praier preaching almes frequenting Sacraments c. mentioned by holy Iustin in Apolog. 2. to Marcus Antoninus and other Gouerners of the Empire in behalfe of Christians and sundry of those holy Fathers formerly mentioned Thirdly I make this Argument for obseruance of the sunday in place of the Sabaoth That day of the weeke is chiefly to be obserued by Christians which our Lord was pleased to make and haue called his owne day But our Lord did make and call his owne day the first day of the weeke and not the Iewish Sabaoth Therfore the first day of the weeke and not the Iewish Sabaoth is especially to be obserued by Christians The maior is certaine because as Christians are bound by their faithfull profession to honor Christ himselfe with thankefull humble seruices so doth the wisdome of faith teach them also especially to honor and esteeme that day of all others most holy which their Lord himselfe most respected and did choose to make and haue called his owne day For as to name any day the day of a King importeth that day to be specially regarded by the king himselfe and festiually obserued by his subiects in memory of some victory obteyned or memorable good happened to himselfe or his people on the same so for such holy and memorable respects the first day of the weeke is called our Lords day Apocalyp 2. 5. worthiest of all other daies of the weeke to be honored and festiually obserued by Christians as shall be particularly proued in my next Argument My minor is proued cleerely by that former text of S. Iohn expresly calling one day of the weeke or yeare as a familiar name knowne to all Christians in his time Diem Dominicum our Lords day to wit a day especially sanctified by Christ deuoted to his seruice which was not the Sabaoth of the Iewes no where els in Scripture so called nor any other day but vna or prima Sabbati the next after the sabaoth as S. Ignatius S. Iohns scholler testifieth epist. 6. ad Magnesianos saying that after the Sabaoth ech louer of Christ celebrateth Diem Dominicum our Lords day consecrated to our Lords Resurrection regina principium omnium dierum the cheifest and principallest of all other daies c. els where Epist 8. ad Philippenses he contesteth that if any Christian celebrateth his Easter with the Iews or their other Symbolicall festiuities amongst which the Sabaothes are included he maketh himselfe partaker with those who killed Christ and his Apostles S. Augustin also to omit many other like testimonies of ancient Fathers serm 251. de tempore teacheth the religions solemnization of our Lords day to haue beene instituted by the Apostles themselues because our Sauiour therein rose from death to life and to haue beene by them called our Lords day that we might learne by that name to abstaine therein from sin and earthly labours attending to diuine seruices And after much honourable mention made of that day he saith that therefore the holy Doctors of Christs Church meaning the Apostles decreed to transfer on that day al the glory of the Iewish Sabaoth that what they celebrated in Types we might celebrate in Verities c. Fourthly the precept of the Sabaoth obligeth Christians no further then it can be proued to conteyne a moral law necessary to direct them in their religious duty and thankfulnes towards Almighty God for benefitts But the obseruance of our Lords day is fitter to direct Christians in their duty towards God to put them in mind of his gracious benefitts towards them then the obseruance of the old Sabaoth Therfore our Lords day not the old Sabaoth is now commaunded and fittest to be obserned by Christians The maior is certaine because all cerimoniall and iudiciall precepts are confessed by Iohn Traske to haue beene abrogated by Christ and no law of the old Testament bindeth Christians which is not morally expedient and necessary to direct them in their Christian duty and seruice My minor may be best proued by examining and comparing the institution and ends for which our Lords day and the old Sabaoth were first ordayned and obserued The old Sabaoth was cheifely ordayned in memory of Gods rest from his labours of creating all things in six daies and therefore Philo lib. de opificio mundi wisely calleth it the worlds birth-day seruing for a continuall instruction of Gods people in the knowledge of their creator and to exclude the error of Philosophers commonly teaching the world to haue had no beginning Secondly it serued to represent vnto the Israelites that rest which God had giuen vnto them after their Egyptian seruitude and painefull labours ended as is expresly affirmed Deut. 5. vers 15. Thirdly it declared them to be a peculiar people sanctifyed by God and deuoted to his seruice Exod. 31 vers 13. Fourthly the Iewes Sabaoth allegorically prefigured Christs rest in his sepulcher after his paynefull labours for mans redemption ended as is insinuated by S. Paul ad Hebr. 4. vers 10. Fifthly in a tripologicall sense it signifyed the spirituall rest of soules after the seruile workes of sinne by Christs grace ended as S. Augustine teacheth vs tract 30. in Ioan. and in sundry other places Sixtly is was Anagogically a figure of that rest which holy soules after this laboursome life ended were to enioy in Abrahams bosome as is insinuated by S. Paul ad Hebr. 4. vers 6. 