first Reformation and to restore Episcopacy So that it 's very evident that the Presbyterians do falsly pretend that Episcopacy or Superiority of Pastors is against the purity of their first Reformation and that parity of Ministers or Presbyterian governement is conform to it the contrary being most certaine out of their owne Records Next I found they came as little speed of their pretence of the word of God which is so far from condemning Episcopacy as evil and Anti-Christian that it rather commends it as good and Christian 3. Tim. ch 3. v. 1. S Paul writing to Timothee saith This is a true or faithfull saying If a man desire a Bishops office he desireth a good worke And that we may not contend about names I find the same S. Paul acknowledging in Timothee the power of iudging and ordaining Presbyters in which the power and Svperiority of Bishops principally consists For in the 5. chap. of the same epistle he saith Against a Presbyter receive not an accusation but vnder two or three witnesses And ver 22. Lay not thy hands suddenly on no man He sheweth also that he had left Titus in the isle of Crete to ordaine Priests by cities Tit. ch 1. v. 5. By this I saw as I conceived clearly enough that all Pastors are not equall but some are Superiour to others and that a Bishop and a Minister is not the same as the Presbyterians do pretend since the one hath power to iudge and ordaine which the other hath not Therevpon I made this observation If it be a true or faithfull saying as the Apostle speaks to call the office of Bishop good Then it is neither a true nor faithfull saying to call it evil as the Presbyterians speaks If the office of Bishop be a good worke then it was no good worke in the Presbyterians to condemn it as Anti-Christian For that is not only to contradict the Scripture but also to incurre the curse threatned by the Prophet Esay 5.20 Wo vnto them who call's evil good and good evil More over Christ himself did institute diverse degrees of Pastors in his Church when he choosed 12. Apostles Luce c. 6. and thereafter 72. Disciples Now it appear'd very evident vnto me that as the Apostles were distinguished from the Disciples by their diverse institution Luce c. 10. number and more intire familiarity with Christ by whom they were privily instructed so they were in a higher degree and dignity above the other Disciples which truth is much illustrated and confirmed by the solemn assumption of Matthias who was before one of the Disciples vnto the Apostle ship Act. 1. or as S. Peter sheweth out of the Psalmes the Bishoprike of Iudas Lastly God did institute in the old Testament diverse degrees of the high Priests the other Priests and Levits as Calvin himself confesseth Therefore it seem'd vnto me there was no repugnancy Cal. lib. 4. Inst c. 6. §. 2. why the like goodly Order and Subordination of Pastors might not also be in the new Testament yea rather all reason doth require that these things ought to be in the Church of Christ and that more excellently and perfectly then in the Synagogue of the Iewes since this is but a shaddow and type of the other But although the Scriptures being duely considered seemed clear enough in this matter yet for more security and to take away endlesse ianglings and wranglings which some contentious heads makes vpon the clearest words of Scripture I had my next recours vnto the interpretation of the holy Fathers practise of the Primitive Church And I found that they did not only vnderstand the Scriptures for the Superiority of Bishops over other Pastours but also they condemned the contrary opinion as a wicked heresy in Aerius S. Augustin Aug. lib. 19. de Ciu. c. 19. explaining these words of S. Paul above cited who desireth a Bishops Office desireth a good worke saith the Apostle would shew what the Office of a Bishop is for it 's a name of of labour and not of honour that he may know himself not to be a Bishop Who delights to preside not to profite Hier. ap Cornel in hunc loc S. Hierom sheweth that in the primitive Church the Office of a Bishop was the next degree to Martyrdome for Bishops being the chiefe Leaders of Christians were most diligently searched out persecuted by the Pagans Therefore the Office of a Bishop being so high and excellent so hard dangerous it was no wonder that the Apostle did require so many excellent vertues and qualities in any Dion lib. de Eccles hier c. 5. who desireth that office which he call's a good worke I will only adde to these two most ancient Fathers for confirmation of this truth S. Denys Arcopagita the disciple of S. Paul describing the Hierarchy instituted by God in the Church putteth the Bishops in the first place the Priests in the second and the Ministers or Deacons in the third And S. Ignatius the disciple also of the Apostles and Bishop of Antioch doth shew this excellent subordination of Pastours in the Church for thus he writes in one of his epistles Priests be subiect vnto your Bishop Deacons vnto Priests Ignat. epist ad Taâ—sens and you people vnto Priests and Deacons Who shall observe this comelinesse of Order I would willingly change my Soule with theirs and our Lord be with them for ever The Presbyterians have not only not observed that comelinesse of Order but they have condemn'd it and brought in the vglinesse of confusion and therefore they want this holy Martyrs benediction The holy Fathers also do constantly teach that the Bishops do succeed vnto the Apostles and the Priests vnto the 70. Disciples and therefore the Bishops are greater then the Priests Yea the most eminent among all the holy Fathers were Bishops although diverse of them were advanced to that dignity much against their will And besids all these testimonies I found the practice of the whole primitive Church which was alwayes governed by B shops from the beginning I must professe that considering all these things I was fully satisfyed and resolved not to abandon all these authorities of Scriptures Fathers and the whole ancient Church for the Ministers strong cry's and bare words which they only bring against them all I was much confirmed in this resolution when I found the contrary opinion concerning parity of Pastours which is now maintayn'd by the Presbyterians to be condemned as an ancient heresy by the holy Fathers S. Epiphanius writes thus of Aerius His speech was more furious then became any man for he said what differs a Bishop from a Priest there is no difference the order is one the honour one and the dignity is the same And confuting it a little after Epiph. haeres 75. he saith That this matter is full of fully is manifest to all wise men For that a Bishop and a Priest are not
the same the divine word of the Apostle doth teach And after he hath proved from the words of the Apostle above cited that Bishops who have power of Iudgeing Priests are above Priests then he proves also the Bishops Superiority by their power of Ordination How is it possible saith he that a Bishop and a Priest can be equall For that Order begetteth Fathers vnto the Church but the other hath no power to beget Fathers it only begets Children vnto the Church by the lauer of regeneration and not Fathers and Masters And how is it possible that one can ordaine a Priest who hath got no imposition of hands Aug. lib de haeres hare 53. for Ordination S. Augustin also reckons vp this errour of Aerius in his booke of heresies Yea S. Hierom who of all the holy Fathers doth most extoll the order of Priestood and brings it as would seem in some comparison with Episcopacy excepts alwayes the power of Ordination for thus he writes Hier. epist. ad Euagr. What doth a Bishop except Ordination that a Priest doth not also By all which it is manifest that if the Presbyterians had been living above tuelve hundred yeares ago they had been condemned in this point as Heretiques by the holy Fathers and that with more reason then the Aerians who never proceeded to their hight of arrogance to call the Office of Bishop vnlawfull and Anti-Christian Now against all this what brings the Presbyterians for themselves pure Scripture at least they pretend so which is an ordinary custome to all those whose errours are most against Scripture They bring ordinarly two places wherein they have greatest confidence The first is Math. 20.26 where our Saviour saith vnto the Apostles You know that the Princes of the Gentiles overrule them and they that are the greater exercise power against them It shall not be so among you c. The like words are repeated the 22. of S. Luke v. 24. The second place is 1. Tim. 4. v. 14. where the Apostle saith to Timothee Neglect not the grace that is in thee which is given thee by prophecie with imposition of the hands of the Presbyterie or of the Eldership as some of their bibles translates it I considered diligently these places and the rest which they bring and I could not find in any of them either Superiority of Pastours condemned nor Equality approved much lesse a Iudicatorie of 9. or 10. Ministers with a changeable Moderator established to Iudge over their brethren in all matters Ecclesiasticall There needs no more to know the truth here but to open our ey 's and read the places for impudence it self cannot affirme that the Scripture doth there expresly condemn the one or approve the other Therefore it 's a vaine and false pretence of the Presbyterians to alledge their disciplin to be contain'd expresly in the Scripture After expresse Scripture failes them then they run to their owne glosses and Consequences vpon the Scripiure which they will have the people to