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	society_n	2,512	5	9.2730	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A01917	Eirenokoinonia. The peace of the communion of the Church of England. Or, The conformitie of the ceremonies of the communion of the Church of England with the ensamples and doctrine of the holy Scriptures, and primitiue Church, established by the Apostles of Christ, and the holy martyrs, and bishops, their successors. By Io: Gordon, Doctor of Diuinitie, and Deane of Salisbury.	Gordon, John, 1544-1619.	1612 (1612)	STC 12056; ESTC S117965	29,676	44

in the Seruice-Booke of England The publike feasts performed in the Assemblies of the Christians were the same which we called before Agape and vnder the name of cibus promiscuus is contained the celebration of the holy Communion which in that age was executed euery day in the Christian Assemblies To this purpose doth the testimonie of Tertullian serue who liued an hundred yeeres after Saint Iohn who doth relate many ancient customes which were obserued in the Church and amongst other speaking of the holy Communion hee saith We Christians doe receiue from the hands of our Presidents and Rulers the Sacrament of the Eucharist in the time of our meales in all things being commanded by the Lord yea and also in our Assemblies before the day breaking The said Tertullian in describing the forme of the publicke feasts of Christians after the which they did celebrate their holy Communion calleth the place in which they did celebrate the same Triclinium which signifieth a Parlour or Supping roome in which three beds were spread to lye vpon round about a Table which was set low as wee haue proued heretofore in the second These Euen so the word discumbere which Tertullian vseth signifieth to lie at Table on Cushens Carpets or the like spread vpon the ground as is said These are Tertullians words For ye Gentiles do not onely blaspheme our Suppers to be infamous but also prodigall onely the Triclinia of the Christians that is the place of their publicke feasts are euill spoken of but the name of our Supper sheweth the reason thereof for it is called Agape in the Greeke tongue because it was a feast of charitie or loue whatsoeuer cost is bestowed it is not to be counted cost but gaine for to make such cost for pieties sake it is to be esteemed gaine because by this refreshing wee relieue the poore c. Ere wee lye downe at Table wee first say our prayers the hungry doe eate as much as may satisfie them and the thirsty doe drinke so much as is profitable for temperate men they are but so satisfied with food as that in the night they may remember they must worship God They talke so as if they knew the Lord heard them after the washing of their hands and the lighting of candles euery one is prouoked to sing a Song vnto God eyther out of the holy Scriptures or of their owne inuention In the end of this publike feast the custome was to celebrate the Communion for Tertullian in his booke De corona militis as is said beareth witnesse that the Christians did receiue the Sacrament in the time of their meales meaning of the publike meales because the Communion was euery day celebrated in all publike assemblies in that age Iulian the Apostate who was for many yeers a Christian and did exercise the Office of Deaconus in his yonger age after that hee was Emperour and became an Apostate he re-established the heathenish Sacrifices and publike feasts in the which hee vsed the gesture of Accubation which did continue in that age as well amongst the Christians as heathens Theodoretus doth relate the forme of the solemne feasts which were solemnized by Iulias to Ap lio Daphnaeus where hee saith that the Sonne of the heathenish Priest in the first day of the feast which continued seauen dayes did vse sprinkling of consecrated water to the Idoll which vvas called aqua ●ustralis by the which the feast was dedicated to the said Idoll where wee obserue beside our purpose that the Popish Holy-water comes from this Heathenish ceremonie That the gesture of Accubation vvas vsed in this Feast it is cleare by the vvords of Theodoretus where hee saith that in the first day of this Feast the Priests Sonne standing nigh the Emperours bed did sprinckle ouer all the meate with this Holy-water Out of which wee may see plainely that the Emperour lay on a bed at this Solemne Feast according to the ancient custome of the Greekes and Romanes before Christs Natiuitie and since These publike Feasts beganne to be abused in Saint Pauls time so the abuse did continue till a Nationall Councill holden at Laodicaea Anno Domini 368 did forbid these publike banquets and feasts to be solemnized in the Church as is expressed in the 28. Canon of that Councill in these