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	faith_n	unity_n	2,037	5	9.1432	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13964	The trial of trueth or a treatise vvherein is declared vvho should be iudge betvvene the Reformed Churches, and the Romish in which is shewed, that neither Pope, nor Councels, nor Fathers, nor traditions, nor succession, nor consent, nor antiquitie of custome: but the onely written worde of God, ought to determine the controuersies of religio[n]: wherin also is declared which is the true religion, and Catholick church. Written for the pleasure of the Popes, Cardinalles, prelates, abbots, monkes: and speciallie the Iesuites, which of late were driuen out of Transyluania, by the states there. Published in Latine by a certaine Hungarian, a fauourer of the trueth: and translated into English by Richard Smith.; Oratio de constituendo iudice controversiorum religionis. English.	Smith, Richard, tr.	1591 (1591)	STC 24274; ESTC S100745	49,352	68

gathered from all places that may be out of the same Scriptures For so saith he further hath the holy Ghost tempered the Scriptures that that which is spoken in one place somewhat darkelie is in another place more cleerelie set down which things sith they thus stand it followeth that this is the only meanes that is left to conclude a peace if the matter be determined by the pure woorde of God alone and that religion only be iudged true and that church Catholick of the right beleefe which in all points agréeeth tothe woord of God rightly vnderstoode The See of Rome leauing all these reasons of the reformed Church protesteth that although she sée that the Gospellers religion dooth not much differ from the written woord of God nay that it agréeeth ther vnto in all thinges yet she cannot allow it sith it sprung from heretickes from such as were not sent of God and last of all from innouatours and such as bring in new orders The Gospellers on the other side intreat the Church of Rome that she would not accuse thē of so gréeuous crimes namely of herosie vnlawfull calling and innouation but that rather if she sée that their religion dooth agrée with the trueth of God contained in the writinges of the Prophets and Apostles she would not be vnwilling to receiue and imbrace it her selfe also For wheras first of all their doctrine is charged with hereste therein they complaine that they haue great wrong doon them For they say that those are not hereticks which haue béen either conuinced vpon small ground to swarue from the iudgement of the Church of Rome or they which say that three are Antipodes or men dwelling vnder y e ground as Pope Zacharie would haue it or they which will not obey all the constitutions of the Pope as the Canonists haue decreede or those which doo not agrée for the kéeping of Easter as Pope Victor would haue at or finally those which doo not giue credit to all those thinges which are deliuered for trueth in the Church of Rome for otherwise all those should be hereticks which would not beleeue that Saint Dominick wrought more miracles then Christ and all the Apostles that the said Domicick is greater thē Iohn Baptist and finally that all the trimme tales of Saint Frauncis the Sonne os Barnardo and others are to be credited vnder paine of being condemned for heresie or last of all those that doo not beléeue that all Emperours Kings princes and euery humaine creature is subiect to the Popes temporall Swoord But the Gospellers say that they are the right Hereticks first that bring into the Church a doctrine contrar y to the rule of faith or beléefe of the Christians secondlye that make a departure from the Catholick church that holdeth the pure doctrine of God last of all those who being solemnelye admonished doo obstinatelye continue in their errours that haue béene made manifest vnto them But as for them they protest that they haue swarued neither from the rule of faith and ordinarye creede of the Christians nor from those foure most auntient councels I meane the Councell of Nice Constantinople Ephesus and Chalcedon nor from the Créede of Athanasius nor finallye from any parte of the woord of God nor haue béene cited by due course of Lawe or excommunicated by competent or méet Iudges or proued to be out of the way but that they haue alwaies either lawfully giuen an account of their doctrine or conueniently referred themselues and solemnelye appealed to a generall and frée councell of all Christendom For that the councell of Trent was not a frée councell they proue by stories by which it is manifest how that Ceruinus Polus and other Cardinals expelled thence Iacobus Nachiantes Bishop of Clodia Fossa Dominicus Wilhelmus of Uenice Paulus Vergerius Bishop of Iustinople and many other vpon méere suspition that they fauoured the Gospell and for certaine spéeches repugnant to their popish errours And as for the calling of their Ministers which first began to assault the papacie they answere that they were called partly extraordinarilie the Lord stirring vp their harts and inflaming them more and more with the zeale of the glorie of his sonne and partly ordinarilie by Magistrates and Princes many people of sundrie Nations yéelding their consent thereunto and rendering God thanks for so great a blessing Which not onely that Princes may doe but also that they are bound