a Dispensation Item a wilful Murtherer in which rank they are not placed that disclose an Heretick to the Inquisition for to put him to death nor those that carry wood for to burn him nor that man that gives a woman a Potion to drink for to kill a Child in her Womb as the same Jesuit there teacheth A married man is not admitted to any Order but he that whoreth or keeps at home a Concubine or more may be a Priest and perform the Functions belonging thereunto as Pope Innocent the third doth define in the Title de Bigamis And thereupon the Gloss of the Doctors addeth Whoredom hath more priviledge here than Chastity Vide the Jâ—usâ—â—s Morals yea a notorious Buggerer or Sodomite is not irregular or uncapable of holy Orders and may sing Mass as Navarrus teacheth who was the Popes Penitential and the most learned of all the Canonists 11. They hold that the Priests and all Spiritual persons ought to be rich because Saint Paul saith a Bishop must be given to Hospitality 12. That no Priest is to be deprived for Fornication 13. That Christians may be distinguished by divers Names and separated into various Professions of different Religions 14. That those Professions are the state of perfection 15. That publick exercises of Religion ought to be in an unknown Language 16. That private exercises are performed that way also in a more holy manner 17. That Kings enjoy their Kingdoms by the Popes favour 18. That the Pope hath right to give and take away and translate Kingdoms 19. That the Roman Church hath Cardinals for Sides-men to the Pope upon whom the universal Church is turned as upon hinges 20. That these are to be joined with the Pope in the Government of the universal Church and that those whether they be Bishops or Presbyters or Deacons are not only to be preferred before other Bishops Archbishops Primates Patriarchs but to be equalled even with Kings Their Errours concerning Justifying Faith 1. THat Faith hath its proper seat and place only in the understanding not in the heart and affection and that it is not an assurance or considence of the heart 2. That Faith is but a bare assent of the Mind without knowledg or understanding of that whereunto it assenteth That there is an implicit Faith which is the Faith of simple men who although they are not able to give good reason of their Belief yet it is enough for them to say they are Catholick-men and that they will live and die in that Faith which the Catholick Church doth teach Now this implicit Faith which they say is sufficient for common Catholicks is nothing else but to believe as the Church believeth though they know nothing themselves particularly 3. That it is not the property of Faith specially to apply to every Believer the Promises of God in Christ for this they boldly call presumption but generally to believe whatsoever is contained in Gods Word to be true 4. They affirm that an historical Faith a Faith of working Miracles and that Faith which justifieth are all one in substance That the Faith of Miracles differeth only from justifying Faith in an accidental quality of more fervour devotion and confident trust yea the Rhemists are more absurd that Faith say they which Saint James calls a dead Faith is notwithstanding a true Faith and the same which is called the Catholick Faith 5. That true justifying Faith may be separated from Love and other Christian vertues 6. That Faith doth not justifie as an Instrument in apprehending the Righteousness of Christ but as a proper and true cause it actually justifyeth by the dignity worthiness and meritorious work thereof 7. That Works are more principal than Faith in the matter of Justification 8. That we are said to be justified by Faith because Faith is the beginning only the foundation and root of Justification 9. That men are not justified by the only imputation of Christs Righteousness or by the Remission of sins or that we are not formally justified by the Righteousness of Christ 10. That our particular Salvation is not to be believed by Faith 11. That a man may fall away from the Faith which once truly he had and be altogether deprived of the state of Grace so that he may justly be counted among the Reprobates Their Errours concerning Repentance 1. THat Repentance which they call Penance is a Sacrament properly so called 2. That Repentance in the New-Testament is another thing from that Testament is another thing from that which it was in the old and also that in the New Testament which is after Baptism is another thing from that which is before 3. That these three are the true and proper parts of Penance Contrition Confession to the Priest and Satisfaction to God for our sins 4. Contrition which otherwise neither ought nor can be excluded from Repentance is required by our Adversaries not simply in Repentance but they teach that sins are blotted out and satisfied for by Contrition 5. They appoint a certain measure to Contrition and do teach that unless it be sufficient there is no Remission of sins granted 6. In reckoning the parts of Repentance they omit Faith and take away as it were the soul and life of true Repentance 7. That Repentance goeth before Justification by Faith and that it is a way rather unto Faith and Justification in the Remission of sins 8. That Contrition which is joined with an inward terrour of the Mind and proceedeth from the sight of our sins doth not appertain to the Law but to the Gospel 9. Some Papists affirm that in Contrition it is not necessary to have a formal that is a resolute and express purpose of newness of life but that this is always included in the detesting of sin which implicit or inclusive purpose is sufficient 10. They teach that Contrition ought to be perfect because it must proceed from the love of God which is the most perfect kind of love 11. They affirm that Contrition is a necessary means unto Justification and they make Contrition as a part of satisfaction for our sins so a cause of Justification and Remission of sins not only in disposing and preparing us thereunto but in that thereby we verily obtain and deserve Remission of our sins 12. Sâ— t li 4. 