believe as Scripture wherein they commit a double deceit 1. To promise pure Scripture and then in place of it to give yow their owne glosses or rather guesses which are not to be found in Scriâ—ture 2. To oblige yow to believe these glosses and humane inventions to be Scripture or as Scripture As if one who had promised to give an other a quantity of gold and in place of it would give himonly brasse and then after this deceit would also oblige him to esteem the brasse to be Gold But albeit these glosses and consequences be not in Scripture yet it may be they are cleare of themselves and necessarly deduced from the Scripture as the Presbyterians pretends I found this pretence also to be false For if they were so evident and necessary then men of iudgement would easily see such glosses and make such consequences But the holy Fathers who were not only men of great Iudgement but were also most Eminent for learning and holynesse never made any such interpretations and consequences vpon the Scripture Therefore the Presbyterian glosses c. cannot be clear and evident which such holy and piercing ey 's could not see or if they saw them it was only to condemn them as hath been shewed And albeit this authority be more then sufficient to overthrow the pretended clearnesse of all these new glosses yet when I considered that the most learned of all the Protestants side as all the Lutherans in Germanie Suedland and Denmark who have their Superintendents and the late Protestant Church of England Scotland and Ireland and which is to be much here considered the Scottish Church at its first Reformation never made any such Interpretations vpon these Scriptures but had their Bishops and Superintendents then I esteem'd it a madnesse to imagin that these Presbyterian glosses could be clear and necessary which neither the holy Fathers the whole primitive Church and so many Learned Protestants and all their Churches could not see And albeit the French Protestants do admit of the Consistorial disciplin yet they do not declare Episcopacy to be absolutly Anti-Christian or that their forme is only Christian much lesse do they think it so necessarie as to overturne Kingdomes Commonwealths for setting it vp Of which Beza and du Moulin may be sufficient witnesses Beza cont Errast fol 1. Mons Moulin buck 30. aâ—t sect 12. The first saith Whosoever doth iudge this disciplin not only vnprofitable but hurtfull to their Churches Let them enioy their owne sense And much more to this purpose The other saith In so much as coÌ„cerneth Ecclesiastical disciplin we do not hold that equality of Pastors is absolutely necessary Who esteem not that order a point of faith or a doctrin of Salvation we live thanks be to God in brotherly concord with our neighbouring Churches which follow an other forme where there are Bishops some Superiority In Veron tom 2. contro de Hier. And Mons r Blondel a famous Minister in France hath lately written a booke entitled of the Primacy in the Church where he teacheth that although Superiority of Pastours be not by Divine right yet it is not against Divin right and therefore neither is equality of Pastours by Divine right All which are very far from the doctrines and practises of our Scottish Presbyterians who stands very single and bare of all authority Divine and Humane having all the world against them not only the holy Fathers and whole ancient Church but also all the old Protestants both Lutherans and Calvinists And if we shall add vnto these the Independents and Anabaptists and other new Protestants who admits of an equality among Pastours but condemns Presbyterian power and Tyranny their small authority and number is yet much diminished and the clearnesse of their glosses is much obscured Lastly if we will take away from the Presbyterians number all these who by deceit or force were gain'd vnto it their authority will appeare
is granted by all Christians that the Church in Communion with Rome had once this succession and professed the true faith at least for some years after the Apostles Therefore either she holds still the same true faith and so has a continued succession from the Apostles or else if she hath fail'd some other Church hath succeeded and kept the true faith in all generations thereafter But no other Church can be assigned which hath still succeeded Therefore either the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome which was once vndenyably the true Church is still the true Church and hath ever professed the same true faith or else the true Church of Christ which ought to be perpetual and visible hath perished out of the earth for many ages which no Christian can affirm Moreover as the true Church is clearly easily known by her continued succession so all false Churches are evidently discoverd by their new rising S. Irenaeus li. 3. c. 3. The most ancient Father S. Irenaeus having reckon'd out the succession of the Roman Bishops by which he shewes the succession of the true Church from the Apostles saith Haec est plenissima ostensio c. This is a most full demonstration that the same lively faith taugth by the Apostles is still even vnto this day conserved in the Church and truly delivered And by this saith he Confundimus omnes c. We confound all Novelists who cannot shew such a succession S. Hierom saith that any new Church which hath not still endured from the Apostles is not the Church of Christ Hier. dial cont Lucifer vt sup Tertull. de praescrip c. 34. Idem li. advers Hermonem c. 1. but the Synagogue of Anti-Christ For by this same very thing that they are afterwards established they shew themselves to be those whom the Apostle foretold were to arise Tertullian affirmeth that Heretiques are discovered by their age alone Again To cut short all disputes with Heretiques we vse to prescribe them by their posteriority or after rising But it is worth the observation and much illustrates this matter to consider what two contrary things the Scripture foretells of the true Church and of heresies Of the Church it shewes that it hath no later beginning then Christ who founded it and can end no sooner then the consummation of the world Both these truths are contain'd in that one sentence of Christ to speak of no more Math. 16.19 Vpon this rock will I build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it Of sects heresies it shewes iust the contrary 1. They are not so ancient as Christ but arise afterwards as S. Paul foretold the Ephesians saying I know Acts 20.29.30 that after my departure there will ravening Wolves enter in among you c. and of your selves shall arise men speaking perverse things 1. Iohn 2.19 S. Iohn saith They went out from vs. 2. As they rise lately so they quickly decay S. Paul saith 2. Tim. 3.9 They shall prosper no further The first two are verifyed clearly in the Catholique Church which being founded by Christ hath continued to this day without interruption and so shall continue vnto the end of the world For this being the work of God cannot be dissolved as Gamaliel wisely or rather divinly foretold The other two are no lesse verifyed of all false Churches For they began of late in several ages after the Apostles and albeit they seem'd sometimes firmly established yet being the works devices of men they were ever at length dissolved The first point to witt late rising is verifyd of the Protestant Churches which were not known before Luther their dissensions changes divisions and subdivisions which every day encrease and for which there is no remedie shew that they cannot endure for ever Is it not then truly admirable that the heresies which have risen against the Church being so many in number for two hundred Heresiarchs are reckoned to have been before Luther some of thē vpheld by great earthly power maintain'd by diverse svbtile and crafty wits covered with the mask of truth and promoved with furious zeal yet never one of them hath endured And vpon the other part the Catholique Church being all alone so ancient so much hated so much calumniated and persecuted by them all hath stood out against them all and endures vnto this day Is it not very considerable that all heretiques having intended by slight and might the destruction of the Catholique Church which some of them have most cruelly persecuted and the building of their own new respective Churches yet they could never get either of these two designs accomplished For the Catholique Church being founded by Christ vpon a rock cannot be shaken Whereas these new Churches albeit sometimes they seem to be brought neer vnto some setling perfection yet before they can get on the Capestone for which the Presbyterians did often in vain cry fall ever into ruin and confusion Who will consider these things may not see the finger of God in protection of his Church the clear performāce of all his promises vnto her And vpon the other part who may not see an evident curse fall vpon all heresies which like Babels can never be perfited being built vpon the sand cannot long stand or being like adulterous plants cannot take deep rootes But that you may discern the better how the true Church is so easily known by her continued succession all false Churches are so clearly discovered by their new rising I pray yow conceive in your mind these following representations which are grounded in the Scriptures holy Fathers 1. Represent vnto your self the true Church as a great River passing from one end of the earth to the other running continually from the time of Christ his Apostles through all generations And such is the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome having succession of Pastors people in all ages like a river ever running in which all the Saints as living waters have flowed vnto paradise But heretical Churches are like little brooks or rainfloods not alway's running but rising at several times after stormes tempests not compassing the earth but overflowing some petty corners of it making for a short space a great noise thereafter running more calmly and in end clean dried vp S. Augustin makes this comparison for on these words of the psalme Aug. in psal 57. They shall come to nothing as water running down he saith Let not my brethren some floods which are called Torrents affright you the water runs down for a time it makes a great noise it shall soon cease they cannot endure long Many heresies are now dead they have run in their streams as much as they could they have run out their waters are dried vp scarcely the memorie of them is to be found c. Thus he You know that the Covenant did not always run and