to doe whensoeuer Churches are anewe in regarde of their outwarde and visible forme either to be established or to be reformed and cleansed from those errors which through the fault of them that should maintaine and preserue Religion were crept in they proue by the flatte commandement of God and by the examples of Eezechias Iosaphat Iosias and other religious Princes For whereas last of all they accuse the Religion of the Gospellers of noueltie therein they complaine that Gods trueth is greatly iniuried For the Gospellers protest that they holde no other doctrine then that whereby Adam Seth Noe Abraham and the rest of the Patriarks were saued and which Christ the Apostles the sixe firste Councels and the more auncient and sounder sort of the fathers did preach vntill at length the deuill while the husbandmen slept had pestered the Lords field with such store of tares that the pure wheate could not at all be séene for cockle and daruell For although God wil haue his church preserued yet he hath not appointed that it should alwaies stande in her full strength and flourishing estate but suffereth it like the Moone sometime to weare and sometime to waxe So in the daies of Noe onelie eight were preserued in the Arcke against the floud So in the time of Eliah there are said to haue béene fiue thousand that imbraced the true doctrine So finallie in the time of Christes appearing the Church was so darckned that there was thought scarce one or two to be left And after the gracious birth of our Sauiour Christ as it were within thrée circles of a thousand and fiue hundred yeares the Church in like manner séemeth to haue by little and little decayed For in the first fiue hundred yeares true religion began to wrestle with errour and in the next fiue hundred to yeeld to it vntill at length in the other fiue hundred yeres it was so ouerwhelmed that it gaue no light on any side Neither for all that doeth it followe hereupon that either the Church was at any time cleane extinguished or that we now are at variance with the church for y e church of Christ hath alwaies béene and shalbe alwaies as long as the Lord Christ shall raigne with whose helpe it is so supported that yet notwithstanding the forme therof is not alwaies visible Against this church the Protestants say that they haue now no quarrell because together with her they doe with one consent worshippe one God and the Lorde

bread and wine in the Sacrament doth so remaine and not ceasse as there remaineth in Christ the Lord the nature of man ioyned to the diuine nature Augustine saith that it is rashnesse without plaine and manifest testimonies of the Scriptures to determine on either side matters of Rellgion that are doubtfull Calixtus deliuered the Sacrament to the whole church kept backe notorious wicked persons from it and condemned those which being present did not communicate Cyprian saith that the Christian people were not to be denyed the bloud of their Lord for the confessing of whom they were commaunded to shed their owne bloud Apollo amongest other herestes obrayded Montanus with this that he was the first that had prescribed the people lawes of fasting Paphnutius denied that y e Ministers of the church were to be forbidden mariage And auouched that the mutuall performance of mariage dueties betwéene man and wife was chastitie Cyprian sayd that onely Christ was to bee heard of whom it was said heare him and that it was not to be reregarded what others before vs haue either saide or doone but what Christ who was before all hath commaunded Augustine stoutly maintaineth that the Church ought not to prefer her selfe before Christ because he alwaies iudgeth truely but the Iudges of the Church as being men are oftentimes mistaken Ambrose saide that holy things néeded not golde neither were those things acceptable by meanes of gold which wree not bought with golde Acatius said that our God did neither eat nor drink and that therfore he néeded not cuppes or bowles Spiridion saide that he did therefore fréelye eate fleshe on that day wherin others did abstaine because he was a Christian Augustine saide that it was not lawfull for Monkes to liue at other mens cost although they were dayly occupied in meditations praiers and studies Epiphanius said that it was a horrible abhomination to sée the Image either of Christ or any other painted in the Churches of Christians These and other such bounds of the auncient Fathers sith the Sée of Rome her selfe hath ouer●strided by what right she maye enioyne others to keepe that which she her selfe neglecteth to doo all men may easily iudge Sith therfore neither the Popes neither the councels nor the Fathers can end this dissention is there any at last I pray you vnto whose iudgement we must stand Are they Traditions that must strike the stroke Why by the name of Traditions they must either vnderstand ceremonies or doctrines and as for ceremonies although they be auntient yet if they be either hurtfull or néedlesse and superfluous or repugnant to the woord of God or haue been abrogated at a certain time they are not to be suffered For the Lord giueth expresse commaundement that men woorship him not with doctrines deuised by mens braines and as for the traditions that are doctrinall they must either containe in them the written word of God it selfe Créedes and expositions