Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
christian_n	church_n	communion_n	separate_v	1,901	5	9.2917	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26752	A discourse on my Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury's and my Lord Bishop of London's letters to the clergy touching catechising, and the sacrament of the Supper with what is required of churchwardens and ministers in reference to obstinate recusants : also a defence of excommunication, as used by the Church of England against such : preached March the 9th and 16th in the parish church of St. Swithins / by William Basset ...	Basset, William, 1644-1695.	1684 (1684)	Wing B1052; ESTC R9117	26,279	41

multò quàm Paulus much more severe than Paul himself who bids every one to examine himself but not others 2. It puts men upon Uncharitable censures and judging of other men contrary to the Command of Christ Judge not that ye be not judged and contrary to the Apostle Rom. 14. 4. and James 4. 12. Who art thou that judgest another 3. It supposes another man's Sin which I have no way incouraged or been in any point a partaker of may pollute the Ordinance to me though duely prepared my self contrary to the Apostles Doctrine Tit. 1. 15. to the pure every thing is pure 4. This Doctrine doth unavoidably destroy the Churches Unity Order and Peace for we can never joyn with any Church in the World but we shall find mixt Communions and therefore must be always shifting forming and gathering of new Churches And that cannot be a Duty which puts men upon the breach of those Undeniable and indispensable ones viz. Charity Vnity Order and Peace This is a fit Opinion to make men Seekers but such as shall never find Therefore Calvin saith Inst l. 4. cap. 1. that men do in vain seek a Church nullo naevo inspersam that hath no blemish and mixture in it And if any pollute this Ordinance I should think it is these very men who are so uncharitable proud and censorious which are the Sins of the Devils and stand as directly opposite to the Nature and designs of the Gospel as the grossest lusts of the Flesh Calvin saith Institut l. 4. cap. 1. he hath no excuse qui externam Ecclesiae communionem deserit ubi Dei verbum praedicatur Sacramenta administrantur who forsakes the external Communion of that Church where the Word is Preached and the Sacraments administred Elsewhere he saith such are Phrenetici Spiritus mad hot-headed People And tanti Ecclesiae suae Communionem facit Dominus c. the Lord so highly esteems the Communion of his Church that he reckons those Renegado's and Desertors of their Religion whoever shall alienate themselves from any Christian Society which hath the Ministry of the Word and Sacraments And Poterit vel is Doctrinae vel in Sacramentorum administratione Vitii quidpiam obrepere quod alienare nos ab ejus Communione non debeat Every Error in the administration of the Word and Sacraments is not a sufficient cause of Separation Luther on the Epistle to the Galatians saith they are Apostles of Men but never sent by God who creep into corners and do not enter into the Publick Church According to whom separation upon any of these Pleas is an evidence of a wild and Fanatick Spirit Mr. Calamy himself at last saw the endless Confusions which Pharisaical Spirits that think no Church pure enough for 'em began to lead men to and therefore about the middle of the Epistle to the Godly man's Ark endeavours to check this growing Mischief Take heed of separating from the Publick Assemblies of the Saints I have found by Experience that all our Church Calamities have sprung from this root He that separates from the Publick Worship is like a man tumbling down an hill and never leaving till he comes to the bottom of it I could relate many sad Stories of Persons professing Godliness who out of dislike to Church-Meetings began at first to separate from 'em and after many changes and alterations are turned some of 'em Anabaptists some Quakers some Ranters some direct Atheists But I forbear you must hold Communion with all those Churches with which Christ holds Communion you must separate from the Sins of Christians but not from the Ordinances of Christ Take heed of unchurching the Churches of Christ lest you prove Schismaticks instead of being true Christians When men once have an itch after Novelties under the notion of Reformation every one is finding fault with what others do till at last they can find no Church or Communion pure enough for 'em because not suited in all Points to their own humors Therefore Mr. Calamy in the next Page doth wish us to avoid as Soul-Poyson all Doctrines which 1. Tend to Liberty 2. Which hold forth a superstitious strictness above what is required in the Word 3. Which are Antimagistratical and Antiministerial But such is this Doctrine of refusing the Sacrament on pretence of mixt Communions and therefore according to Mr. Calamy ought to be avoided as Soul-Poyson We need no other Arguments against a Separation from our Church than the Writings and Practices of the first Reformers from Popery both beyond the Seas and in this Nation The Puritans against the Congregational way and which differs in terms only the late Presbyterians against the Independents 4. Object is against Compulsion especially from the Civil Magistrate This is no more than Hezekiah did in the case of the Passover which answered to this Sacrament For 2 Chron. 