〈◊〉 3. 〈◊〉 17. Contrition they say is not necessary for venial or small offences neither is a man bound thereunto Some think that a general Confession sufficeth for mortal sins which a man understandeth not 13. That there is a kind of Contrition that proceedeth only from the fear of punishment when a man leaveth to sin not for any love to God but only for fear of Hell 14. That it is necessary to Justification that sins all and every one as far as may be be confessed to the Priest as to a Judg. 15. That none can rightly seek for absolution at the Priests hands unless they confess particularly at least all their
Acts of Foronosus his Predecessor John the ninth disannulled all the Acts of Stephen and Sergius the third all the Acts that Formosus had done and so that which John had done and approved the Acts of Stephen some of these must err In the 1408. in the Council of Pisa consisting of 1000 Divines and Lawyers two Popes were deposed at once viz. Gregory the eleventh and Benedict the thirteenth the Tenour of whose Deprivation calleth them Schismaticks Hereticks departed from the Faith scandalizing the whole Church unworthy the Papacy cut off from the Church And whereas Benedict continued Pope still for all this a second Council holden at Constance deposed him again commanding all men to esteem him as an Heretick and Schismatick John Gerson testifieth of Pope John the two and twentieth that he held that the Souls of just men separated from their Bodies do not see God nor rejoyce with him till the day of Judgment This was a publick Errour of his for he taught it publickly and commanded it to be held by all men But for this Errour of his he was condemned before the French King by the Divines of the University of Paris and made to recant it with Sound of Trumpet And Alphonsus a Castro saith that he saw a Decretal Epistle of Pope Celestine wherein he publickly erred in matter of Marriage Pope Pius the fourth decreed that it should be lawful for him to allow degrees of Marriage forbidden in Leviticus and to forbid what God allowed Eastern Bishops and antient Fathers have sharply reproved the Bishop of Rome as namely Polycrates the Bishop of Ephesus and as Irenaeus the Bishop of Lions did Victor for his rash proceeding against the Eastern Churches Antient Councils have withstood the Pope as that of Chalcedon wherein were six hundred and thirty Bishops withstanding Leo in the Question of Supremacy The sixth Council of Carthage of two hundred seventeen Bishops resisted three Popes one after another in that they would do contrary to the Council of Nice These judged that Popes may err Such have been made Popes that any wise man may think might err Some have been unlettered Ideots no Grammarians that could hardly write their Names in Latin some Lay-men as Constantius the second and Bennet the eighth and very Boys for age Bennet the ninth a Child of ten years old John the twelfth a Bastard a mad Lad about eighteen years old and one Woman as Pope Joan of whom Mantuan that elegant Poet writeth thus Hic pendebat adhuc sexum mentita virilem Faemina cui triplici Phrygiam diademate Mitram Extollebat apex c. lib. 3. Here did as yet in shew a Man a Woman sit Whose Head a costly Crown did fit Some Popes have been Blasphemers Dishonorers of Parents Sorcerers Adulterers Covetous breakers of Promises Pope Alexander the sixth upon Festival days gave himself to hear Plautus his Comedies and to be present at other Pâ—ays Pope Paul the third poisoned his Mother and his Nephew that the whole Inheritance of the Farnesians might come unto him 34. That Saint Peter was Prince of the Apostles and had a Primacy of power and authority above all the Apostles They assert that Saint Peter was Head of the Church that Saint Peter was the only Vicar of Christ here on earth Their Errours concerning the Sacraments in general 1. Rhem. Act. 22. Sect. 1. THat much is to be attributed to the bare outward Work that the Sacraments do confer Grace ex opere operato 2. That the Sacraments are not Seals of the Promises or Covenant of God nor instituted to confirm the Promise 3. That Circumcision was a Seal of the Righteousness of Faith only to Abraham 4. Vide Bp. Downham Catal. That Grace is contained in the Sacraments as in a vessel nay that the Sacraments are Physical instrumental causes of Grace and that they do work holiness by the power put into them by God as the heat of the fire is the cause of the burning of the Wood. 5. Bellarm. cap. 27. That there is necessarily required the intention of the Administrator to the truth of the Sacrament at least of doing what the Church doth 6. Vide Rhem. Aâ—mot in 2 Cor. 