those who went without mission saying I had not sent these Prophets yet they ran Ieremie 23.21 and 27.15 Iohn 10.1 and prophesied falsly in my name Christ saith who entereth not by the doore into the sheeâ—fold but climbeth another way is a theef and a robber Moreover our Saviour has put a strict obligation vpon all people to hear and obey their lawfull Pastors and has forewarned them earnestly to beware of false Prophets Of the first he saith Who heares you heares me Luke 10.16 Math. 10.15 and who contemns you contemns me And whosoever shall not receive you nor heare your words c. Verily I say vnto you it shal be more tolerable for the land of the Sodomits Gomorrhaeans in the day of Iudgment then for that Citie Of false Teachers he saith Beware Math. 24 5. Math 7.15 that no man seduce you for many shall come in my name And again Take great heede of false Prophets S. Paul to the like purpose forewarneth the Ephesians saying Take heede to your selvs I know that after my departure Act. 20.28.30 there will ravening Wolves enter in among yow c. For the which cause be Vigilant Seing then we know evidently by the Scriptures that there must remain always true and Lawfull Pastors in the Church and that false Prophets will also arise That we are obliged vnder paine of damnation to heare the first and vnder no lesse danger to beware of the last It is most certain that the goodnesse of God who promised such a clear way vnder the Gospel that fooles should not erre in it has ordaind an easy sensible way for all men to discern between true false Pastors that they may be preserved from error in so great danger or else noâ— only fooles but also wisemen might be miserably mistaken and misled to their own perdition Now the same Scripture points out this easy and direct way if men would walk in it For it shewes that all true Pastors must have sensible vocation Mission and these who want them cannot be true and Lawful Pastors First it's evident that our Saviour did sensibly call 12. Apostles and sent them with commission to feed govern his Church Secondly the Apostles did also sensibly call and ordain other Pastors as is evident in the election ordination of S. Mathias Thirdly the chief Pastors that is Bishops received also power from the Apostles to choose and ordain others as is evident in what the Scripture records of Titus and Timothee This was so evident and sensible a way that fooles might not erre in it And if this order was always observed that none could be esteem'd lawful Pastors but who were thus called and ordain'd by others who had received that power then it was as easy to know a true Pastor from a false Apostle as it is easy to know who is called to be a Iudge in the State from an vsurper for they are both discernable by easy and sensible signs This is the doore of which our Saviour speaks by which all these who are lawfull Pastors enter into the government of the Church and all these who enter not by this doore and yet vsurp that honour to be Pastors of the Church are theevs who climb vp another way and so may be easily known The auncient Iewes had also an easy way to know their ordinary Priests Pastors from vsurpers For among them none were Priests but these who were descended from Levi by Aaron by natural generation But in the Law of grace it is more easy where none are to be esteem'd Bishops Lawfull Pastors but these who are descended from the holy Apostles by visible ordination personal succession The holy Fathers did vse this succession and Vocation of Pastors as a most evident argument to demonstrat the true Church and by want of these they discovered also as clearly all false Churches For it 's certain the true Church cannot be without lawfull Pastors lawfull Pastors cannot be without lawfull Vocation ordination where there are no true Pastors lawfully called and ordaind there can be no true Church S. Ireneus proves the true Church by the Succession of Pastors Irenaâ—us lib. 3. c. 3 which he calls a clear demonstration by which all heretiques are confounded Tertullian requires the heretiques to bring forth the origine of their Churches to recite the order of their Bishops Tert. lib. de praescrip by succession from the Apostles As it is evident then that vocation succession of Pastors by lawfull ordination is an inseparable propertie of the true Church So We shall now briefly see to which Church it best agrees whither to the Protestant or to the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome I find that the Protestant Pastors are as much perplexed to show the lawfulnesse of their Vocation after Luther as they were vexed to show where their Church was before him For they run from one shift to another and what some say others controule severly censure As there were three principal sorts of Protestants to witt the Lutherans Calvinists these of the late English Church so I find they bring three different answers to the question of their Ministers vocation Some say the Lutherian Ministers have an ordinary vocation because Luther was made a Priest in the Roman Church But this answer is frivolous For first Luther by that Vocation got only commission to preach the doctrin of that Church and not to preach against it Secondly it is monstruously absurd for the Lutherians to derive their Vocation from that Church which their first Apostle esteem'd Anti-Christian Thirdly Although Luthers own vocation were supposed to be good how could he being only a simple Priest ordain others since from the beginning of Christianity it was never known that a Priest could be ordaind by any but by a Bishop Fourthly Luther succeeded to none neither Bishop or Priest who professed his doctrin and therefore the Lutherans are in their first source destitute of succession and in their progresse of lawfull ordination and so neither Luther nor his successors have any lawfull Vocation Calvin most of his Schollers renounce the way of ordinary run to an extraordinary vocation for they are ashamed to derive their vocation from the Roman Church which they imagine to be Anti-Christian neither can they do it because Calvin was never ordain'd a Priest By the tyrannyâ— saith he of the Pope Cal. lib. 4. Instit c. 3. par 4. the true line of ordination was interrupted now there is need of a new supplâ—e And truly this was an extraordinary charge which the Lord imposed on vs. To him accords his Scholler Beza who saith that at the beginning of their Church ordinary vocation appear'd no where And Beza in epist ad Alemannum in the Conference at Poysie being enquired of his Vocation he said it was extraordinary Against this pretext of extraordinary vocation which is followed
by all the Puritians other Protestants do sharply inveigh Saravia saith that it 's a doctrine full of danger Saravia in defen cont Bez. p. 73. Prot. Apol. tract â— c. 2. sect 3. subd 2 of a new and evil example and vpholden by no testimony of the Scripture Diverse other Protestants cited in the Protestants Apologie reiect this extraordinary vocation as fanatical and opening a way to all seducers who may make the same pretext And now the Presbyterians find by sad experience that the Independents Anabaptists and others make vse of it against themselvs But that Calvin and his followers had no extraordinary vocation may be easily shown For vnto that there are two things requisite according to the examples recorded in the Scriptures First that God speak sensibly vnto one whom he is to call extraordinarly as he did to Moyses Elias S. Paul Secondly That he make that appeare by some miracle The first is not sufficient without the second To which may be ioynd a third condition to witt holynesse of life doctrin which becomes Gods extraordinary Ambassadours without which even their miracles ought to be suspected Now not only one but all these conditions were visibly deficient in Calvin the other pretended Reformers For never any of them was so impudent as to say that God spake sensibly to them albeit Luther confesseth that the Devil conferred oftner then once with him Erasm in diatribâ— de lib. arb Then they were so impoteÌ„t of working miracles that Erasmus obiects to them They were never as yet able so much as to cure a lame horse Lastly their lives were not extraordinary for holynesse befitting an extraordinary Vocation as we have seen above Luthers sentence against Muâ—ster Luth â—â— Senat M â—us makes also against Calvin If he pretend saith Luther that he is sent by God as the Apostles let him prove that by doing signes and miracles for where ever God will