30. 5. Proclamation was made from Bersheba to Dan that they should come and keep the Passover which was occasion'd by the neglect of it as now amongst us and this stands recorded to the praise of this Pious King Now the Gospel doth not lessen the Power or the care of Kings over their Subjects Christ and his Apostles never tampered with the Civil Government Religion then never strip'd the Crown of Prerogatives under Pretence of the Peoples Privileges Therefore Kings may Command as much now as then Whence Mr. Baxter himself doth grant that the King may Command the Subject to his Duty Else certainly he may Command nothing at all And in his Apol. That the Kings Laws bind the Conscience to a Conscionable Performance of all his lawful Commands And therefore to this Duty of the Sacrament in particular this being a lawful Command because commanded by Christ himself But let it be on all sides supposed a Duty yet still we have two Objections remaining as 1. They are not prepared We Answer There may be a Proximate and accidental unmeetness even in good Men for some emergent occasions some suddain surprize c. may discompose and disorder the Soul at which time we do not censure a forbearance But an habitual unmeetness is inexcusable God and the King exact this Duty of you and if from one Sacrament and Year to another you still cry you are unprepared the Sin is your own Your neglects cannot null a Duty and take off the Obligation of a Law Should they wait till you say you are ready that day I believe would never come Doest thou really think thou art unprepared and yet makest no Conscience of preparing thy self This implies the giving up of thy self as lost for ever For if thou art unmeet for this Ordinance thou art unmeet for the Fellowship of the Saints if unmeet to eat and drink in his Presence besure thou art unmeet for the Beatifick Vision For he that is not qualified for a remoter cannot be qualified for a more intimate Communion This brings thee into a necessity of Sin for he that is idely unprepared

only taught by St. Peter and St. Paul under Nero the Monster of Mankind but was sealed by their Blood under the same Emperor To this did the Fathers and Primitive Churches all agree whose steps the Church of England follows both in Doctrine and Practice This is so great and evident a part of Christian Religion that it was as Catholick as the Church it self till first Popery and from thence Presbytery began to appear and disturb the World This is imply'd in the very Nature and Reason of Society which is an Union or imbodying of particulars for mutual preservation For this very Union is it self a tacit and mutual Compact to be governed by the Laws and Rules of that Society The making and execution of which must be intrusted into a few hands and in case any thing shall be ordain'd or imposed that is unlawful in it self or destructive of the first ends of Society there is no Remedy but either Patience or a quiet remove into some other Society where those Evils cannot reach 'em even as the Members of a Family as Children Servants or others must conform to the Rules of that Family or remove Whence the same word Honor doth import the Duties we owe both to Civil Magistrates and Natural Parents Thus our Saviour ordered the Disciples that when they were Persecuted in one City they should fly to another and not look there to complain of Grievances to make Parties and Plots upon the Government indeavoring to secure the best things viz. Religion and Property by the worst Methods viz. Rebellion and Blood Nor is there any other Doctrine that gives either Magistrates or People any security of their Religion Estates or Lives For leave but any hole for refusals resistance or self-defence as some call it to creep in at and you give but an opportunity to every State-Mountebank and Knavish Politician to put tricks upon the People in perswading 'em to a necessity of slighting or resisting the Laws either for the removal or prevention of those Evils which are supposed to licence such refusals or resistance By which means all Government would be set upon hinges and Men