Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	king_n	law_n	see_v	2,769	5	3.8029	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39282	Vindiciæ catholicæ, or, The rights of particular churches rescued and asserted against that meer (but dangerous) notion of one catholick, visible, governing church ... wherein by Scripture, reason, antiquity, and later writers, first, the novelty, peril, scandal, and untruth of this tenet are cleerly demonstrated, secondly, all the arguments for it, produced by the Rev. Apollonius, M. Hudson, M. Noyes, the London ministers, and others, are examined and dissolved ... / by John Ellis, Jun.	Ellis, John, 1606?-1681.	1647 (1647)	Wing E593; ESTC R18753	75,919	94

this Argument If it follow not when we say God hath set in the World some Emperours some Kings some Princes some inferiour officers and Magistrates therefore the whole world is but one Governing Kingdome and all particular Kingdomes do but governe in the right of the Kingdome of the world in Common the Officers whereof are the Kings of the severall Kingdomes who being gathered together or a part of them have the povver of giving Lavves to other Kingdomes according to the Lavv of God and nature which are the rules of all just Government and this also to bee done by the Kings and Princes themselves vvithout any authority from or any dependency on the people unlesse for quietnes sake and as far as they see cause If as was said this follow not neither doth it follow that because the scripture saith God hath set some in the Church Apostles c. Therefore the Church throughout the world is but one Congregation to whose Officers first as the generall Officers of the whole Church not by way of distribution but as a Notionally at least collected body of Officers the power of Government is committed by Authoritie whereof and dependence upon which common officers and body the officers of every particular Church do act and those without any dependency upon the concurrence of the people as co-operating and acting with them unlesse for peace sake By which means let it be observed by all sorts The power being given not to any one Church but to the whole Church as one body and not to the members with the Officers but to the Officers onely there is derived a very Transcendent power and Authoritie upon every particular Minister more then any Parliament-man hath yea more then a King who is limited to his dominion It makes every Minister one of the standing Officers of the Christian world to whom with his Collegues not severally and by distribution but joyntly and as one body is committed the Government of the whole Christian world and managing of the Affaires of the Son of God throughout the face of the earth And so hee is one of Christs Vicars Generall and not particular onely which I acknowledge every Minister to be in his place magnum surely et memorabile nomen But if this bee so great reason is it that the Church of the whole world should choose these Vniversall Officers and so the Church of a nation the Nationall Officers c. by whom they are to be Governed in that which is of Dearest and highest moment viz. the precious soule or else their condition is most sad If every one that can get a little learning and desires to live upon the Sweat and cost of others and to become a minister though I professe that calling to be most difficult on earth and also that the Lord hath appointed that those that preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel and so being willing to submit to such conditions as is required shall have a friend patron or a purse to make one and come into the ministery and a living which is the Kings Road in some Churches and is the way whereby many of those who now are to be Presbyters came in he shall become a Parliament man and joynt Governour of the whole Church on earth by whose one vote all the liberties and truth of Religion in them may be destroyed A glympe whereof we have seen in the Convocations or Synods in our owne Nation This I say is sad yea more sad then the condition of men in their Civil Liberties In our owne Kingdom where none attains the honour of being an universal Officer a Parliament man but by the consent formal or virtual of all or the major part of them there having been a precedent act by joynt consent of the whole Nation that persons chosen by the free Vote of the major part of Corporations c. should if loyal be Officers pro tempore to their owne Corporations and to the whole But such agreement hath not been made no not tacitely by the Catholick Church nor no such institution of Christ hath appeared yet And these answers also are applyable to what the same Author hath else where from the word CHVRCH as when he denieth a Particular Church to be the proper subject of the covenant of grace and priviledges of it because saith he the CHVRCH to which these promises are made is perpetual Jer. 31. 36. The strength of which reasoning lies on this that the word Church and not Churches is used in these places and so it is represented as one Answ. As if it were not common to call that perpetual which is so by succession of those of the like Nature and Kinde because the Lord saith Day and Night shall not cease to the Worlds end doth it therefore follow that all the essential properties of day or night do not agree to this or that particular day Is it not a rule in Nature and Reason that all the essential properties of general and common beings are really existent in the individual and partilars Man is to continue on earth to the end of the World does not therefore the essential properties of man agree to Peter or Paul because they were not to continue His second and third Argument there is That a particular Church cannot be the subject of the covenant of Grace and consequently of Church power for the reason is the same because the Church which hath these is sanctified is the spouse of Christ hath the Law written in the heart of it c. but a particular Church as it is particular cannot be said to be such Answ. But 1. It was never said that one particular Church is so the subject of these as that another is not Secondly To speak properly The Church not as visible nor as particular nor as invisible nor as universal is the subject of these things but as a Church i. e. A society of Beleevers and under that nation a particular Church considered as a Church hath right to all and is the subject of all these All are yours saith the Apostle to the Corinthians whether Paul or Christ c. So that this Author by adding this clause as particular hath praevaricated and altered the state of the Question His last Argument in that place is from the Testimony of the Professors of Leyden and Amesius To which I answer That the former say nothing but that the covenant and promises and priviledges belong to true beleevers and the invisible Church whether in a particular Church or dispersed through the world So that this Testimony seems rather to make against him The other is expresly against him and speaks our very sense yea and terms almost insomuch that I wonder this Author is brought in as a witnesse His words are even as they are cited by Apollonius himself These things agree not to the whole multitude that professe Christ but onely to those that are truly