11. and is also taught by S. Augustine epist 119. For all which holy respects and mysterious significations it was expedient and necessary that the old Sabaoth should be changed by Christ into that blessed day on which himselfe was borne for mans redemption to wit the first day of the weeke as may be Mathematically demonstrated by searching backwards the Cicle of Dominical letters which will be found on the 25. of December in the second yeare of the hundred and ninty fourth Olympiade of Rome first built 754. from Cesars death 42. from the Triumuirate began by Augustus 41. of Herods raigne 29. when our Sauiour was certainly borne to haue beene B. Secondly on that first day of the weeke he rose and began humanely to lead his glorious immortall life as may be expresly gathered from the last chapter of all 4. Euangelists Thirdly on that day he visibly infused his holy spirit on the Apostles in the day of Pentecost to wit the fiftith day after the second of Azimes whē the Iews began to number their day of Pentecost which happened to be cōpletly ēded in the yeare of our Sauiours passiō on sunday as is learnedly proued by Ribera de festis Iudaeorum Cap. de Pentecoste by Bellar de Cultu Sanctorum lib. 3. Cap. 13. and sundry other authors So as three of the greatest mysteries of our Sauiours life and most singular benefitts that God could deuise to bestow on mankind happened on our Lords day to sanctify and make it more worthy then the Iewes Sabaoth to be by vs Christians weekely
to Ierusalem from all places should be sodainely so inclosed as they should haue no meanes to fly hauing the gates shut vpon them by such captaines and people as vndertooke to defend the citty and so narowly watched by the Romā soldiars as when any were taken to fly they were vsually crucified before the walles and being restained by such multituds they suffered vnspeakeable famine plague and slaughters by externall foes and intestine dissentions which being forknowne by our Sauiour he might wel wish them to pray that their flight or cause of flying to wit the approach of Titus army might not happen in winter or on the Sabaoth not that they might not lawfully fly thereon for safeguard of their liues or fight against their enimyes as we read of Iudas Machabaeus souldiers 1. Machab. 3. but because all meanes of flight should be hindred by the sodaine approach of their enimies without Iewish captains within the Citty and their miseries be multiplied by occasion of such multitudes assembled on the Sabaoth Finally if Iohn Traske for continuance of the Sabaoth shall obiect as one of his disciples seemed to do that the celebration of the same is called Exod. 31. A sempiternall Couenant betwene God and his people to be obserued with perpetuall honour in all their generations Exod. 12. I answere that the like manner of speach is vsed of the old Aaronicall Preisthood Exod. 28. now translated into the Priesthood of our Sauiour ad Heb. 7. v. 11. 12. 15. 16. and abrogated by Traskes owne confession Wherfore we are to interprete the eternal duration of such rites to import only a continuance of them till the Law fully ended or because they still remaine according to the morall eternal things signified by them as S. Augustine solueth this obiection quaest 46. 124. 131. in Exod. QVESTION IIII. Of the Sabaoth translated into the weekely day of our Sauiours Resurrection SAINT Augustine epist 118. rightly termeth it a most insolent madnes for any particuler man to reproue that which the whole Church of Christ generally obserueth for in so doing with vnreasonable pride he practically prefereth his owne singuler opinion before the iudgements of all other Christian Pastours and people as doth Iohn Traske in his nouell obseruance of the Iewish Sabaoth abrogated by the Apostles themselues as I haue proued in my former Question and translated into the holy euer memorable day of our Sauiours Resurrection as is plainely testified by the 65. Apostolicall Canon by S. Ignatius the Apostles disciple in his Epistle ad Magnesianos by holy Iustin Apologia 2. by Tertullian de Corona militis Apologia cap. 16. by Clemens Alexandrinus lib. 7. stromat by Origen homil 7. in Exod. by S. Athanasius in illa verba Omnia mihitradita sunt c. by S. Hilary praefat in psalm by S. Ambrose epist 83. serm 62. by S. Hierome in cap. 4. ad Galatas by S. Augustin