1 That in the Sacraments of Baptism Confirmation and Order there is imprinted in the Soul by God a character or certain spiritual and indelible sign or mark so that they cannot be reiterated In the other Sacraments viz. according to the Popish account there is only an ornament or dress imprinted instead of a mark or character 7. That the Observation of the Ceremonies which they use in the Administration of Sacraments though invented by themselves through will-worship is meritorious and part of Divine Worship 8. They add five Sacraments to the other two instituted by Christ Concil Trid. Sâ—ss 7. Can. 1. viz. Confirmation Penance Orders Extreme Unction And say they if any of these are not truly and properly Sacraments Rhem. Annot. Apoc 1. Sect. 3. or that they are not of Christs Institution let him be anathema or accursed Their Arguments are 1. The number of seven is mystical prophetical perfect The Prophet commanded Naaman to wash himself seven times The Altar must be cleansed seven days Exod. 29.37 So in the Apocalypse seven Churches seven Angels seven Stars seven Candlesticks seven Thunders c. And why not also seven Sacraments saith Bellarmine 2. Man hath seven Wounds to be healed ergo there ought to be seven Sacraments as Remedies against the same Baptism say they is a remedy against Original sin Penance against Actual sin Bellarm. l. 2. c. 26. Extreme Unction against the Reliques of sin Confirmation against infirmity of Faith the Eucharist against Malice Orders against Ignorance Their Errours concerning Baptism 1. Bellarm. lib. 1. de Baptism THey define Baptism to be a Sacrament of Regeneration by Water in the Word that is not which signifieth and sealeth unto us our Regeneration and assureth us of Remission of sins but actually justifieth and regenerateth us 2. Bellar. de Baptismâ— lib. 1. c. 3. They affirm that this form of Baptism to baptize in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost is not fully concluded out of Scripture but delivered by Tradition for say they the Command of Christ to baptize in the name of the Trinity may be understood thus to baptize them into the Faith of the Trinity or by the authority of the Trinity 3. They affirm that Baptism is simply necessary to Salvation by Gods appointment Concil Trid. Sâ—ss 7. can 7. so that all which die unbaptized unless the want of Baptism be recompensed either by Martyrdom or Penance must needs perish and be deprived of eternal Life 4. They grant power to baptize Bellarm. c. 7. not only to any rank of men but even to Women in case of necessity they grant this also to Lay men and Pagans in like case 5. They affirm that the Baptism of Infants is grounded upon Tradition and
Sacrament of Orders they say is to imprint a certain indelible character and mark in him that is ordained which can neither by Sin Apostasie or Heresie be blotted out and therefore a Priest once ordained can never lose his Orders or become a Lay-man again Their Errours concerning Confirmation 1. THat Confirmation is properly and truly a Sacrament it was so decreed in the Council of Trent 2. The Matter of this Sacrament they say is Oyl mixed and tempered with Balm first hallowed and consecrated by the Minister thereof and striked in manner of a Cross upon the forehead of him that is to be confirmed 3. As to the Minister of Confirmation the Papists are here divided Some think that the Bishop is so necessarily the Minister of Confirmation that it can in no wise be committed to Presbyters other of them are of opinion that it may be extraordinarily ministred by Presbyters But Bellarmine saith the Bishop is the ordinary Minister thereof 4. That by this holy Chrism smeered on the forehead the Holy Ghost is given for strength and corroboration against all our spiritual Enemies and to stand constantly in the Confession of our Faith even to death with great encrease of Grace And in this respect say they it giveth more abundant Grace in strengthening us against the Devil than Baptism doth 5. That he will never be a Christian that is not by Episcopal Confirmation chrismated 6. There are God fathers and Godmothers between whom and the Child that is confirmed by that Sacrament there is a spiritual Parentage begotten which hindereth Marriage and which also causeth the dissolution of Marriage notwithstanding the prohibition made by Jesus Christ forbidding the dissolution of Marriage unless it be for Adultery 7. That it ought to be celebrated Fasting 8. That it imprints an indelible character in the Soul 9. This Sacrament is administred in this manner Du Moul. Buckler of Faith p. 337. A Child is presented to the Bishop by a Godfather if it be a Son or by a Godmother if it be a Daughter The Bishop sits down washeth his hands layeth them upon his Breast saith certain Praiers by which he asketh or requireth the seven-fold Spirit Then he asketh the Godfather the Childs Name and dipping his right thumb in the sacred Oil which is called Chrism which they bring in a bottle whereon the Bishop breatheth to sanctifie it speaketh to the Oil saying Ave Chrisma I salute thee Chrism That done the Bishop anointeth the Childs forehead therewith in manner of a Cross saying Bellarm cap. 10. Signo te signo Crucis confirmo te Chrismate salutis in nomine Patris Fili. Spiritus sancti I mark thee with the sign of the Cross and confirm thee by the Chrism of Salvation in the name