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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	father_n	jesus_n	lord_n	2,568	5	3.7300	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60455	A sermon preached in St. Saviour's Church in Dartmouth, July 24th. anno Dom. 1698 Together with some refections on the opinion of those, who affirm, that the only difference between the Church and the meeting-house, is that of a few ceremonies. In a letter to a friend. By Humfry Smith, M.A.	Smith, Humphry, b. 1654 or 5.	1698 (1698)	Wing S4086; ESTC R224030	30,983	72

Dissenters and therefore all the zeal that is pretended for it in opposition to them might very well be spar'd For the Dissenters are of the Church of England too They have the same faith and the same kind of worship the only difference being that of a few Ceremonies You may perhaps think it fit to let these Papers come into the hands of some who are pleas'd with this Notion and so will allow me to make some short Reflections upon it It will be granted I think that this Pretence will not hold with relation to all our Dissenters from the Establish'd Church Such as deny the Eternity of the Son of God and the Doctrine of the Blessed Trinity Such as cast off the use of the two Holy Sacraments Such as despise the Rule of Scripture and are prepar'd for all the Extravagancies of Enthusiasm Such Dissenters as these surely must be thought to stand at a greater distance from us than that of a few Ceremonies As for the men too who are of more sober Principles it will not Universally hold that they preach no other Doctrine but that of the Church of England You have seen the private letters which several years ago I was oblig'd to write to a Preacher of some ●ame amongst the Presbyterians and Independents about some passages in one of his Printed Books together with his Mr. Fiavel's Fountain of Life opened answers And you very well Remember that tho● I was concern'd for such things as are own'd by Our Church Ceremonies were not at all the Subject of that Controverysy But supposing the Doctrine which is preach'd in the Conventicles to be always the very same with what is taught in the Churches the accord alas is not yet so great as is pretended There is still a considerable difference even that which is between such as obey those that have the Rule over them and such as do not that which is between such as preserve the Vnity of the Church and such as Schismatically divide from it And this the Ancient Fathers declare to be a very great difference yea as great as was between that part of the Congregation of Jsrael which adher'd to their Cyprian de unitate Eccles Oper. Ed Ox. p. 116. Chry●st ●om 3 p. 822. Ed. Savil. Leaders and the company of Corah who perished in his Gainsaying But if this be so great a difference may some say it is in the power of the Governours of the Church of England to remove it assoon as they please Let them but take away the causes of Separation and there will be an end of all discord We shall then according to the desire of St. Paul with one mind and one mouth glorify Rom. 15. ● 6. God even the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ. That is Let the Church who hath given no real ground of offence yield their cause and go and joyn with the offended and then the peace is made This indeed is a notable Expedient and it is pity that such a healing method had not been found out in former ages Here would have been a present remedy for the Novation Schism which disturb'd the peace of the Christian Church for so long a time It was but for the Catholicks to have gone over to them who forsook their Communion without sufficient reason and then the Union would have been reestablished Or in the Case before-mention'd it was but for Moses and Aaron to have parted with some of that Authority which was thought too much for them seeing all the Congregation were Holy Num. 16. 3. and that Ecclesiastial Sedition would have been presently ended Till our Dissenters shall be able to prove that their Separation from us was absolutely necessary which all their past attempts in order to it sufficiently assure us will be a very great difficulty for them that carnal thing as St. Paul 1 Cor. 3. ● Gal. 5. 20. account's it enters the very Constitution of their Religious Assemblies and makes them Essentially differ from such as are held in the Unity of Christ's Church But could some wonderful Art at length be found out to hea● their Schism notwithstanding their adherence to the Principles on which they made a very unnecessary division The difference between the Church and the Meeting-House would yet be manifestly greater than that of a few Ceremonies It cannot yet be forgoten that the Dissenters once violently seiz'd that which they now seem so willing to have freely deliver'd up to them the legal Establishment of our National Church Having open'd their way through the Greatest of it's Defenders down they threw it and set up themselves And when this was done had we still the same Church of England which we had before only abating a few Ceremonies Did the Enemies of the Reformation rejoyce in and the Friends of it lament no greater a change than that Certainly the Learned even at Geneva were of another Vide Epistol Jo. Diodati ad Theolog. Westmonast Opinion For when Diodati and the Other Ministers there were courted by the Assembly of Divines to approve the Proceedings in England their Answer was That now a Church was rent In pieces which was the Eye and Excellency of all the Churches Christ's own choice purchase and peculiar and that they perfectly trembled with ho●●our at the deformity which was brought on the most beautiful face of it It must certainly be no difficulty to shew that ●ven our moderate Dissenters disagree from the Church of England in matters of no small importance Yea that they have Express'd a huge dislike of some very considerable things in it Which are however Sufficiently Justified by the 〈◊〉 of other Reformed Churches by the Practice of the purest and most primitive times and which is above all by the Word of God it's self Lest any that favour the Separation should consider this as too Severe a Charge I will mention a few Particulars wherein I am confident it may at any time be fully made ou● Amongst these I am sure you will allow me to name Th● Government of the Church by Bishops You have 〈◊〉 with so much strength of Reason and such clear Evidence asserted that Government Making in so plainly appear to have a Sufficient Foundation in Holy Scripture and to have been of Constant and only Use in the Christian Church in all times and all Countries till the Presbyterian Discipline was first set up in a few places in the last Age that I believe A Treat of Ch. Government Pub. An. Dom. 1692. the most learned of the Adversaries will deliberate yet longer ere they will pretend to answer your Discourse on that Subject Indeed the Great Patrons of that Model which now by all means would Supplant Episcop●cy were abundantly sensible of the novelty of the thing And Disciplinam qualem habuit vetus Ecclesia nobis de esse neque nos di●●●temur Sed cujus erit aequitatis nos eversae disciplinae ab iis accusari qui