change the ordinary way there always he works miracles Lastly the late Church of England pretended a succession lawfull Vocation of her Pastors Mason of the consecration epist de dicatorie above all other Protestants For so Mr Mason praiseth and admireth the sweet and singular providence of God towards the new Church of England that when other reformed Church as were enforced through necessity to admit extraordinary Fathers or Ordainers that is to receive ordination from inferiour Ministers or Priests yet the Church of England had alwayes Bishops who according to the ordinary and most secure custom of the Church had conferred holy Orders But this pretence is also false and frivolous For either the first Protestant Bishops in Queen Elizabeth time were ordaind by the Catholique Bishops or had their Vocation from some others Sander de schis Angl. Champ. de Vocaâ— Ministrorum as from the Queen and Parliament The first cannot be said For both Sanderus and Dr. Champnâ—y show that the Catholique Bishops choosed rather to die in prison as they did then to impose their hands vpon the Queens new design'd Protestant Bishops Besids M. Whitaker and Fulk renounce the Catholique ordination as vnlawfull albeit all the more late Diuines of the English Church had their recourse vnto it in so much that Fulk expresseth himself very passionatly thus We with our whole heart Fulk in reâ—ent a pud Brairlie tr 2. c. 2 sect 6. ad Dâ— renounce abhorre detest and spit at your filthie Anti-Christian Orders So full of confusion are they in this matter that what some of their greatest Divins esteem their greatest glory others no lesse famous among them think their greatest shame Moreover albeit the Catholique Bishops were granted to have imposed their hands on the first Protestant Bishops yet by that ordination they made them only Catholique and not Protestant Bishops for the Church in all reason and common sense cannot give a lawfull Vocation to any Pastors to preach and act against her self Therefore if these first Bishops of the late English Church were Protestants when they were ordain'd they were not lawfully ordaind and if they became thereafter Protestants they lost all lawfull exercice of their power of ordination when they vsed it against that Church from which they pretend to derive their lawfull vocation Lastly the first Protestant Bishops in King Edward the sixth or Queen Elizabeths time succeeded to no other Protestant Bishops much lesse can they show their succession vnto the Apostles as is requisite to make them lawfull and Apostolical Bishops If it be said that the first Protestant Bishops were made by vertue of the King or Queens supremacie and by act of parliament This is not the way prescryved in the Scripture which has been always observed in the Church And if these English Bishops Pastors had no more sure ground for their vocation then the Royal Supremacy it is no wonder that they are both falne together and that one Parliament has ransacted what others had enacted So we see that the late English Church has been resolved into the same principles of which it was first composed as by the same iust iudgment the Presbyterians who pretend an extraordinary vocation are almost subverted by the Independents Anabaptists vpon the same pretext It rests that I speak now a word of our Scottish Ministers Vocation which I found as groundlesse and more ridiculous then any of the rest For besids that the most part of them at the beginning were vnlettered men and had no other Vocation to be Ministers then that which the Presbyterians blame now in the Independents the Vocation of M. Xnox our great Reformer seems very strange as it is described in his own Chronicle In one thing indeed he shew himself more Scrupulous then Luther for although he had been ordain'd a Roman Priest yet he thought not without reason that his Popish orders gave him no lawfull Vocation to be a Protestant Minister and therefore he expected another call which was given him after this manner Some discontented Protestants having conspired together had cruelly kill'd Spots woods in his history c. as a Protestant Author speaks Cardinal Beaton within his own house the castle of S. Andrewes possessing themselvs of all the Cardinals riches and thereafter kept out the Castle in rebellion against the State To this place of security M. Knox had his refuge carying along with him some Gentlemens children whom he instructed in the Grammar and new Catechisme Knox Chron. p. 74. 75 His book saith that when these within the Castle perceived the manner of his doctrin they dealt earnestly with him to take vpon him the function of a Preacher But he refused alledging he would not run where God had not sent him meaning that he would do nothing without a lawfull calling Wherevpon they going to a private Councel resolve or give a charge publickly to M. Knox by the mouth of their preacher Iohn Rough which was done at the next Sermon as it is there at more
length described So by this means M. Knox gote his Vocation to be a Minister from the call of that holy Congregation which was guiltie of murder and robbery and was then in actual rebellion by the mouth of their Preacher who could have no lawfull vocation himself but being an vnlettered man had taken vp by all appearance that calling at his own hand as many others did For it is said of him in the 74. page Albeit he was not the most learned yet was his doctrin without corruption c. I was much astonished when this historie of our first Reformer his Vocation was first shown me in his own book by a Catholique who did not faile to manifest the ridiculousnesse of it by all the circumstances Now these are all the different Vocations of the Protestant Ministers and all and every one of them are so vnsufficient that they are disproved not only by Catholiques but also by most famous Protestants who are brought to such confusion in this matter that they hardly know what to say For they can neither pretend ordinary nor extraordinary Vocation not the first because they evidently want succession as also ordination both which are requisite to an ordinary calling Not the second because they want the power of working miracles and have no extraordinary holynesse which are qualities very requisite and vsual for all Gods extraordinary Ambassadours And albeit neither of these qualities were required yet these who pretend this extraordinary Vocation do fall into such contradictions that they are evidently known thereby not to be Gods extraordinary Ambassadours whom he never vseth to send with contrary Commissions So that to the Protestant Ministers or Bishops agree well the words of S. Cyprian Cypr. de simplicit Praâ—lator These are men saith he who without any divin disposition preferre themselvs among rash people who make themselvs Prelats without any lawfull ordination who none giving to them a Bishops office take the name of Bishops vpon them Therefore the Protestant Pastors wanting clearly succession from the Apostles are not Apostolique and so are not true Pastors but Vsurpers and consequently the Protestant Church is not the true Church for that cannot be the true Church which hath no lawfull Pastors Vpon the other part this succession of Bishops from the Apostles has been ever so evidently in the Church of the Roman Communion that the holy Fathers did bring it as a most evident argument to show the true Church and therefore they reckon out ordinarly the succession of the Roman Bishops Aug. cont epist fund c. 4. S. Augustin saith The Succession of Priests from the Seat of Peter the Apostle vnto the present Bishoprique holds me in the Church And elswhere shewing the continuance of the same succession he saith The continuance of the true Church by most certain succession of Bishops Aug. lib. conâ— advers leg prophet c. 20. doth persevere from the Apostles time vnto ours and to the times after vs again And this succession doth to this day continue in the Roman Church as evidently as it did in the time of the holy Fathers neither can any thing be said now against it which might not have been said as iustly by the auncient heretiques Therefore as the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome has been shewed to be one holy and Catholique Church so it is no lesse evident that it is Apostolique having lawfull Pastors as it has ever had deriving their Vocation from the holy Apostles by lawfull ordination personal succession and consequently this is the true Church lawfull spouse of Iesus Christ This matter of Vocation is of great importance because doctrin depends vpon it and because it is easily discerned so that it is compared by our Saviour Iohn 10.1 to a Gate As then it is more easy to hold a theef at the gate then to thrust him out being once let in so all heretiques are more easily confounded for lack of Vocation which is to hold them at the doore of the Church then by the falshood of their doctrin which is to expell them after they are once admitted For if they cannot bring evident testimonies of their Vocation ordination from a known Pastor of the Church they are presently known to be Wolves who run when they were not sent who enter not by the doore but climb vp another way Therefore it is great deceit in some Ministers to vndertake to prove the lawfulnesse of their Vocation by the truth of their doctrin which is a preposterous and ridiculous way Numer 16. Core and his complices taught no other doctrin but that which was taught by Moyses and yet because they vsurped the Priests office we know how fearfully they were