words following It is not lawfull to make Feasts called Agapae in the Lords houses or Assemblies or to eate in the house of God and spread Carpets or any such like thing for to lye vpon to wit at the said Feast The words of the selfe-same Canon are repeated in the sixt generall Councill holden in Constantinople in the Pallace called Trullus which Councill was holden vnder the Emperour Iustinian Anno Domini 555. So that notwithstanding that this manner of Supper was forbidden by the Nationall Synode of Laodicaea yet 〈…〉 in the time of Iustinian otherwise the said 〈◊〉 of Constantinople would not haue prohibited th●● by a new Canon not making mention of the Synode of ●●odicaea This Agapae was also called Caena Dominica as Renanus doth note vpon Tertulisans Booke de corona militis whose words are these It is very likely that the Christians did celebrate together a Feast in the Temple vpon the day of the Lords Supper whereof there are some signes left with vs for Tertullian writing to his wife who making mention of a Heathen who had a Christian to his wife saith after this manner Which of the Gentiles will endure securely that his wife assist all the night long to the solemnitie of the Easter or which of the Gentiles without suspition would giue his wife leaue to assist to the Lords Feast which they haue in great infamie c. These words conuiuium Dominicum in this testimony and the words Sacramentum Eucharistiae tempore victus sumimus heretofore cited and the description of the Supper called Agape being conferred one with another doth shew that the Communion was in that age celebrated after the said Supper as Christ himselfe did so that the Christians in the time of Tertullian did retaine eating and drinking at the Communion in a common societie according to S. Pauls commandement Wherefore my brethren when yee come together to eate tarry one for another The ordinary custome to celebrate the Communion after Supper was changed about the end of the first foure hundred yeeres after Christ and was conuerted into a publike feast called Caena Dominica the Lords Supper Socrates and Sozomenes doe relate the diuersitie of customes and Ceremonies that were in vse in their time in sundry Churches the words of Socrates are these the Egiptians which dwell nigh to Alexandria and they that doe inhabite the Country called Thebs doe celebrate their solemne Synaxis or Communion vpon Saturday but according to the custome of the Christians to wit of that age which was foure hundred yeeres after Christ after they haue ended their Communion or publike Supper

Ierusalem and the Presbyters or Elders did enforme S. Paul that many Myriades that is a very great multitude of the Iewes had receiued the faith which were all zealous obseruers of the Law whereof wee collect that they did retaine Circumcision and the celebration of the Iewish Passeouer together with Baptisme and the holy Communion after that same kinde of gesture of accubation as Christ himselfe did which wee haue proued before in the second These To this purpose doth agree that which is written in the Acts of the Apostles Chap. 2. verse 42. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that the faithfull assiduè operam dabant did continually trauell in the doctrine of the Apostles and in the Communion and breaking of bread and prayers And in the 46. verse of the said Chapter it is said that they continued daily in one accord in the Temple and breaking of bread from house to house and did eate their meate together with gladnesse Whereof we may easily gather that they did assist in the Temple to the Ceremonies of the Law but in their priuate houses they did daily celebrate the Communion at their ordinary feasts which they could not performe publikely by reason of the persecution of the Sinagogue So that without all doubt the gesture of their bodyes in all their publike meales was conforme to the custome of the Iewes which was accubatio a lying downe Also the Gentiles that were conuerted did celebrate the feast of Agape and after it the holy Communion obseruing the gesture of accubation as shall hereafter be sufficiently God willing proued S. Paul did reproue the Corinthians because they did not lawfully obserue the first institution of these publike feasts in communicating together the rich relieuing the poore His words are these When yee come together therefore into one place this is not to eate the Lords Supper for euery man when they should eate taketh his owne supper afore and one is hungry and another is drunke So that yee see the abuse of this feasting was that they did not follow the first institution in making their meat and drinke common to all equall but did conuert publike eating to priuate vse the rich men eating apart by themselues