Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	body_n	church_n	mystical_a	1,148	5	10.4023	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61579	Origines Britannicæ, or, The antiquities of the British churches with a preface concerning some pretended antiquities relating to Britain : in vindication of the Bishop of St. Asaph / by Ed. Stillingfleet ...	Stillingfleet, Edward, 1635-1699.	1685 (1685)	Wing S5615; ESTC R20016	367,487	459

nothing but mere force can make any Man to understand them of the Receivers Besides that Office concludes with a particular Prayer for the Benefit of those that had partaked of the Body of Christ wherein this Expression is remarkable Christe Domine qui tuo vesci corpore tuum corpus effici vis fideles fac nobis in remissionem Peccatorum esse quod sumpsimus i. e. O Christ our Lord who wouldest have thy People eat thy Body and become thy Body grant that we may be that which we have taken for the Remission of our Sins And it is certain the meaning of this Prayer was not that Christians might become the Natural Body of Christ And therefore it was not then believed That the Faithfull did in the Eucharist take the Natural Body of Christ But that which was the Body of Christ in such a mystical sense as the Church is But Transubstantiation was no part of the Faith of the Church at that time and therefore it is no wonder to meet with Expressions so disagreeing to it in their solemn Devotions And it is well observed by Card. Bona that the Custome of Elevation of the Host in Order to Adoration is found in none of the ancient Sacramentaries nor in the Ordo Romanus not in the Old Ritualists such as Alcuinus Amalarius Walafridus Micrologus and others The same had been ingenuously confessed before by Menardus in the same Words And although there may be Elevation where there is no belief of Transubstantiation yet since the Custome of Elevation was lately introduced into the Western Churches and in order to Adoration of the Body of Christ then present by Transubstantiation it seems very probable that Doctrine was not then received by the Church the Consequences whereof were not certainly in use For there was as much Reason for the Elevation and Adoration at that time as ever could be afterwards But my Business is now onely to shew wherein the Gallican and British Churches differ'd from the Roman and not wherein they agreed 4. The last difference was as to the Church Musick wherein the Romans were thought so far to excell other Western Churches That the goodness of their Musick proved the great occasion of introducing their Offices For Charles the Great saith That his Father Pepin brought the Roman way of Singing into the Gallican Churches and their Offices along with it And although he saith many Churches stood out then yet by his means they were brought to it And he caused some of the best Masters of Musick in Rome to be brought into France and there settled for the Instruction of the French Churches By which means the old Gallican Service was so soon forgotten That in Carolus Calvus his time he was forced to send as far as Toledo to have some to perform the Old Offices before him So great a Power had the Roman Musick and the Prince's Authority in changing the ancient Service of the Gallican Churches But thus much may suffice to have cleared the ancient Service of these Western Churches and to have shew'd their difference from the Roman Offices From which Discourse it will appear that our Church of England hath omitted none of those Offices wherein all the Ancient Churches agreed And that where the British or Gallican and Roman differ'd our Church hath not follow'd the Roman but the other And therefore our Dissenters do unreasonably charge us with taking our Offices from the Church of Rome CHAP. V. Of the Declension of the British Churches BRitain never totally subdued by the Romans That the Occasion of the Miseries of the Britains in the Province by the Incursions from beyond the Wall Of the Picts and Scots their mortal Enemies The true Original of the Picts from Scandinavia That Name not given to the Old Britains but to the New Colonies The Scotish Antiquities enquired into An Account of them from John Fordon compared with that given by Hector Boethius and Buchanan Of Hector's Authours Veremundus Cornelius Hibernicus and their ancient Annals An Account of the Antiquities of Ireland and of the Authority of their Traditions and Annals compared with the British Antiquities published by Geffrey of Monmouth in point of Credibility A true Account of the Fabulous Antiquities of the Northern Nations Of the first coming of the Scots into Britain The first Cause of the