contra Adimant cap. 16. lib. 22. de ciuitate dei cap. 30. serm 252. by S. Leo epist 81. ad Dioscorum by S. Gregory lib 2. epist 3. by the Laodicean Councell cap. 29. Wherein Christians are expressely forbidden to play the Iewes and to be idle on the Sabaoth and willed with all to obserue and prefer our Lords day before it So as if any testimonies of antiquity might be by Traske and his Companions admitted and held sufficient to proue the Apostolicall translation of the Sabaoth there would need no other arguments to refute and reduce them from their idle and singuler fancies then those former vndoubted authorities of ancient learned Fathers But as he his companions are wholy ignorant vnacquainted with their workes so are they fully bent to contemne all such Testimonies which they find not warranted by plaine texts of scripture as themselues only are pleased to expound them For whereas not only the Ancient Fathers but Ebion also himselfe and his disciples acknowledged their hereticall doctrine of Iewish feasts and Sabaoths necessary to be obserued by Christians togeather with their owne Dominicall daies and proper festiuities to haue beene expresly contradicted and condemned by S. Paul ad Coloss 2. reiecting thereupon all his Epistles from the Canon of Scripture these new Ebionites by shifting comments and absurd glosses of their owne deuising seeke to delude the text and drawe it against all ancient expositions therof to be only vnderstood of cerimoniall feasts mentioned in the 23. of Leuiticus only because they are there called Sabaothes Whereas the Apostle distinguisheth such festiuall daies from the weekly Sabaoth and equally in this text forbiddeth the obseruance of them both to Christians Which true exposition heere supposed I conclude this argument One day of seauen is still as a morall precept to be holily obserued by all Christians But the obseruance of the old Sabaoth is prohibited by the Apostle to Christians and no other day introduced in place thereof but the day of our Sauiours Resurrection Therfore that day only and not the Iewish Sabaoth is still as a morall precept to be holily obserued by Christians Secondly because Iohn Traske is most delighted with Sillogisticall collections albeit himselfe be so little skilled in Logique as writing lately against an Aduersary he denied the Minor of his Enthimeme supposing that Christ was as he tould the Iewes Dominus Sabati and had full power either by himselfe or his Apostles to abrogate and alter as well as to institute approue the obseruance thereof I frame this argument That day of the seauen is by Christians now weekly to bee obserued which the Apostles themselues allotted for their holy Assemblies and other publique exercises of their Christian faith But the day which the Apostles so allotted c. was the first day of the weeke and not the Iewish Sabaoth Wherfore the first day of the weeke not the Iewish Sabaoth is to be obserued by Christians The Maior or former part of my Argumēt is certaine because such publique assemblies and exercises of faith are the chiefe end for which the Sabaoth and other festiuall daies were first ordayned The Minor or latter part is clearely proued by the practise of the Apostles Act. 20. v. 6. 7. where S. Paul many other Disciples of seauen whole daies which they spent in Troas are read only to haue assembled themselues for preaching frequenting Sacraments which are the most publike exercises of faith on the first day of the weeke and not on the Iewish Sabaoth Likewise on that day the Apostle 1. Cor. 16. vers 1. 2. willed the Christians at Corinth to make their Collects or cōmon gatheringes for the poore brethren at Ierusalem which is an euident signe that Christians vsed to assemble themselues on that day there being no reason to be yealded why such common collections of almes should be rather on the first day of the weeke then any of the rest but that Christians vsed only therein to make their holy Sinaxes conuents for
Circumcision then of transferring the Sabaoth to an other more mysterious and memorable day the determination of the seauenth day rather then any other being as I haue els where declared immateriall to the religious obseruance of Gods Commandement binding only according to the morall end and intention thereof faithfull people to abstaine in one day of seauen from seruile labours and to deuote the same to Gods especiall honor and seruice whereas the practise of Circumcision giuen before Moyses as a couenant and signe distinguishing Abrahams holy posterity from other faithlesse people was wholy to be repealed notwithstanding the Iewes so highly regarded it as not to conuerse or admit into their Temple any one that wanted that holy seale and signe of Gods couenant with them Other arguments more friuolous lesse important I willingly omit