of the Father of the Son and of the Holy Ghost After that he gives the Child a blow on the Ear to strengthen him in the Faith then he kisseth it and having rubbed his thumbs with crumbs of Bread after many signs of the Cross by him made he commandeth the Godfathers and Godmothers to teach the Child the Creed the Pater noster and Ave Maria. While this is doing the Child if it can stand upright setteth his right foot upon the right foot of his Godfather or Godmother The action ended they bind the Childs forehead with a cloth and upon the Band put certain Golden Spangles in manner of a Cross and so the whole action is ended The Church of England retaineth that which is commendable in this custom where Confirmation is no other thing but a Profession which the Child having attained to the age of discretion maketh to keep the Promise which his Godfathers and Godmothers made in his name when he was baptized and answereth touching his Faith and Instruction which done he receiveth the Imposition of Hands and the Blessing of the Bishop which is not called by them a Sacrament The French Churches instead of that cause Children to be presented at Catechizing and to answer publickly touching their Faith before they admit them to the Lords Supper which is done with Praier that it will please God to extend his Blessing on them CHAP. III. THis is especially to be observed that their Errours are not only about many particular Points but about the fundamental Rule of Faith the holy Scriptures which makes the Disease the more dangerous and the cure more difficult Of their Corruptions in Worship NOw for their Corruptions in worship many are implied in their corrupt Doctrines for they that corrupt the purity of holy Ordinances do frame their Doctrines accordingly seeking to colour such abuses and refusing to reform their Corruptions by the Scripture They seek to wrest the Scripture and corrupt the Sense of it that they may seem to favour at least not to condemn their Inventions Of their Latin Service ALl that is spoken in the Church should be to edification 1 Cor. 14.6 but it is impossible to edifie by that which we cannot understand If we understand not our selves when we speak then we edifie not our selves if our hearers understand us not then we edifie not our hearers if neither of us understand then neither of us is edified I know what they plead for their Latin Service and their Latin Praiers that though it be a Tongue not commonly understood yet it is none of the strange Tongues that the Apostle speaks against for it is one of the learned Languages and besides it was dedicated to the use of the Church upon our Saviours Cross I answer that the Greek and Hebrew are learned Languages too and that they were dedicated upon our Saviours Cross as well as the Latin nay all Languages were as well and better dedicated to the use of the Church by the coming of the Holy Ghost than those by Pilat's writing upon our Saviours Cross It follows not because it was one of the learned Languages it is none of the strange Tongues for any Tongue not understood is to him that heareth it barbarous and strange not ob naturam vocis sed ob imperitiam as Chrysostome noteth on that place Against the use of all such the Apostle speaketh and sheweth that they be as Trumpets uncertainly sounding therefore they serve not for edifying in utiles sunt in quantum ignotae sunt they be unprofitable so far as they be unknown for we cannot say Amen to a Praier when we understand not the matter of a Praier I had rather speak five words saith Saint Paul to the understanding than five thousand in a strange Language Illud plus ostentationis habit iscud plus utilitatis there may be more ostentation on in that but there is more edification in this As it is the work of an Architect to build up an house so of Christians by spiritual endeavours to build up one another but that which is not for the understanding of Christians cannot be for the building up of Christians therefore of no use in the Church
of God The Pope and his Clergy propound themselves two ends for the celebration of the Mass and the ordinary Service in the Latin tongue The first is to keep the people in ignorance and use them to believe without knowing to follow their leaders blind-fold and to obey without enquiring They were afraid that even the Latin should be too intelligible and therefore they would have the principal parts of the Mass to be said with such a low murmur that the voice of the Priest cannot be heard The second end was to plant the marks and Standard of the Popes Empire among the Nations which he had conquered The simple people believe that their Religion must be Roman as well as the Tongue which is used in Religion and that both Christian Faith and the Language come from the same place But the chief cause why the Pope will not have the Mass to be understood by all is that the Mass contains many things which would either instruct or offend the people Of praying for the Dead THeir Opinion is that the Praiers of the Living are neither available for the Saints in Heaven for they need them not nor for the damned in Hell for they cannot be helped but only for the Souls tormented in Purgatory who do find great ease say they by the Praiers of the Living Of the Canonizing of Saints THe Canonizing of Saints is nothing else but the publick Determination and Sentence of