is {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} depends upon and is referred to the Pope I answer 1. Besides what is said above The Popes themselves in some actions insinuate that they are not supreme in their owne personall relation but as the head president or chair-man of the Vniversall representative Presbyterie which are the Colledge of Cardinalls representing the Colledge of Apostles said to be the Generall Presbyterie representative of the Catholicke Visible Church Hence the forme of some Instruments in the Popes name is By the advice of the most Reverend the Cardinalls His Holinesse decrees such or such a thing In Imitation of Kingdomes which Christ forbiddeth his Church as being of an other nature where the Parliament represents the Kingdome and in their absence the King and Councel represent them both hence perhaps it is that in Proclaimations the forme often is Wee saith the King by the Advice of our Privie councell c. 2. Papists of chiefest note * yea Popish Vniversities yea Popish Councells does assert a Generall Councell which is nothing else but an Vniversall Presbytery to be above the Pope So that it may be really Popish though all do not depend on or bee referred to the Pope firstly and primarily Now that this Catholique Visible Church as our Brethren have represented it may degenerate or rather advance thereunto let it be considered that Papall Government it self had the like originall It is granted even by Bishops themselves That the Bishop at first was but the PRESIDENT or Chaire-man of the Presbyterie or assembly of Ministers Afterwards partly by the Ambition of those who were chosen to that place partly by the sloth flattery and slavishnesse of the rest of the Ministers and people all came under him So also at first each Church did all things among themselves as ordaine excommunicate c. Afterwards they associated with the great Churches in time what was of voluntary consent became a necessity and due subjection So the Bishops of Rome at first for civilities sake because it was the Emperours Seat had the Precedency for a time at length claimed it as due So here if an universall coporation there must be universall Officers over these one President or super-intendent or Chaire-man hee perhaps may have it for his life if an able man and may obtaine to act with a Committee as the representative of a Generall councell in their absence and what hinders but if another Boniface and Phocas An ambitious President and wicked Emperour meet hee may be made Vniversall Bishop Men are more loose in their Ecclesiasticall then Civil Liberties And if this Government bee not of God he will leave it to corrupt it selfe even as the other did But Thirdly Necessarily and of it self it tends to the depriving of all particular Churches of their Libertie yea though they should be Nationall Churches 1. Because In them particular Churches are not left to their choise but are Bound by this opinion to associate and to send Elders to the Councells and Presbyteries so the Reverend Assembly * 2. Though they should not doe it yet are they neverthelesse under the Government of the Catholique Church which is the first subject of Church power and so are bound to act according to the Letter or Plaine sence of the determinations of the Catholicke Church without adding altering or detracting in any Materiall thing especially which might concern the whole Church * And then what will become of the Reformations of all the Reformed Churches 2. In particular in respect of the Protestant Churches of Europe 1. Because they are much fewer then the other Churches of the world that are in the maine Orthodox as some whiles since a * Presbyterian Writer hath given in the account 2. Who shall exclude the Popish and other Heterodox Churches from being members of the Catholicke Visible Church till by a Generall Councell they be heard and excommunicated or Non communioned And whether the major part of the Churches in the world will consent to such an Excommunication or Non-communion is uncertaine and then they must VOTE also and so the Orthodox Churches will be the more over-borne Object 1. But it may be it will be said the throat of the cause is yet safe because it seems sufficient that the major part of those that are of the same judgement ought to governe the lesse To which I reply that in all Corporations and Common-wealths as our Brethren say the Vniversall Visible Church is not the major part of a Part but the major part of the whole body are to rule the rest and that not divided in severall places at a distance but convened together at least in some neernesse of place Object 2. If it be said that by reason of distance of place and multitude of persons this cannot be done viz. the collection of the Catholicke Visible Church I answer and say 1. Therefore such an opinion is not to be asserted which unavoidably and necessarily enforceth such a gathering 2. That in respect of the Commissioners general some for many Churches which the Authours of this opinion doe or must allow it may be done for matter of companie or number 3. Princes from one end of the world to the other hold leagues and correspondencies together as doth the Kingdom of England with Russia in the North and Persia in the East 4. Rome governs in all parts of the world as a single corporation notwithstanding distance of place 5. Lastly The Churches of Europe at least might have met for the Reformations they have endeavoured as many of them did in the Synod of Dort about Arminius CHAP. V. The Arguments for an Vniversal Visible Governing Church with the answers to them HItherto we have as it were battered and taken the Assailants Worke it remains that we seise on their Ammunition and Weapons the opposite reasonings produced by them And first to the Arguments of Appollonius who by the way I observe to give the cause in all particulars but one or two to those of the Congregational way and well he could not avoid it seeing that the Churches of Holland go by the same principles except that of the authority of Synods and baptizing of all children which latter how it stands with their denying Church-fellowship to all ipsi viderint But to his Arguments The first is taken out of 1 Cor. 12. 28. God hath set in the Church some Apostles some Prophets some Evangelists some Pastors and Teachers which Church there is said to consist of divers and heterogeneal members but the Ministry the Apostles c. are not given to any particular Church and the Apostles c. were the Governours of the Catholick Church Ergo The Visible Catholick Church is one Governing body under which all particular Churches are subjected and conteyned Answ. At the stating of the Question I premised the distinction of onenesse in Essence and mysterie and onenesse in