being loath to detaine my Reader needlesly and impertinently in them wishing heere for a finall conclusion of this question that Io. Traske and his bretheren would maturely consider the finall issue of their vnchristian and exorbitant doctrines disliked by our Soueraigne and State contradicted by all learned men comming to heare of them and vtterly as yet vnheard of in other partes of Christendome so as the first Inuenters and obstinate Professers of them can truly belonge to no Christian Church present now or past in any age before them QVESTION V VVherein is proued that Christians are to celebrate the yearly day of our Sauiours Resurrection on Sunday and not on the 14. day of March-Moone as the Iewes celebrated their Paschall IOHN Traske in his humor of Iudaisme Hereticall innouation is lately growne so great an enemie to the weekely obseruance of our Lords day as he seemeth also to deny the yearely feast of our Sauiours Resurrection to be lawfully celebrated on any other day in the yeare then the 14. of March-moone wherin the Iewes were commaunded by God to celebrate their Passouer And vpon his late reading in Eusebius lib 5. hist cap. 22. Policrates epistle directed to Victor Bishop of Rome concerning the Asian custome of keeping easter with the Iews S. Irenaus his iudgment that Victor did with ouer much seuerity excomunicate many Easterne Churches for persisting in that wonted Quartadeciman manner of celebrating the yearly day of our Sauiours Resurrection togeather with the Iewes Paschall he will arrogantly presume to call Victor that holy Bishop Martyr famously mentioned in ancient histories a proud Prelate and not sticke to accuse other ancient Fathers of ignorance in censuring afterwards and condemning for heretikes the Quartadeciman obseruers of Easter God himselfe saith he hauing expresly commanded Christ himselfe with his Apostles celebrated on that day his Paschall festiuity And not contented with this hereticall temerity of renewing the Quartadeciman heresy he surpasseth Blastus himself in his Iewish manner of keeping Easter For as I haue touched in my Preface he by his eating of vnleuened bread seauen dayes togeather after the 14. of March-Moone and by sundry speaches vttered to some of his fellow prisoners hath giuen great suspitions that lately he hath obserued the feast of Azimes togeather with his disciples The next yeare peradueuture they will haue profited in Iudaisme so far as to sacrifice a Paschall Lambe also And lastly it is to be feared that falling more and more from their Christiā profession they will with Adam Neuserus Bernardinus Ochinus and other Puritan Deuines finally forsake Christ and imbrace Iudaisme or Turcisme the fearefull sequell and iust punishment of such fantastical spirits as will imbrace no Religion but of their owne deuising nor be obedient children to any Church but of their owne raising But let Iohn Traske and his Disciples celebrate what Paschall they will and on what day they please our Paschal-Lambe according to the Apostle 1. Corinth 5. vers 7. 8. is Christ sacrificed in the euening of the world for our redemption and our festiuall azimes are to be as neere as by the assistance of diuine graces we shall be able to arriue vnto the sincerity of holy actions and verity of doctrines whereby our soules may be happily nourished after their spirituall flight out of Aegypt and conducted towards the eternal inheritance of heauen through the merit of Christs holy life and passion prepared for vs humbling our selues heer to be els where eternally exalted eschewing any temper as neere as we can of that Pharisaicall leauen with which Traskes speaches and actions are as it may be probably ghessed in Gods sight abhominably corrupted who with his disciples will not seem to be sicut ceteri homines in any thing shewing all those simptoms wherby the spirituall Phisitian of soules was pleased to describe the infection of the Scribes and Pharisyes rightly by him compared to dead mens sepulchers painted and polished without but internally filled with all guile and malice The Apostle telleth the Galathians cap. 5. vers 2. 