would quickly do only what they have a mind to do and a Society would be more dangerous than many wild and ungoverned Parts of the World Inquire of this and the Nations about us Examine the Times that are past and you will find that this Doctrine of resistance hath made more Differences Wars and Bloodshed than all the Controversies among Princes in the like space of time have done What Calamities and Devaslations may we then imagine there would have been and would yet be had Men liberty upon any account whatever to slight and resist the Government Therefore the God of Peace Unity and Order hath given us such Rules and Precepts of Universal Obedience that there is no room left for any reasonable Plea to the contrary We must therefore submit either Actively or Passively 1. Actively by doing the thing commanded where it is not contrary to any Law or Ordinance of God For God bids us submit to every Ordinance without exception and therefore to every thing which himself hath not forbidden And if any Plead a Prohibition it must not be from illogical Inferences sound of Words and misapplication of Phrases but from a Rule as plain and satisfactory as the Command And if this be produced yet it can licence 2. Only to a Passive Submission in suffering the Penalty of Non-obedience Now we have here a Precept directed to us from my Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury as one of our Parishes is under this Jurisdiction and another from my Lord Bishop of London as the other Parish is a Member of his Lordship's Diocess Which Orders even this very Text doth oblige us to observe and do unless you can find any Evil in the things commanded in which case you are quietly to submit to those Penalties with which the Law shall punish your Refusals or Neglects For your Information and Satisfactions in so important concerns I shall observe in these Letters these three things 1. What is required of you 2. What of the Churchwardens and 3. What of me It is required of you 1. That you frequent the Prayers of the Church 2. That you send your Children and Servants to be Catechized And 3. That you receive the Sacrament of the Supper The First of these I intend to discourse on another Subject And therefore begin 1. With Catechising where we have 1. The thing in Command which is Catechising 2. The Parties who Children and Servants and 3. The Persons that must Prepare and send 'em and they are Parents Masters and Mistresses 1. It is required that we Catechise A thing as some think founded on that of St. Paul to Tim. 2 Ep. 1. 13. Hold fast the form of sound words which thou hast heard of me Which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Exemplar some have taken to be a System or short Catechetical Discourse on the fundamental Points of Religion However it is certain it was a thing very early and Universally Practised in the Christian Church And Origen with other Learned Men condescended to this work There was an Order of Professors called the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Catechumens who were the Persons that learned these Catechises Indeed we sometimes find in the Fathers and Church-Historians that these Catecumens are described to be Christians by Prafession but not yet Baptiz'd Which sort were either Children of Heathen who were not received into the Church by Baptism till instructed in the Christian Religion which is the Practice of our Church in the case of Jews Mahometans c. and is agreeable to our Saviour's rule Mat. 28. 19. that all Nations being then Gentile must be taught or discipled before Baptism Or else the Children of those Christians who were newly converted themselves and defer'd Baptism till Easter or Whitsontide which in some times and places were the stated Seasons of Baptism Or of such who delayed it till the time of Death as many did out of a conceit that Sins after Baptism are unpardonable But the Children even of Christians whether Baptized or not were obliged to this exercise And the Sons of Constantine the Emperor were put out to Masters and Tutors to be train'd up in the Principles of Christian Religion Whence it appears 2. That the Persons to be Catechifed were Neophytes or young Professors which among us are Children or younger Servants as my Lord of Canterbury expresses it or Children and Apprentices as my Lord of London words it Or Persons whose Age and Condition may suppose 'em little acquainted with the Doctrine of the Gospel and the less they are so still the more need of this instruction Chtechism is in order to Baptism in the Children of Infidels who are yet unbaptiz'd but it is in order to Confirmation and the Sacrament of the Supper in the Children of Christians who are baptiz'd already therefore quoere whether not only those