the Church whereby some that are dead are judged to be Saints and worthy of Honour and Worship as to be praied unto Temples and Altars to be set up in their names Holy-days to be appointed for them and their Reliques to be adored And thus say they it is lawful profitable and expedient for the Church to canonize Saints This was the Popes own invention eight hundred years after Christ at the least set abroach and continued in Policy for the confirmation of certain idolatrous Superstitions which he laboured thereby to advance and now are made the seven Points wherein the Canonization consisteth fetting the new Saints in the Calendar with red Letters Who gave the Pope that priviledg to be infallible in that Judgment for our Adversaries themselves acknowledg they may be mistaken how many Factions and Sollicitations are used in the Court of Rome by Princes and States that a man of their Countrey or City be canonized And at what vast expences have they been to purchase it The City of Barcelona and the whole Country of Catelona spent many thousand pounds in the canonizing Raimond de Pennafort a Dominican Frier The Jesuits spent ten millions for the Canonization of their two twins Ignatius Loiola and Francis Xavier whom they call the East-India Apostle The Book of sacred Cerimonies doth acknowledg that the Pope sometimes was constrained in some sort to canonize a man against his opinion and therefore made a Protestation By that Protestation he thought to discharge his Conscience The words whereby the Pope canonizeth a Saint are these The manner of canonizing a Saint In the authority of God Almighty Father Son and Holy Ghost and of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and in our own we decree and define that N. of good memory is a Saint and must be put into the List of Saints c. But before the pronouncing of that Sentence the Cause is pleaded in the Consistory and an Advocate presents himself who represents the Reasons why such a one ought to be sainted The Apostles were not so sainted nor their Disciples nor those Fathers who were called Saints as Ireneus Cyprian Basil Hierome Augustine as a learned Divine noteth It happens saith he to some poor Saints for whom the dignity of Saints is begged in the Court of Rome to be cast in their suit and they cannot be Saints in Heaven because men on earth were not favourable to them Sometimes the degree of Beati is obtained for them which is a middle degree and an expectation of Saint-ship By this means Popes will give their Servants to be worshipped by the Nations of Christendom whch new Saints are far more honoured than the Patriarchs and Prophets for in the Roman Church it fareth with Saints as with Clothes the newest are the best and most esteemed Of Invocation of the Saints THe Papists maintain the Doctrine of Angel-worship of Invocation of Saints and of the Virgin Mary and canonized Saints calling especially upon the Virgin Mary They usually carve pourtray paint the Statue of the Virgin and represent her by them to the Eyes and Thoughts when they pray unto her in all their Offices Primers Psalters Rosaries Missals Breviaries Books of Devotion Churches Chappels Monasteries Altars of our Lady especially on all their publick Festivals dedicated to her Honour in greatest state crowned with a Crown of Glory as the Empress Queen Lady of Heaven Earth and all Creatures in them In their publick Liturgy they have a Letany whereby they pray 1. To her 2. To the Arch-Angels and Angels 3. To Patriarchs and Prophets 4. To the Apostles and Evangelists 5. To the Martyrs 6. To Fathers and Doctors 7. To Popes and Confessors 8. To Monks and Eremites 9. To all the Saints Virgins and Widows that they would joyn together to make Intercession for them And to these Saints they have their set Holy-days to them they burn Tapers perform Masses and Trentals each have their sundry Collects Hymns Praiers and Oblations each have their sundry Offices designed them Some are over particular Towns and Cities some over Trades and particular Professions same are over Diseases some have the special gift of bestowing Arts and Sciences Now what is this but to forsake the Fountain of living Waters and to hew out broken Cisterns that can hold no Water as the Lord complaineth in a like case The rise of all this was from a preposterous admiration of Saints departed or I may say of some of them they were rather Devils incarnate and from the perverse opinion of those who make no difference between civil Praier to Men living and religious Praier to Saints departed which Errour hath been maintained and heightened by the great ambition and avarice of the Popish Clergy so that now the French Proverb is not without ground 〈◊〉 or ne â—ognâ—ist Dieu plus â—ntre les Saints God cannot be known among so many Saints Thus have they jumbled together God and his Saints in a promiscuous manner of worship Saint Peter tells them to whom he writes that he will endeavour that they may be able after his decease to have these things always in remembrance â—hem in 2 Pet. 1 2 Pet. 1.15 Whence the Rhemists those Popish Corrupters rather than Interpreters of the holy Scripture take upon them to tell us if we will be so sottish as to believe them And they say it was this that the meant to pray for them and as in his life-time he meant to further their Salvation by instructing them so after his death