gathered by necessary collection out of the foundations of the scriptures against Heretickes or else those things which either directly or indirectly are either put to or taken from the word of God If you meane the former who will not receyue such traditions If the later who may not without any breach of Godlines reiect them And how much Traditions doe auaile to appease and ceasse the contentions of the Church olde Stories doe plainly shew For when as in the most auncient times there arose a sturre in the Church concerning the feast of Easter with so great a doo that the whole world was shaken therewith both sides had recourse to the traditions of the Apostles which are not expressed in any certain Booke But when each side alleadged that they kepte the feaste of Easter on that time which was appointed by tradition of the Apostles the matter grew to this passe in the end that there was a flat fréedome for the Church in all such manner of matters vntill tiranny preuailed Loe what force traditions haue to determine the controuersies of Religion Will miracles then make manifest which is the better cause or the Catholick church Why the vse of miracles is now ceased For there is not now any new Eospell or new doctrine broached but that which Christ and the Apostles haue already confirmed with miracles and wonders Againe we doe not reade that all those that restored and as it were reformed Religion were famous for their myracles In the which number Iohn Baptist Asaph Ethan Iedithun Heman Core and other Prophets are to be reckonned Moreouer except the gift of miracles be lefte to the wise disposition of God they cannot confirme any doctrine For it is manifest that the miracles of Christ which otherwise were full of power did either nothing at all or very litle further the obstinate Iewes to faith and Godly nesse Finally how could miracles be necessarie signes of true Religion of themselues when as it is manifest that Antichrist and false Prophets shall excell with many miracles wherefore those miracle-mongers ought themselues to be taken for miracles and wounders who when the date and vse of miracles is past doe yet require miracles although the true doctrine is not euen at this day altogether destitude of great miracles What then can the perpetuall and continuall succession of the Bishops of Rome serue to discerne betwéene true and false Religion Surely no man will deny that there is one succession of true doctrine and another of persons wherefore if the succession of Persons be ioyned with the succession of the Prophets and Apostles doctrine it is manifest doublesse that the weight thereof is not small For in this sense the Fathers did alleage succession against the Hereticks For he that professeth the same doctrine saith Nezianzen is partaker of the same chaire also but hee that holdeth a contrarie doctrine ought not to bee counted a Successour and truely this later hath the name in déede but that former hath the trueth of succession Except perhaps a man call it succession in that sence that we say sicknesse succéedeth health light darknesse a storme fayre weather madnesse reason dregges wine and in a word Nero Augustus or Cambyses Cyrus Sith therfore the succession of the Prophets and Apostles doctrine was broken off long agoe in the popish Church surely the ordinarie continuance of Pope after Pope is of no force to shew which is the true religion But it may be they will demaund of the Gospellers the time and person wherein the succession of doctrine was altered Unto this the Gospellers answere that the Popes of Rome are to be distinguished into thrée especiall rankes or companies For they deny not that from Linus to Milchiades there were one and thirtie true Pastours of them in number who laboured in the Lords haruest euen vnto martirdome and therefore may well be called Starres in the right hand of

Christ But from Sluester the first vnto Sabinianus Thuscus there were thrée and thirtie mytired Bishops who although they were not the woorst yet by traditions and constitutions they prepared a seate for the great Antichrist All the rest euen vnto this present Pope they call Antichrists yet so that nine and thirtie of them from Boniface the third and fourth vnto Leo the fourth are reckoned to be in the Kingdome of the great beast one and thirtie of them from Iohn the eight to Iohn the eightéenth are numbred in the Kingdome of the great whore nine and thirtie of them vntill the time of Celestine the fourth belong to the Kingdome of the Dragon And from Innocentius the fourth vntill the present Pope that now is about threescore and foure of them are counted in the Kingdome of Locusts according to the order of the Prophecie which God would haue to be expressely set downe concerning the Kingdome of Antichrist Loe what force and authoritie succession hath Will agreement then in publick doctrine and outward woorship shew which is indéed the catholicke Church why if méer agréement did proue the true Church doubtles neyther the Iewes nor the Turkes nor Hereticks or Heathen of any other such litter would be kept out from the title of the true Church sith we sée that euen they also doo marueloustie agrée amongst themselues And we sée that oftentimes great men in the church haue fallen into hoat contentions amongst themselues Between Barnabas and Paule there