punished What would be more ridiculous then if one would vsurp the Office of a Iudge in the state and then would prove himself to be a lawfull Iudge by the iustice of his decisions This question then of Vocation being so important and easy a Catholique gave me this advice which I resolve God willing to follow never to admit a Minister to dispute of religion till he first shew the lawfulnesse of his Vocation and to make ever that the first question Wherefore having now seen such evidence for the truth of the Roman Catholique Church to which alone the marks and properties of the true Church recorded in Scripture do so clearly agree I will draw to an end by this subsequent Conclusion CHAP. XXXVI The Conclusion AS light is more pleasant after darknesse so is the invention of truth more delightfull after errors I have now by Gods grace and by the former Triall seen both our pretended Reformations which were called such great engyring Lights to be nothing but thick Aegyptian darknesse obscuring the chief and most clear truths of the Christian Religion both in doctrin disciplin I have now found amongst the Protestants what S. Augustin observed amongst the Manichees Aug. cont epist fund c. 4. that they have nothing but a meer promise of truth a pretext of following only the Scriptures wheÌ„ indeed they follow their own Errors That their doctrin is nothing but counterfeit Mettall which cannot endure the fire of Triall Yea I have clearly seen that their Church which is the ground work of all has not the least resemblance of the Church of Christ as she is without ambiguity described in the Scriptures For according to them the Church of Christ must endure for ever But the Protestant Church has only endured since the time of Luther According to the Scriptures the Church cannot be hid but must ever shine like a light set vpon a Candlestick But the Protestant Church has lyen many hundred years hid and invisible vnder a bushell The Church of Christ must have Vnity as becomes the house of God But the Protestant Church is full of division confusion both in doctrin disciplin The true Church must be holy in all her doctrin and
practice of the whole Church against whose custome to dispute as S. Augustin affirmes is most insolent madnesse Therefore without or rather against all reason do you detest the Ceremonies of the Catholique Church No religion can be without Ceremonies and we see in the Scripture that all great mysteries are accompanyed with sublime significative Ceremonies as our Saviours Nativity Baptism Transfiguration Resurrection Ascension the Descent of the holy Ghost c. Our saviour also at all great solemn actions vsed many Ceremonies as at the raising of Lazarus the cureing of the man who was both deaf dumb Mark 7.33 and vpon many other occasions all which Ceremonies serve as Ornaments of religion presenting an external Maiesty to the senses and making the spiritual mysteries to be more clearly vnderstood to be received with greater reverence and to be more deeply imprinted in the hearts of the beholders The same might be easily verifyed of the Catholique Ceremonies Therefore you who vnder pretext of spirituality are profest Enemies to all Ceremonies do not take heed that you take all order decency from the Church service of God that you oppose the practice of Christ his Apostles and of the whole Primitive Church and do render the sublime mysteries of the Christian religion contemptible You renounce also to vse your words the Popes 5. bastard Sacraments But that is only proper to adulteresse Churches to have bastard Sacraments The Catholique Church has none but lawfull Sacraments instituted by her heavenly Spouse Iesus-Christ of admirable vertue grace as we have seen all these 5. to be But indeed you have made even those two which you keep bastard Sacraments by robbing them of all vertue and grace We shall only speak a word of your other Detestations which follow in this Section because some of them have been touched above First vnder the name of the Pope you detest the iudgment of the Catholique Church as cruel against infants dying without Baptism and for the absolute necessity of Baptism But this was also the iudgment of the Primitive Church yea of Christ himself who has said Iohn 3.5 vnlesse one be borne again of water the Spirit he shall not enter into the Kingdome of Heaven And therefore is not cruel as has been shewed above at more length Whereas your iudgment is both false and cruel against many children dying with Baptism excluding them from heaven Yea not only your Iudgment is cruel but also your practice suffering many children to dye without Baptisme Confer Hampton-Court for which cruelty King Iames affirmed that your Ministers who were guilty of it would be damned You accuse next the Catholique Church of blasphemy for beleeving the Reall Presence or Transubstantiation which you wisely make all one question and for teaching that the wicked receive the body of Christ But they are not blasphemous who do beleeve Christs words expressed by 3. Evangelists and one Apostle and who follow the constant doctrin of the holy Fathers of the auncient Church as the Catholiques do in this matter as has been shewed above And if the wicked did not receive the body of Christ how could they be guilty of it as the Apostles affirmes the vnworthy receivers of it to be But you are rather guilty of blasphemy even in the iudgment of Protestants who will not beleeve Christs clear words and deny thereby his Omnipotency Luther your first Apostles gives this Iudgment of you We censure as heretiques aliens from the Church of God the Zuinglians all Sacramentaries Luth. cont Lovanien Thes 27. who deny the body blood of Christ to be received with the Carnal Mouth in the Eucharist And a famous Doctor of his Church continues the same opinion of you for speaking of this same matter he saith the sect of the Calvinists is grown to such blasphemy and madnesse Conrad Shlussel Theol. Calvin l. 1. c. 3. that they dare call in question Gods omnipotency Then you accuse the Pope Catholique Church for Dispensations in solemn Oaths and Periuries But these are either vain or false allegations For it is certain that the Church may dispense sometimes with the bond of oaths as she may loose from punishments and free men from the bonds of sins according to that power which Christ gave to her saying whatsoever thou shall loose on earth Math. 16 shall be loosed in heaven c. But it must be for a iust cause and without the iust preiudice of others as Becan shewes Becan de ur iustitia quest 88. q. 11 or else the dispensation is not valid Periuries or false oaths need no Dispensations as you mistake or calumniate but must be only taken away by true Repentance as other sins are purged It is strange that you should deny the lawfull power of dispensing to the whole Catholique Church such as S. Paul vsed with the incestuous Corinthian and yet appropriate it to every one of your selves and should obiect that falsly as a crime to others whereof yourselves are so deeply guilty For it is known how many oaths vowes your first Reformers did either break or dispense with at their own hands and if we will beleeve King Iames Basilicon Doron p. 41. you are not behind with any in these enormities You accuse also falsly the Pope Catholique Church for dispensing in degrees of Mariage forbidden by the word of God that is by the Law of Christ vnlesse you will have the Ceremonial Law of the Iewes to be the Law of Christ and to oblige all Christians whence it would follow that if a man died without issue Deuter. 25.5 his brother should marie the Widow which yourselves do not observe but deny that it ought to be done The Church is so far from dispensing in degrees forbidden by the eternal Law of God that she has made Lawes forbidding dissolving Mariages in degrees not prohibited by the Eternal Law of God which serve as out-works to guard the divin Law She dispenseth indeed sometimes vpon good reason in her own lawes but never in the eternal Law of God which she professeth to be altogether indispensable Neither is the Pope and Catholique Church guilty of cruelty against the innocent divorced by forbidding them to marie vnlesse Christ himself and S. Paul be cruel and the Primitive Church which taught the same doctrine Luke 16.8 Our Saviour saith every one that putteth away his wife and marieth another committeth adulterie and he that marieth her committeth adulterie 1. Cor. 7.10 S Paul saith not I give commandment but our Lord that the wife depart not from her husband if she depart to remaine vnmaried or to be reconciled to her husband Whence it is clear that neither of the parties can marie so long as the other lives This was the doctrine of the holy Fathers and of the ancient Church S. Augustin proveth this in his bookes de adulterinis coniugijs