3. that whosoeuer circumciseth himselfe maketh himselfe a debtour of the whole law and Christs death profiteth him not and so it may be proportionably auerred of Traske that in teaching the festiuall obseruance of Azimes he is consequently also bound by the same reason to obserue the entire Law of Moyses so cannot be longer a Christian He was wont heeretofore to vnderstand that text of the Apostle ad Coloss 2. Let not man iudge or discouer you in meate or drinke or new moones or part of a festiuall day c. of the Ceremoniall feasts of the Iewes mentioned Leuitic 23. abrogated by Christ amongst which the feast of Azimes is first mentioned But he hath as it should seeme since altered his iudgment as Ebion his disciples were wont little I feare doth he regard any doctrine contayned in S. Paules Epistles Policrates Epistle neuer taught him to conioyne the Iudaicall feasts of Azimes with our Christian Passouer only that ancient Bishop of Ephesus in a preposterous zeale of obseruing the yearly memory of our Sauiours resurrection as S. Policarpe and other great Saintes had done before him in those partes of Asia wrote very ernestly in the defence of that Quartadeciman Custome Whose authority hath as it should seeme much moued Iohn Traske who either out of ignorance had neuer before read or out of rashenes neuer marked far more conuincing proofes for the Dominicall obseruance of Easter For long before Victors decree thereof Pius his holy predecessor as Eusebius recounteth in his Chronicle declared it to haue byn an Apostolicall doctrine that Christians should keep their Easter on the Sunday and not on the 14. of March-moone as the Iewes celebrated their Paschall Socrates also lib. 5. hist cap. 21. expresly affirmeth that S. Peter S. Paul taught in the Roman and other Western Churches the like Dominicall obseruaunce of Easter which is also testified by S. Protenius Patriarch of Alexandria in his Epistly to S. Leo wherein he testifieth also that S. Marke introduced the same manner of keeping Easter in the Egyptian Churches S. Ignatius
reason for which God prohibited those meates to Noah and his Posterity which was chiefly by this horrour of bloud to make them detest man-slaughter and bloudy cruelty as appeareth by Gods wordes immediatly annexed to that precept Genes 9 vers 5. 6. 7 that sinne of murder hauing beene first committed by Cain Genes cap. 4. vers 8. afterwards by Lamech ibidem v. 23. Nomrod also and other mighty men in those first ages of the world ouer easily multiplyed that horrible offence against Gods intended propagation of mankind whereas now to vs Christians the example of our Sauiours meekenes his expresse prohibition of killing striking or miscalling our Neighbours his doctrine of pardoning seauenty times seauen our enemyes of being quickly reconciled vnto them of doing good for euill and praying for such as persecute vs c. do sufficiently instruct vs to abstaine from effusion of bloud and cruelty so that such a horrour of bloud in meates cannot for that end be longer necessary to be continued by Christians Secondly if this precept had byn a morall law necessary to direct vs in humane conuersation and manners towards God or between our selues it had no doubt byn included in that natural law by which Noah and his faithfull posterity were sufficiently instructed and taught to know the morall good and euill of their actions to refraine from sinne in them So as this precept had byn vnnecessarily imposed if perfect reason and naturall iudgment had otherwise taught it vnto them as it did other morall precepts Thirdly neuer any Philosopher or wise Gentill ignorant of that positiue precept giuen to Noah either taught or practised after Christs dayes or before abstinence from bloud strangled meats as a morall natural precept neither can it be as I haue els where declared out of naturall reason the rule of naturall lawes iudiciously conceaued that bloud or strangled meates entring the body can defile the soule c. Neither was the Apostles Decree Act. 15. concerning abstinence from such meates imposed on the Gentills as a morall law perpetually to continue but only as an easy obseruance necessary for a time the better to vnite Iewes and Gentills in the vnity of one Church For the Iewes hauing an especiall horrour of Idoll-offerings strāgled meats bloud would haue abhorred al manner of society with Gentils if they had not obserued some kind of order and conformity in meates with them And this is to be proued first out of the decree it selfe Act. 15. vers 28. wherin it seemed good to the holy Ghost and the Apostles to lay no further burden vpon the Gentills then that they should abstaine c. By which wordes no further burden is plainely insinuated vnto vs that the prohibitiō of such meats was a part of that burden which the Apostles would not haue wholy laid on the Gentills neckes to wit the cerimonious obseruances of Moyses Law so many in number and so hard in practise as few amongst the Iewes obserued them ibid. v. 10. and so consequently it was no morall precept included in Christs law formerly imbraced and professed by the faithfull Gentills Secondly the Gentills were by the same Apostolicall authority and for the like respects commaunded to abstaine from Idoll-offeringes as they were taught to refraine from meates strangled and bloud But the same Gentills were authorized afterwards by S. Paul ad Rom. 14. 1. ad Corin. cap. 8. 