Declension and Ruine of the British Churches was the laying them open to the fury of the Scots and Picts Of Maximus his withdrawing the Roman Forces And the Emperour 's sending numbers of Picts to draw them back The miserable Condition of the Britains thus forsaken And supplies sent them for a time and then taken away Of the Walls then built for their Security and the Roman Legions then placed Of the great degeneracy of manners among the Britains Of Intestine Divisions and calling in of Foreign Assistence The Saxons first coming hither Who they were and whence they came Bede's Account examin'd and reconciled with the Circumstances of those times His fixing the time of their coming justified Of the Reasons of Vortigern's calling in the Saxons And the Dissatisfaction of the Britains upon their coming and Vortigern's League with them Of the Valour of Vortimer and Aurelius Ambrosius against the Saxons The different Account of the Battels between the Britains and Saxons among our Historians The sad condition of the British Churches at that time The imperfect Account given by the British History Of King Arthur's Story and Success Of Persons of greatest Reputation then in the British Churches and particularly of St. David Of the Britains passing over to Aremorica The beginning of that Colony stated Gildas there writes his Epistle The Scope and Design of it The Independency of the British Churches proved from their carriage towards Augustine the Monk The Particulars of that Story cleared And the whole concluded BEing now to give an Account of the fatal Declension of the British Churches it will be necessary to look back on the time when their Miseries first began For which we are to consider That the Romans having never made an entire Conquest of the whole Island but contenting themselves with the better part and excluding the rest by a Wall They still left a backdoor open for the poor Provincial Britains to be disturbed as often as the Roman Garrisons neglected their Duty or were overpowred by their Enemies Who were now very much increased in those remoter parts of Britain Which being abandon'd by the Romans they became an easie Prey to the Scots and Picts Who from different parts took Possession of those Coasts which lay nearest to the Place from whence they came Thus the Scots coming from Ireland entred upon the Southern and Western Parts as the Picts from Scandinavia had before done on the Northern Our Learned Antiquary was of Opinion That the Picts were no other than the ancient Britains partly settled in those Parts before the Roman Invasion and partly

makes use of no other but where he follows Hector's own inventions The remainder of his Story is That things being quieted here Arthur goes over into Lesser Britain and leaves the Government to his Nephew Mordred But while he was abroad some had prevailed with him to declare Constantine the Son of Cador his Successour being born in Britain which being done Mordred set up for himself and in a Battel about Humber saith he Mordred was killed and Arthur mortally wounded Thus Buchanan having picked what he thought fit out of Hector concludes with a bitter Invective against the fabulous Relations about Arthur But he gives him an extraordinary Character saying he was certainly a great Man of mighty Courage and wonderfull kindness to his Countrey preserving them from Slavery and keeping up or restoring the true Religion And that is the Subject I am now to consider viz. The State of Religion here in King Arthur 's days It was under great Persecution almost whereever the Saxons came who were cruel both to the Bodies and Souls of the poor Britains Most of the Southern and Western parts were under their Tyranny and Brian Twyne quotes a passage out of Matt. Westminster which is not so full in the printed Copies concerning the Persecution of the British Christians in the Eastern parts of the Land For saith he Anno Dom. 527. The Pagans came out of Germany and took possession of the Countrey of the East-Angles omni crudelitatis genere Christianos affecerunt They tormented the Christians with all sorts of Cruelty Although this be wanting in other Copies yet it may be reasonably presumed The Saxons using the British Christians in such a manner in the most places where they prevailed It is true that Malmsbury saith many of the Britains submitted to Cerdic and it is probable they were the better used for doing so Tho. Rudburn saith That Cerdic allow'd Liberty of professing the Christian Religion to the Cornish upon a certain Tribute I rather think that Cerdic never went so far but left that part to the Britains who still continued there For in Gildas his