ch 17. p. 183. seq Their SPECIAL and groundlesse Faith 9 9 They deny all Satisfaction or works of Penance for sins and so they teach men are not to make any Satisfactions for their sins p. 500. Their doctrine of sinning WITHOVT Satisfactions 10 10 They teach Iustification by faith only against the expresse words of Scripture Iames 2. v. 24. as may be seen above ch 17. p. 182. Iustification by faith ONLY 11 11 Albeit some were great sinners yet so soon as they took the Covenant they were esteemed Saints and all their sins forgiven them though indeed they becam no better This is a greater Opus Operatum which the Presbyterians ascribed to their Covenant then that which the Catholiques assign to the holy Sacraments as may be seen above p. 202. 203. The Opus Operatum of the Covenant which SAINTED without dispositions even the worst Covenanters 12 12 They do not only abiure works of greater perfection not coÌ„manded but counselled but also they neglect works of duty commanded teaching hat the Commandments are impossible to be kept p. 502. 5â—3 Their Omission of works of DVTY tending to EDIFICATION 13 13 They teach that all their works are evil and therefore are demerits which may be iustly renounced p. 504. 505. 4. They often give and sell pardons from their stoole of Repentance or else all the great people must be Saints only the poore must be sinners For it is very rarely seen that any person of condition doth sit vpon their stoole of Repentance See p. 506. Demerits 14 14 They bragged that they should never leave off till they went with their Covenant Covenanting Armie to destroy the walls Citie of Rome p. 507. 508. SELLING of Pardons 15 Their intended WARLIK peregrinations to destroy holy places 16 16 The English Independents did call ordinarly the Presbyterian K rk-SessioÌ„s Bawdy-Courts For by them the fines were imposed vpon the fornicators But now that power is taken from them and given to the Civil Magistrate These Sessions are not so good as the Catholiques Stations above p. 508. Their Kirk SESSIONS 17 17 They do not consecrate their Communion Wine and albeit the Ministers say a long prayer at the beginning by which they would seem in some measure to hallow that which is present which is but a small quantity yet the rest is brought sometimes out of the Tavern and vsed without any benediction See of Holy water above p. 510. 511. VNCONSECRATED wine 18 18 See above how at the beginning of their pretended Reformation they vnhallowed many Bells p. 511. 512. Their VNHALLOWING and selling of Bells Their 19 19 The true Church has only power to cast out Devils Luther tryed once to do this but it succeded ill with him as may be seen above p. 512. WANT of power to coniure Spirits and cast out Devils 20 20 The Presbyterian Ministers do much hate the sign of the Crosse calling it the badge of Anti-Christ as may be seen in Spotswoods historie lib. 6. p. 324. See above p. 513. the Antiquity efficacy of that glorious sign of the Son of man Their CVRSINGS and Detestations of the SIGN of the CROSSE as also 21 21 The holy Apostles vsed Vnctions as may be seen above p. 514. which custome has been ever observed in the Church ibidem As also the Church did ever hallow some Creatures for holy ends as Water burial places Churches Bells c. which the Presbyterians have often made common and turn'd into profanes vses of VNCTIONS of benedictions of Creatures for holy ends together with the PROFANATIONS of these hallowed Creatures Their Domineering Presbyterian 22 22 How the Presbytery domineered over all sorts of persons may be seen above ch 4. and 5. of Presb. Triall 23. Their severity cruelty may be seen ibid. DEMOCRACY and 23 cruel ANARCHY 24 24 Their solemn League Covenant which intended the setling of Presbytery in all the 3. Kingdomes is not such a work of perfection as are the 3. Solemn Vowes of chastity poverty Obedience which they here abiure and which their first Reformers Vowed but did not keep And therefore their Solemn League may be better renounced then the three Solemn Vowes abiured Their Solemn LEAGVE and CovenaÌ„t with all their ROVNDHEADS of Sundry SECTS Their cruel Decrees made at GLASGOW to extirpate the Catholique Religion where their Covenant which has proved a bloudy Band was confirmed against the holy Catholique Church And lastly we reiect all their 25 25 See above pag. 229. 242. how by Trops and figures the clear words of Christs institution of the holy Sacrament are perverted by them against the sense of the holy Fathers and of the auncient Church VAIN TROPES AND FIGVRES perverting the true literal sense of the divin Scriptures against the constant exposition of the holy Fathers together with all their 26 26 Their denying of privat baptism is a Presbyterian Tradition derived from Calvin as may be seen above p. 212. without or rather against the word of God and the practice of the auncient Church The same may be also said of their denying private Communion c. PRESBYTERIAN Traditions brought in without or against the word of God and Doctrin of the 27 27 As the Catholique Church is only the true Church of Christ so S. Cyprian has observed that all heretiques like Apes do take vpon them the name and falsly Vindicate to themselves the authority of the Church Cypr. Epist ad Iubaian holy CATHOLIQVE Church the Pillar ground of Truth To the which holy Catholique Church we MOST WILLINGLY ioyn our selves in Doctrin Disciplin and all holy RITES as members of the same vnder Christ Iesus the Supreme invisible Head and the 28 28 See above section 4. p. 432. where it is shewed that S. Peter was ordain'd by Christ Supreme Pastor of his Church and that the Bishop of Rome succeeds vnto S. Peter in the same charge BISHOP of ROME the Successor of S. Peter Prince of the Apostles the Visible and Subordinate Head or Governour thereof 29 29 As the Catholique Church remaines constant in her doctrin and government so the Scottish Protestant Church has been very inconstant for it has changed diverse doctrines and very sensibly its disciplin three or foure times since the beginning of their pretended Reformation so that a man cannot wisely swear constant obedience to such an vnconstant Church See above ch 2. and 7. of Presb. Trial. Promising by the assistance of Gods Grace to continue in the obedience and Communion of the same Church all the dayes of our lives 30 30 As it is a malicious calumnie to say that any Catholique is stirred vp by the Pope to deny and abiure the Catholique religion against his conscience vpon hope of the Popes Dispensation So it is a known truth by diverse fresh experiences
little the Model and Methode of it In the first place are set down the Occasions of that Honorable new Converts doubts concerning the Truth of the Protestant Religion such as are the Ministers Inconstancy in Doctrin Disciplin their great Dissensions and Divisions Their Tyrannizing over mens Consciences Their Contradicting their own Principles c. In which matters some late histories or passages are interlaced without expressing the names of persons therein concerned because that was not necessary since the things here touched are publique late fresh in all mens knowledge and Memories within the Countrey and the persons also well enough known Neither is it the digrace of any mens persons Hier. Apolog. 3. cont Ruffin c. 11. which S. Hierom calls the Machines of Heretiques but the correction of their Errors which is here intended After the occasion of the doubts is shewed in some few chapters then followeth the Triall of the last pretended Presbyterian Reformation in the principal points thereof as its condemning of Episcopacy the abolishing the hymne of Glory to the Father c. the denying the Apostolical authority of the Apostles Creed neglecting to say our Lords Prayer c. In all which points the Presbyterians are found to go against the word of God the Primitive Church the former doctrines practises of many among themselvs against their first Reformers and many learned Protestants So that this last pretended Reformation is shewed to be nothing but a reall Deformation destroying not only the Apostolique office government established by Christ in his Church but also the two chief Pillars or heads of the Christian Religion to witt our Lords Prayer and the Apostles Creed Then followeth the Trial of the first pretended Reformation which is also shewed to have destroyed in effect the other two chief Pillars of Christianity to witt the Divine Commandments and Holy Sacraments and to have brought in a most Erroneous doctrin of Iustification by Faith only expresly against the Scriptures holy Fathers So that these two pretended Reformations are shown to have made vp between them the hideous work of Desolation After this the whole Protestant Church by the vndenyable principle of the perpetuity of Christs Church is proved not to be the true Church of Christ And by the same vndenyable principle the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome and she alone is demonstrated to be the true Catholique Church of Christ and to have in all ages still continued in the same doctrin which she received from Christ his Apostles notwithstanding the calumnies of Heretiques Then lastly the same truth is proved by the Marks whereby the true Church is clearly designed in the Scriptures as by her Vnity Sanctity Vniversality Apostolical Succession by which marks the holy Fathers also did prove the true Church in their times To which is subioyned a brief Examination of the Presbyterian Covenant or Confession of Faith which although it was much Idolatrized of late is shewed to be nothing but a Denyall and Abiuration of the holy Faith with many execrations and blasphemies against it This briefly Courteous Reader is the Scope and Methode of the ensuing Treatises which the Author thereof earnestly wishes may tend to thy profit That if thou be a new Converted Catholique thou mayst be coÌ„firmed thereby in thy holy Faith If one who after many tossings in Errors art seeking the Truth thou mayst be assisted to find it where only it can be found if lastly thou be one who not through malice but through negligence or ignorance adheres vnto Errors thou mayst be stirred vp to try them and to seek diligently the Truth which is a work most worthy of thy paines Neither is it