Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	apostle_n	church_n	creed_n	1,331	5	10.2664	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B08370	A soveraign remedy against atheism and heresy. Fitted for the vvit and vvant of the British nations / by M. Thomas Anderton.	Anderton, Thomas.; Hamilton, Frances, Lady.	1672 (1672)	Wing A3110A; ESTC R172305	67,374	174

in ouercoming this last great difficulty consists chiefly the supernaturality which is most peculiar to the act of Faith Heretiks therfore may be conuicted of obstinacy and heresy though they do not cleerly see nor we euidently conclude by tradition or any thing else that God reuealed what they deny or doubt of and the Church proposeth as reuealed by him For heresy doth not consist in an impossibility but it would be one if it were requisit that learned heretiks be obstinat against a cleer and conclusiue euidence of God hauing reuealed what they deny or doubt of How can any passion or pride blind a learned heretik if it depriues him not wholy of his wits and then he can not sin or be an heretik so far as to make him deny or doubt of what he sees euidently concluded God sayd or reuealed That were to deny God is God or the existence of a Deity A learned heretik therfore can not be better or more cleerly conuicted of heretical obstinacy than by our euidently concluding against him that he is obliged in conscience to auoyd the threatned danger of damnation if he doth not belieue the Church whose testimony is confirmed with Miracles to assent to that doctrin as Diuine which is deliuered by Catholik Tradition and confirmed by the motiues of credibility though it be not cleerly euident that its doctrin is Diuine or its tradition infallible More of this hereafter Now I will proue the euident obligation all men who are informed of our Faith haue to belieue the doctrin of the Roman Catholik Church as Diuine as also how they are obliged in conscience to inform themselues therof CHAP. V. HOVV THE MIRACLES OF THE Roman Church euidently conuict all its Aduersaries of damnable obstinacy and hovv a credible report of them obligeth all men to inform themselues of those miracles and doctrin confirmed by them and that of all Christian Congregations the Roman Catholik alone is the true Catholik Church Q. Supposing the Catholik Church can not be composed of all or any two Congregations dissenting in the least point of doctrin as hath bin proued in the precedent Chapter I desire to know which of them all is that one true Catholik Church we ought to belieue according to that article of the Apostles Creed I belieue in the holy Catholik Church and out of which there is no saluation A. You know the true Catholik Church is only that Congregation of Christians which hath the signs Christ sayd Marc. 16. should follow the true belieuers and that those signes are the casting out of Deuills not by coniuring but in the name of Christ the gift of tongues the conuersion of Nations to Christianity the curing of diseases raising of the dead and other supernatural marks of Gods trust and truth committed only to the ministery of that Church and by which marks i● must be discerned from all false Congregations pretending to be either the whole or a part of the Catholik Church Q. Out of your discourse I gather that all the markes of the true Catholik Church are reduced to miracles because supernatural sanctity the conuersion of Nations to Christianity the gift of profecy c. are as great miracles as the casting out of Deuills curing diseases raising the dead and the gift of tongues But it is a common saying among Protestants that miracles are ceased in the Church and som Catholiks grant they are so few and wrought in those remote regions of Iapan and China that you can hardly meet with one who did euer see a miracle How therfore can miracles be the marks wherby euery man may be directed to know the true Catholik Church if few or none see them A. I grant that all the marks of the Catholik Church must be miraculous otherwise they were not fit motiues for prudent men to submit their iudgments to the testimony or ministery of that Church as to the Church of God But miracles are not ceased nor confind to those remote regions of Iapan and China There is not a Catholik Nation in the world which doth not shew som things at least so like supernatural miracles that as wise and wary men as any in Christendom belieue them to be so And such Protestants as pretend they are not can not with any probability shew that the matter of fact is false or that the manner of working them is fraudulent or natural seing therfore Christ himself assures vs that supernatural miracles shall follow the true belieuers and that vntill the end of the world there will be true belieuers and by consequence a Catholik Church we are bound in conscience to belieue that only is the true Church wherin we see or at least heare credibly reported there are true miracles or things so like true miracles that as wise and as wary men as any in the world after a seuere scrutiny and serious study mistake them for true miracles notwithstanding they know that vpon their not being mistaken in so important a matter doth depend their euerlasting happiness or misery Dr Dovvnham in hi● Treatise of Antichrist l. 1. c. 9. pag. 111. saith neither Turks nor Ievves nor any other Churches of Christians but only the Pope and Church of Rome do vaunt of miracles Q. Is there but one Congregation of Christians that pretends to such miracles A. No. Q. Vvhich is that A. The Roman Catholik Q. If all other Christian Congregations be against the Roman Catholik and that in euery Christian Congregation there be as wise and wary men and as willing to be saued as any Roman Catholiks why should any man be bound in conscience to belieue the Roman Catholik miracles are true when as great or a greater number of wise and learned men do maintain they are not true miracles A. Vvhen learned parties agree in the fact of an accident so extraordinary that no natural cause therof after diligent scarch can be knowen but seemes to be aboue the power of all natural causes and human industry doubtless the party which belieues the fact to be supernatural or a miracle deserues to be credited before all which contradict the same and can giue no good reason for their contradiction 1. Because in som Christian Congregation or other there must be true miracles otherwise Christs words Marc. 16. can not be verified And seing no other Christian Congregation but the Roman Catholik pretends at least vpon so publik and probable grounds to haue true miracles the Roman Catholik is to be credited in this point before all others 2. It is not consistent with Gods infinit veracity to permit so publik and probable an appearance of true miracles for confirming falsood as the appearance of miracles in the Roman Catholik Church is For that veracity is an inclination to truth and an auersion from falsood and by consequence the Diuine veracity being infinit inuolues an infinit auersion from falsood But an infinit auersion from falsood is not consistent with Gods permission of so probable