time Constantine is said to be King of the Danmonii and Camden observes out of Marianus Scotus that Anno Dom. 820. the Britains and Saxons had a terrible Fight at Camelford in Cornwall which Leland thinks to have been Camlan where King Arthur fought with Mordred and near which is a Stone saith Mr. Carew which bears Arthur 's Name but now called Atry To prove what I have said that the West-Saxon Kingdom did not extend to Cornwall we may observe that William of Malmsbury saith That Ceaulin Granchild to Cerdic was the first who took Gloucester Cicester and Bath from the Britains and drove them thence into the Rocky and Woody places And in the time of Athelstan above 400 years after the coming of the Saxons the Cornish Britains did inhabit in Exceter and were driven thence by him beyond the River Tamar and confined by that as the other Britains were by the Wye This shews that the Britains in Cornwall and thereabouts were free from the Yoke of the West-Saxon Kingdom As to the Northern Britains they came to some agreement after a while with Oeca and Ebusa whom Hengist sent thither and that they had their own Government and the Christian Religion among them appears by the History of Ceadwalla a Prince of these Britains in Bede But these were but small remnants in the Northern and Western parts As to the Eastern we have had the Testimony of Matt. Westminster already And although the Kingdom of the East-Angles did not begin till afterwards about Anno Dom. 575. yet in the ninth year of Cerdic about Anno Dom. 517. Huntingdon observes That many Angles or Saxons were come out of Germany and took possession of the Countrey of the East-Angles and Mercia and whereever they prevailed the poor British Christians suffered to the highest extremity Which is enough to considering Men to overthrow the credit of the supposed Diploma of King Arthur to the Vniversity of Cambridge which bears date Anno Dom. 531. But Brian Twyne hath brought no fewer than 15 Arguments against it which are far more than needed For I cannot think that Dr. Cajus in earnest believed it for he goes not about to prove the Diploma but King Arthur And I cannot think it any honour or service to so famous and ancient an Vniversity to produce any such sespected Diplomata or Monkish Legends to prove its Antiquity It is not certain in whose possession London was at that time from whence the Charter is dated For the Kingdom of the East-Saxons was then set up by Erkinwin and London commonly was under that and that Kingdom as Malmsbury observes had the same limits which the Diocese of London now hath viz. Essex Middlesex and part of Hartfordshire Matt. Westminster agrees that Middlesex was under the Kingdom of the East-Saxons but he will not yield that Theonus Bishop of London did retire with his Clergy into Wales till Anno Dom. 586. and then he confesses that he and Thadioc Bishop of York when they saw all their Churches demolished or turned into Idol Temples did for their security retire thither And there was the freest Exercise of their Religion kept up even in the Reign of King Arthur There flourished the Schools of Literature set up by Dubricius and Iltutus and there were the Persons of greatest Reputation for Learning and Sanctity in the British Churches such as Dubricius Iltutus Paulinus Gundleus Cadocus Sampson Paternus Daniel and St. David above the rest whose Reputation continues to this day and was preserved in the Saxon Churches of Britain as appears by the Breviary of Salisbury where nine Lessons are appointed upon his day And Maihew observes that this was by a Provincial Constitution in the Province of Canterbury But the nine Lessons were taken out of the first Chapter of the Legend of his Life a little being added at the end concerning his Death It is the just complaint of Bollandus that there is nothing extant concerning him which was written near his own time and what is extant hath many fabulous mixtures so that it is hard to find out the Truth The oldest MS. of his Life he saith is that of Vtretcht which he hath published the next he accounts is that in Colganus which he would have thought to be the Life written by Ricemarchus quoted by Archbishop Vsher whom he supposes to have lived before Giraldus Cambrensis who transcribed much out of him But Colganus withall intimates That the Life was taken out of an old Book wherein Augustin Macraidin the Authour of the Annals of Ulster had written many things and probably might write that too and to confirm this Bollandus observes onely a little difference in Style between this and the Vtretcht MS. But if we add to these Giraldus his Life with that of John of Tinmouth or Capgrave we