so hard as some do imagin to find the Truth since God Almighty according to his infinit goodnesse wisdom has prepared the way to heaven so much the more certain easy to be known how much more Error and deceit in it brings greater losse with it and therefore he has promised so plain and direct a way vnto Eternal happinesse that fooles may not erre by it Esay 35.5 Whence it is evident if thou seekest this way with diligence and after the right manner thou mayst have great confidence by Gods grace to attayn vnto it But then thou wilt seek it in the right way according to the advice of the glorious Doctor S. Augustin to his friend Honoratus if thou dost vse fervent and frequent prayer Aug de vtilâ— credâ—s 15 16. strivest to have peace and tranquillity of mind if thou wilt hear that Church which God hath established on earth with so great authority and which is called Catholique both by her own by strangers For it is by Authority only whereby men can come vnto the knowledge of Divin Truth and there is no Authority equall vnto this wich began by Miracles and is most famous for Multltudes of peoples and Nations and therefore if thou proceedest orderly at this Authority thou oughtest to begin as the same holy Father affirmes But if thou contemnest so great Authority and only openest thy eares to the Enemies and Calumniators of so famous a Society which has been also calumniated by all the former heretiques as well as by these of this Age thou canst not be excused neither canst thou arrive vnto the possession of solid Truth Therefore if thou be wise follow the former advice of S. Augustin who was so wise so learned a Doctor and who had such great knowledge and experience in this affaire And if thou wouldest take a short and compendious way to come vnto the Truth Try only that one question of the Church according to the marks abovementioned whereby it is clearly designed in Scripture and thou wilt not only soone find that they cannot agree to thy New Inconstant Church but also thou wilt quickly see that they agree to the Catholique Church which has ever endured and against which Hels gates could never prevaile and so with the true Church thou wilt find aâ—l Truth because it is ever governed by the Spirit of Truth and is the Pillar and ground of Truth This is the right manner for thee to attayn vnto the Truth and to true Happâ—nesse To which that God Almighty may direct and bring thee shall be earnestly desired by thy welwisher F. W. S. A TABLE OF THE CHAPTERS Chap. I. THAT God by the Confusion of Error stirres vp many to seek the Truth p. 1. Ch. II. Of the Ministers Inconstancy and of the Alterations made by the late Presbyterian Reformation p. 8. Ch. III. Of the Ministers Dissensions Divisions p. 15. Ch. IV. Of the Presbyterians Rigour and Tyranny over Protestants p. 26. Ch. V. Of the Presbyterians contradicting their own Principles p. 34. Ch. VI. Of the Presbyterians Disobedience to the Civil Magistrate and of their pretext of Piety p. 46. Ch. VII Of Episcopacy condemned as Anti-Christian by the Presbyterians p. 53. Ch. VIII Of our Lords
Prayer neglected to be said by the Presbyterians p. 71. Ch. IX Of Glory to the Father c. or the Hymn of Glorification taken away by the Presbyterians p. 78. Ch. X. Of the Apostles Creed denyed to be Apostolical by the Presbyterians p. 89. Ch. XI of the Article of Christs Descent to Hell perverted by the Presbyterians p. 102. Ch. XII A Reflection vpon the last and an Entrance into the Triall of the first Supposed Reformation p. 115. Ch. XIII Of the possibility to keep the Divine Commandments with the assistance of Gods grace denyed by the Presbyterians their first Reformers p. 118. Ch. XIV A Consideration of the Presbyterians principall grounds against the possibility of keeping the Divine Commandments p. 136. Ch. XV. of Iustification by Faith only maintaind by the Presbyterians and their first Reformers as the principal article of their Religion p. 153. Ch. XVI Of the Nature of Iustification according to the Catholique doctrine p. 167. Ch. XVII Of the Presbyterians three principall Errours concerning Iustification p. 178. Ch. XVIII Of the Excellency of the Christian Sacraments and particularly how they conferre Grace which is denyed by the Presbyterians p. 194. Ch. XIX That Baptism taketh aâ—ay Original sin which is denyed by the Presbyterians p. 204. Ch. XX. That Bapâ—â—sm is necessary for the Salvation of Infants which is denyed by the Presbyterians p. 211. Ch. XXI Of the reall presence of Christs body in the holy Sacrament which is denyed by the Presbyterians p. 224. Ch. XXII Some Reflections vpon both the pretended Scottish Reformations p. 246. Ch. XXIII That the true Church must be perpetuall and must endure without interruption vnto the end of the world p. 251. Ch. XXIV That the Protestant Church hath not been perpetual yea was not at all before Luther and therefore is not the true Church p. 257. Ch. XXV That the Pâ—otâ—stant Church was not Visible before Luther neither in the Waldenses Albigenses Wiâ—lefists nor Hussits p. 265. Ch. XXVI That the Protestant Church hath not continued Visible in the Grecians Armenians nor Aethiopians p. 272. Ch. XXVII That the Protestant Church was not visible in the primitive Church or in the holy Fathers nor thereafter in the Roman Church p. 276. Ch. XXVIII That the Church of Christ ought to be alwayes Visible and therefore an invisible Church cannot be the true Church p 287. Ch. XXIX That albeit the true Church might be invisible yet the Protestants had no invisible Church before Luther p. 297. Ch. XXX That the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome she alone is the true Church p. 310. Ch. XXXI That the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome holds now and has still held the same doctrin which was taught first by Christ his Apostles 326. Ch. XXXII The true Church proved from the Scripture first by her Vnity p. 352. Ch. XXXIII The true Church proved by her Holynesse p. 361. Ch. XXXIV The true Church demonstrated by her Vniversality for which she is called Catholique p. 376. Ch. XXXV The true Church proved by her continued Succession and the lawfull Vocation of her Pastors for which she is called Apostolique p. 385. Ch. XXXVI The Conclusion p. 399 APPROBATIO EGO infra scriptus in Sacra Theologiae Facultate Parisiensi Magister Testor librum hunc quem diligenter Perlegi cui Titulus est Presbyteries Triall or the Occasion and Motives of Conversion to the Catholique Faith of a Person of quality in Scotland Authore F. W. S. nihil prorsus continere aut Catholicae Fidei aut Moribus Christianis absonum Imino Doctrinam Sanam verè Euangelicam in eo explicat confirmat eruditus eiusdem Author necnon oppositos non-nullos Errores maxime Nationem Scoticam heretica prauitate infestantes non minus clare quam solide refutat refellit Quod Chirographo meo significaui Parisijs 25. Augusti Anno 1656. HEN. HOLDEN APPROBATIO NOS infra scripti in Sacra Facultate Parisiensi Doctores Theologi Perlegimus diligenter Librum cuius inscriptio est Presbyteries Triall or the Occasion and Motives of Conversion to the Catholique Faith of a person of quality in Scotland Authore D. F. W. S. In quo non solum nihil occurrit Fidei Catholicae aut bonis moribus aduersum sed plurima reperimus docte erudite clare proposita quae ad Conuersionem cùm omnium tum praecipue istarum partium Hereticorum conducere possunt vt ad Catholicorum Confirmationem Quare nostro Iudicio dignissimus est qui typis committatur Datum Parisijs die 13. Nouembris Anno Domini 1656. ED. TIREL RI. NVGENT Ego idem sentio Fr. IOANNES PONCIVS Ordinis S. Francisci S. Theologiae Lector Iubilatus PRESBYTERIES TRIALL CHAP. I. That God by the confusion of Errour stirres vp many to seek the Truth SO great and admirable is the goodnesse of God that as S. Augustin hath observed he would not permit sin to be in the world Aug. in Enchirid c. 27. 100. vnlesse he did draw good from it And so infinit is his power ioyn'd with that goodnesse that from the worst and most wicked actions he can and doth extract the greatest goods Ioseph did acknowledge in himself the experience of this truth when he said to his brethren who had vnnaturally sold him you thought euil against me Genes 50. ver 20. but God hath turn'd it vnto good that he might exalt me as you see this day and preserue much people But this truth is more admirably seen in that most horrible crime of the Iewes of crucifying the Lord of glory out of which God did extract the greatest of all goods to wit the Exaltation of Christ and the Redemption of mankind Since then that Heresy is confessed by all Christians not only to be evill but one of the greatest evils as being the corruption of a most excellent good to witt the divine faith Gods goodnesse would never permitt it to arise and for a tyme to continue against the true faith the holy Church vnlesse he cowld and did make it tend to the good of both S. Paul toucheth this matter when he saith to the Corinthians 1. Cor. 11.19 Heresies must be that they which are approoved may be made manifest among you That they must be proceeds by the permission of God from the vickednesse and free choise of man and from the malice of the Devill whom our Saviour calls the Enemy Math. 13.26 who sowes tares in the field where he had sowen the good seed That Heresies are turn'd into good proceeds from the goodnesse and special providence of God who of evil worketh good as he doth here making heresies tend to the manifestation of those who are approved and constant in the faith But the providence and goodnesse of God is specially wonderfull in this matter that he doth not only draw good from Heresy but also he makes it against its owne nature intent to serve