arose such strife that they brake of companye one from another So Peter of Alexandria and Meletius so Epiphanius and Chrisostome so Ierome Augustine and Ruffinus So finally Cyrill Iohn of Antioch and Theodoret were at open variance and iarres one with another And in déed Clemens Alexandrinus writeth that the Iewes did vpbraid the Christians with their dissentions amongst themselues By all which it is moore cleare than the noone dayes that as a bare agréement and vnitie cannot prooue the truth of Religion so neither doe all dissentions proue a Religion to be false so that the foundation be not broken by the discorde Can the common Custome then of many ages direct vs where to séeke the true church Nay but God hath forbidden the faithful to suffer his euerlasting truth to be ouer ruled by any compasse of yeares any custome or at a word by any conspiracie of the whole world So Noye with his small family when he sawe that the whole world had conspired and agréed to the same wickednes confirmed by the custome of many ages before past yet chose rather to ioyne with a fewe in the true doctrine of God than to take parte with the whole world in wickednes Shall the Church then decide these controuersies of the Church yea but wee must first seuere the true Church from the Synagogue of the Malignant which can be done by no other meanes but by the word of God Shall then the holie scriptures be Iudge in this controuersie of heires at variance So in déede the Gospellers would haue it For they affirme with Austine Chrisostome and other of the Fathers that all things are contained in the written word of God that might suffice for the saluation of them that beléeue For as Augustine saith in another place To the bookes of the holy Scriptures onlye which are now called canonicall doo we owe this reuerence and honour that we assuredly beléeue that none of the writers therof could erre at all in writing them but as for others we so reade them that how excellent soeuer they be either for holines or learning we doo not therfore think it true because they thought so but because they haue béen able to assure vs therof either by the said Canonicall Scriptures or by probable reason notdisagréeing from the trueth Therfore saith he in an other place to the holy Scriptures alone doo we consent without gainsaying from other writings we may dissent but to the canonicall Scriptures euery man must yéeld euery man must subscribe whether he be Layman or teacher or King or Emperour let him giue place to the holy Scriptures then the which there is nothing in this world set foorth more deuine and more necessary What can be more religious what more cléer then these testimonies of Augustine And if the Gospellers can obtain thus much once that God may be iudge of the controuersies of religion by his woord comprehended in the writings of the Prophets and Apostles why then they doo not stick to admit either councels or Fathers or miracles or other such like for sworne witnesses so that first the true Church be distinguished from the Sinagogue of Sathan Fathers of sound credit from fond fellowes and heretickes lawfull councels from tirannicall couenticles right Bookes from counterfeits true miracles from coyned and forged ones the succession of Doctrine from the disguised succession of persons true agréement from obstinate conspiracie and finally the traditions of the Apostles from the inuentions of men Yea but saith the See of Rome how can this be doone by the written woord of God sith there is no heretick that doth not alleadge the Scriptures for himselfe The Gospellers aunswere that heretickes wresting the the Scriptures cannot be better confuted then by the written word of God which onelie is able to decyde all controuersies For Augustine sayd verie well that we in no case presume to iudge the bookes of the Prophetes and Apostles but y ● by them we iudge all other writtings both of Christians and Paganes So Christ by the Scriptures confuted the Phariseis Sadduces yea and the deuill him selfe 〈…〉 isalledging the Scriptures So Stephen and Apollos confounded the Iewes and Philippe conuinced the Eunuke of Quéene Candace by the Scriptures So the Apostles confirmed the Gospell by the writinges of the Prophetes The Iewes of Berea examined Paules doctrine by the doctrine and writing of the Prophetes So finallie the Councell of Nice cut downe Arrius the Councell of Constantinople Macedonius the Councell of Chalcedone Eutiches the Councell of Ephesus Nestorius Augustine Pelagius Tertullian Praxeas and all the Catholicke authours fanstaticall fellowes with the sword of the word of God Wherfore as Augustine saith let no man in controuersies too proudly obiect the writinges either of Fathers or of Councels bycause we take them not as Canonicall but rather examine them by the Canonicall writinges and that which in thē agréeth with the authoritie of the holy Scriptures we receiue with their commendation that which agréeth not we reiect with their leaue But say they the Scripture is heard darke doubtfull Augustine aunswereth that mē walke farre more safely by the Scriptures then by traditions which being ouershadowed darkned with figuratiue spéechs whē we go about to search out either let that be collected thence which is out of question or if it be in questiō let it be defined by testimonies gottē and