and the poore by themselues Therefore the Apostle commands them in the end of the Chapter that when they come to eate they tarry one for another S. Peter in his second Epistle Chap. 2. verse 13. disclaimeth against false Christians which did seeke nothing in their publike feasts but the satisfaction of their owne bellyes the word which Peter vseth is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifyeth to make a publike feast in a common societie The Apostle Iude in the 12. verse of his Epistle speaking of them that abused these feasts which were dedicated to an holy vse to their owne pleasures saith These are like spots in your feasts of Charitie when they feast with you without all feare feeding themselues these feasts are called here by the name of Agapae which signifieth a Feast of Charitie or loue Theodor. Beza doth retaine the same word in his Latine Translation Hae sunt in Agapis vestris maculae dum vobiscum conuiuantur absque vllius metu scipsos pascentes where hee doth note that Agapae erant sraterna ac ecclesiastici coetus conuiuia quae describuntur a Tertulliano in Apologetico that these were the publike feasts in their Ecclesiasticall Assemblies which are described by Tertullian in his Apologeticke which is a Booke written in defence of Christians against the Gentiles In the end of these feasts the Communion was celebrated as Christ did after Supper It is mentioned in the Actes of the Apostles Chap. 6. verse 2. that the Apostle called the multitude together and said It is not meete that wee should leaue the word of God and serue the Tables These Tables are the publike feasts mentioned in the second Chapter of the said Booke verse 46. In the which the holy Communion is called the breaking of bread Without all doubt in these publike feasts the Apostles and the saithfull did celebrate the Communion in the selfe same manner and gesture of body which Christ did institute which was as is proued in the second These the gesture of accubation The holy Martyr Ignatius second Bishop of Antiochia and Successor to S. Peter called these publick feasts 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which word is also mentioned in Luke Chapter 5. verse 19. where it is said that Leui which is Mathew the Publicane made a great banquet to Iesus where Theod Beza noteth the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to signifie ad verbum acceptionem quod passim in eo omnes accipiantur For it commeth from the Verbe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifieth to receiue That which S. Iude calleth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the same is called by Ignatius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ignatius his words are these It is not lawfull to baptise without the Bishop nor to offer oblations nor to bring any Sacrifices nor to celebrate the feast called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 where marke by the way that in the false Popish Translation it is Mossas celebrare from the which the Papists doe pretend to proue the antiquitie of their Masse Hyeronimus Vairlenius Siluius of the Romish profession in the notes of his Translation of Ignatius Epistles Printed at Antwerpe by Plantinus who had permission to print the same from the Spanish King and is approued by those of the Inquisition saith after this manner reliquimus hic vocem Graecam quae conuiuium significat Latinè sic dictum ab accipiendo quòd omnes promiscuè acciperentur videtur autem id conuiuium idem fuisse cum eo quod Tertullianus in Apologetico suo Agapen suo seculo appellatum scribit quamuis beatus Iudas in Epistola sua cadem voce Agape vsus sit pro conuiuio eiusmodi Where it is euident that Uairlenius in the Translation of Ignatius Epistles doth follow the opinion of Theod. Beza in this matter And therefore the foresaid vulgar Translation of the said testimony is false Plinius the second President of Bithynia vnder the Emperour Traiane which was an hundred yeeres after Christ writeth to the Emperour that hee had examined sundry Christians as hee had commanded him and that hee had learned of them that they were accustomed at an appointed day to meete together before day-light and to say one after another a Song or Rhime to Christ as to God and to binde themselues by a Sacrament or holy promise not to commit any villany but especially not theft not robbery not adultery not to breake their promise that being required they should not detaine any thing that was committed to their custodie And after this their custome was to depart and afterwards to assemble together to their common Feasts which were without any harme Where wee obserue beside our purpose that the first Christinas did sing their Songs one answering to another which forme is followed