10. to eate Idoll-offeringes without scruple or question as hath byn in my former Question already declared wherefore then might they not afterwards in like manner be licensed to eat indifferently meates strangled and bloud For saith S. Augustin cont Faustum lib. 32. cap. 13. albeit the Apostles then cōmaunded Christians to abstaine from bloud and strangled meates choosing for a time an easy obseruance and not burden some to the Gentils that the Iewes and they might be built on the same corner stone c. yet after the Church of the Gentills became such as no natural Israelite appeared therein what Christian now obserueth it so as not to touch black birdes and other lesser birdes vnlesse their bloud be effused or not to eate a Hare or Conny killed only with a blow giuen in the necke without any other bloudy wound and if perchance some feare to touch those meates they are derided by other Christians so that in S. Austines dayes especially in those Western Churches as Iews for whose satisfaction and better gayning to Christ that cerimoniall Abstinence was conditionally and for a time only imposed ceased to imbrace the Christian faith so the obligation of that precept ceased also began to be no longer obserued by Christians And as the Eastern Churches were neerest to Hierusalem most stored with Iewish Conuertites so the Apostolicall precept of abstayning from strangled meats and bloud was in those Churches longest obserued And in those first ages after Christ because Christians were by occasion of the Carpocratians and other wicked heretikes eating children sacrificed with abhominable rites for their Eucharist exceedingly traduced and infamed to the Gentill magistrates therefore to shew thēselues innocent and fre from such horible slaunders they holily whilst those monstruous Sects continued tyed themselues to a Christian obseruance of that Apostolicall decree as the aboue mentioned authorityes of Tertullian Eusebius and other producible testimonyes of antiquity do certainely testify which maketh nothing at all to proue the still continuing obligation of the precept generally anulled by the contrary practice of Christiās in after ages If my aduersaryes obiect that as the decree of the Apostles was according to the prohibition of Fornication therein contayned a moral Law still continuing so was the same decree morall also according to those inioyned abstinencyes from meates c. I answere that the prohibition of Fornication was a morall precept reducible to the Commandment of not committing Adultery contayned in the Decalogue necessarily imposed at that tyme to instruct the Gentils newly conuerted in the Christian law of Matrimony and to deterre them from Concubinisme and vsing any more then one of those many women whome peraduenture they had ben accustomed carnally to haue known before their conuersions wheras their inioyned abstinence from bloud and stangled meates was no more decreed as a morall and euer continuing law then was their like prohibition of meates sacrificed to Idolls plainely repealed in the Apostles time by a contrary and lawfull practise of Christians And whereas S. Paul ad Rom. 14. vers 1. c. accounted it only weaknes in the Christian Iewes of those times to tye themselues to the legall obseruance of meates and to be scandalized at the liberty of the Gentills eating indifferently all thinges it is now to be worthily reputed an extrauagāt folly fancy for our pure Professours of spiritual Sanctity and Euangelical Perfection to tye themselues to such a Cerimoniall and burdensome obseruance of meats neuer dreamed of in many ages past by their Christian Catholike Predecessours and nothing pertinent to their pretended adoration and seruice of God in spirit and verity FINIS THE CONTENTS THE Preface declaring the Authors scope and intention in this Refutation pag. 3. I. CONTROVERSY QVEST. I. Of the seauenth day before Moyses pag. 21. Quest II. Whether the precept of the Sabaoth were Morall or Cerimoniall pag. 26. Quest III. Concerning the abrogation of the Iewes Sabaoth pag. 31. Quest IIII. Of the Sabaoth translated into the weekly day of our Sauiours Resurrection pag. 42. Quest V. Wherein is proued that Christians are to celebrate the yearly day of our Sauiours Resurrection on Sunday and not on the 14. day of March-Moone as the Iewes celebrated their Paschal pag. 57. II. CONTROVERSY QVEST. I. Of the vncleanesse of meats before Moyses Law pag. 65. Quest II. Of the Moysaicall Law of meates and mysterious ends why God commaunded it pag. 71. Quest III. Wherein the proper and perfect rule of morall Actions is briefly declared and how according to the same no meates are now vncleane and vnlawfull to Christians pag. 77. Quest IIII. Prouing by sundry texts of the New Testament the law of meats abrogated to Christians pag. 85. Quest V. Wherein is proued that bloud and strangled meates may be lawfully now eaten by Christians pag. 95. FINIS