yet it would be a member of Christ and a charitable part of the Catholick Church unless it be only numbers not the purity of Faith and Worship which makes the Catholick Church XVI The whole Clergy of the Catholick Church may
AN ANSWER TO THE REQUEST TO PROTESTANTS To produce Plain Scriptures directly Authorizing these Tenets LICENSED December 16. 1686. LONDON Printed for Tho. Basset at the George near St. Dunstan's Church in Fleetstreet MDCLXXXVII An Answer to the Request to Protestants a To produce Plain Scriptures directly Authorizing these their Tenets a Ans. WE do indeed make the Scripture the Rule of our Faith because we believe God gave us the Scripture to be our Rule and we know not where to meet with a better and therefore we do not quarrel at this Request to produce plain Scripture proofs for what we believe but we may justly quarrel at the fallacious or unskilful way of stating it as if we pretended to own no Doctrines but what are contained in the express Words of Scripture and therefore to understand this matter we must consider the several kinds of Doctrines professed in the Church of England and what kind of proof from Scripture they are capable of 1st The positive Articles of Faith such as are contained in the Creed and expresly taught in Scripture we prove from plain and express Testimonies of Scripture and are ready to give our proofs of them when they are demanded But besides these 2ly we have a great many Negative Articles opposed to the Corruptions and Innovations of the Church of Rome Now to believe a Negative is only to believe that such a Doctrine is not taught in Scripture and it would be a very wise Request to desire us to prove by plain and express Scripture that such a Doctrine is not taught in Scripture We believe it is not there because we cannot find it in Scripture and those who pretend it is there cannot shew it there which is proof enough and all that the thing is capable of 3ly There are other Doctrines which it may be are not in a strict Sense Articles of Faith but great and useful Truths which cannot be proved by express Words of Scripture but by immediate and necessary Consequence and it is ridiculous in these Cases to demand a direct Proof if by that he means the express words of Scripture for we never pretended to that in such matters but think it very reasonable to believe an evident Consequence as well as express Words Since our Saviour proved the Resurrection it self by Consequence Matth. 22. 32. Having premised this I shall examine what it is he would have proved in which also he has betrayed great want either of skill or honesty as will appear from particulars I. Scripture is clear in all Necessaries to every Sober Enquirer A. He begins well with demanding a Scripture proof That the Scripture is clear in all Necessaries as if we Protestants wanted a Scripture proof that the Sun shines when we see it Can there be any better proof that the Scripture is clear and plain than its own plainness And therefore every plain Text proves its own plainness If this Proposition Scripture is clear in all Necessaries to every Sober Enquirer were contained in express Words in Scripture yet if we could not find it plain we should rather question whether those Words are plain than believe the Scripture to be plain when we do not find it so But if I find the Scripture plain the plainness of the Scripture proves it self and needs no other proof And yet this is one of those Propositions which may be proved by plain and necessary Consequence from the Scripture For if the word of God be a Light unto our Feet and a Lamp unto our Paths then it must be clear if Light be clear Psal. 119. 105. If it be able to make men wise unto Salvation 1. Tim. 3. 15. then it must be plain and intelligible in all things necessary to Salvation II. The Secular Prince hath all Spiritual Jurisdiction and Authority immediately from and under God. A. What Authority the Church of England grants to Kings in matters of Religion which he here calls all Spiritual Jurisdiction and Authority we are taught in the 37th Article of Religion The Kings Majesty hath the chief power in this Realm of England and other his Dominions unto whom the chief Government of all Estates of this Realm whether they be Ecclesiastical or Civil in all causes doth appertain and is not and ought not to be subject to any foreign Jurisdiction Which is further explained That we give not our Princes the Ministring of God's Word or of the Scraments but that only Prerogative which we see to have been given always to all Godly Princes in Holy Scriptures by God himself that is that they should rule all Estates and Degrees committed to their charge by God whether they be Ecclesiastical or Temporal and restrain with the Civil Sword the stubborn and evil doers Which signifies no more than that the King is supreme in his own Dominions and therefore there is no Power neither Secular nor Ecclesiastick above him for if there were he were not Supreme Must we then prove by express Scripture that the King is Supreme Do men want Scripture to prove That Supreme Power is Supreme Thus some men are always in the Extremes either the Scripture signifies nothing or it must be every thing Grammar and Dictionary and Logick and Statute-book and all but can they prove by express Scripture that the King has the Supreme power in Civil causes Then I will prove That he has the Supreme power in Ecclesiastical causes and I think Rom. 13. 1. Let every Soul be subject to the Higher Powers is a sufficient proof of both III. Justification by Faith alone viz. a Persuasion that we are justified is a wholesome Doctrine A. Our Church does teach That Justification by Faith only is a most wholesome Doctrine and very full of comfort Article II. but she does not teach That justifying Faith is a persuasion that we are justified and sure we are not bound to prove that by Scripture which we do not believe IV. The Substance of Bread and Wine remains after what it was before Sacerdotal Consecration A. Our Church teaches That Transubstantiation or the change of the substance of Bread and Wine in the Supper of the Lord cannot be proved by Holy Writ Art. 28. But she does not teach That the Bread and Wine remain after what they were before Sacerdotal Consecration Their substance is the same that is they are Bread and Wine still but by virtue of Christ's Institution after Consecration they are not meer Bread and Wine but a Sacrament of our Redemption by Christ's death and to such as rightly worthily and by faith receive the same the Bread which we break is a partaking of the Body of Christ and likewise the cup of blessing is a partaking of the Blood of Christ. The substance of Bread and Wine is the same but the Institution gives it such a new relation and use as is equivalent to changing its nature and makes it the Sacramental Body and Blood of Christ. And this the words of Institution are