Reformation This was not done by any formal act but as a Minister spoke by a desuetude of the principal Covenanters whose example the rest of the Ministers followed But there was one thing which hapned in this matter not vnworthy of remark and is very famous throughout the countrey For whilst the people of a Parish in Anguse were singing at the conclusion of a psalme Glory to the Father and to the Son c. as not knowing of the new alterations they were presently interrupted by their Minister who cry'd aloud No more Glory to the Father No more Glory c. which accident rendred the Presbyterians very ridiculous to the old Protestants Fourthly they proceeded further and strook at the roote of the Christian faith to witt the Apostles Creed denying it to be Apostolicall The contrairy whereof we was taught in our yonger yeares as was believed troughout the whole Christian world And after they had thus denyed the letter and authority of it they proceeded next to corrupt the sense of that Article He descended into hell as we shall see shortly Their inconstancy and changes may be instanced in diverse other points and practises as in their taking the Communion sitting and condemning kneeling as vnlawfull Their deuiding of the bread among themselues wherein they place no small purity of their religion and not taking it out of the Ministers hand as the custome was before Their condemning private Cōmunion and private Baptisme although administrated vpon extream necessity which I found to be pernicious errours especially in so far as concern's Baptisme Their condemning as superstitious the religious observation of Christmasse and of all other festival dayes c. All which are not only contrary to the doctrine of the most famous Protestant Churches abroad but also were contrary to the doctrine lawes practises of this Church at home By which inconstancy of the Ministers and the alterations made by thē the people was not only miserably tossed to and fro and carried about with violent winds of new doctrines but also they knew not what to believe and almost loos'd all belief since they saw that many points which they believ'd before being taught them by their own Pastours were now condemned by the same Pastours who are very like vnto these whom the Apostle S. Iude calls wandering starres Hauing thought seriously vpon these things I made this reflection with my self How can this Scottish Church which changeth like the Moone and is as vnstedfast as the wind be the true Church of Christ which must be firme and stedfast as a rocke How can these Ministers who drawes yea driwes the people into such varieties of faith Ephes 4.11.14 be the true Apostles of Christ seing they were established as S. Paul testifies to conserve the people into the Vnity of Faith They must be false Pastours who do tosse the people to and fro with the inconstant winds of their new doctrines since true Pastours were ordain'd by Christ to keep the people into the constant profession of the old doctrin which was once delivered and generally professed throughout the world and to preserve them from such tossings As the scripture sheweth that inconstancy and lightnesse belongs to false Teachers so I found that the holy Fathers did observe it by experience Iren. l. 1. c. 18. c. 5. S. Ireneus saith They delight to find out every day some new thing Let vs now see their inconstant doctrin c. But 5. Hiero. most pithily describs their humour The feet saith he of those who erre Hier in cap. 16. Ezech. are alway's wavering neither are the footsteps sure which are against the truth but they run here and there and are caried about with euery wind of new doctrin whilst they passe from one falshood into another falshood Therefore seeing the great inconstancy and changes of the Scottish Church I desired to find out a more constant and skifull Guide to rely vpon to lead me vnto the kingdome of heauen CHAP. III. Of the Ministers Dissensions and Divisions AS the Inconstancy of a Church in faith and doctrine gives iust occasion to many of doubting and stumbling at it's religion so Dissensions and Divisions which necessarly flow from such Inconstancy are no lesse but rather more sensible evils and gives greater and more vniuersal scandals For there are many who would take no notice of Inconstancy and yet are awakned by the confusion that ever attends Dissension and Division It 's evident by the light of reason that nothing becomes more the house of God then vnity and order and that confusion and dissension are only fitting for Babel or the house of the Devil and as Vnity tends to preservation so Dissension hastens to destruction Therefore our B. Saviour being to found his Church which was to be a heavenly house vpon earth of admirable order and to stand for ever did pray most earnestly for the Vnity of it S. Thn ch 17. by which he knew it would be both beautifyed and conserved Yea he sheweth that by the admirable Vnity of his Church the world showld know Ibid. ver 21.23 that he was sent from heaven and be made to believe in him Therefore these Churches which haue no Vnity but are torne by Dissensions and Divisions cannot be the true Church of Christ neither can they long laste As Vnity doth designe beautifie and conserve the true Church so Dissension points out deformes and ever at lenth destroies all false Churches Our Saviour saith Luke 11.17 Gal. 5.15 Every kingdome divided against it self shall be made desolate And S. Paul If yow bite and eate one an other take heede you be not consumed one of an other And that this division and destruction befalls to all false Churches Luther himself doth testifie A kingdome saith he divided in it self Luth. tom 3. wit in psal 5. fol. 166. cannot stand neither did Heretiques at any tyme perish by force or art but by their owne mutuall dissensions neither doth Christ our Lord fight against them by other armes then by sending among them the Spirit of giddinesse and dissension Now what miserable dissensions have happened these yeares by past into the Church of Scotland by which it hath been much deformed and a considerable part of it destroyed are knowen far and neare at home and abroad For these dissentious haue been for matter manner and the miserable effects that have flowed from them very remarkable The matter of them concern'd no lesse points then the Governement of the Church established by Christ the authority of the Apostles Creed the vse of the Sacraments of private Baptisme and Communion the vse of our Lords prayer and of Glory to the Father the keeping of holy dayes and the rest of the articles of Perth the Covenant it self the Heade spring of all Dissensions and the authority of the Civil Magistrate c. But the forme and manner of these dissensions hath overcome the matter for it hath been
so great and confus'd that it turned the eyes of all the world to looke vpon that strange and bloody Theater which was thereby erected in great Britaine and to take special notice of the diverse representations made vpon it All hath been done on each side that tongues and hands could do to defame and destroy one an other Three famous Kingdomes have been thereby miserably embroyl'd in shedding their owne blood and brought to horrible confusion And besids the alterations that have happened in the State these Dissensions haue made great desolation and destruction in the Church For the Presbyterians by their strong assaults have destroyed the late English Episcopal Church which was esteem'd so glorious and the Independents againe who sprung vp from the Presbyterians have by their strong oppositions to Presbytery Christ Mod. pag. 75. much weakned it and taken the power of stinging from that snake as the Christian Moderatour calls it Moreover the Presbyterians so soone as they had perfected their work of destroying the Church of the old Protestants fell presently into Dissensions among themselves which were attēded by Divisiōs whereby they are now cut into small pieces The first Dissension appeared when some of the most able Ministers among them opposed the vnexpected reformation that is the abolishing of the hymne of Glory to the Father and takeing away the vse of our Lords prayer and such other innovations for which opposition covered with other pretexts these Ministers were deposed Then in the last Nationall Assembly at S. Andrew's in the yeare 1651. there appear'd a new sect which of Presbyterian Protestants became Presbyterian Protestatours protesting against the Authority of that assembly This Protestation hath made great division amongst them so that the two factions will hardly sit together in Synods but keeps their conventions a part Diverse bitter invectiues have past since that time betwixt these two parties but the Civil power is so strong and provident that it keeps them from biting one another Now lately againe new divisions have risen For some of the chief Protestatours have abandonned altogether Presbyt'ry and Covenant as humane inventions although before they preached and cryed them vp as divine and cleare truths and have rendered themselves Independents And some of these after a little pause in Independency that they may attayne yet to a greater purity which they imagin doth consist in going further from Popery are become Anabaptists But among all these Changelings there are two Ministers in the North most famous because one of them was esteemed very learned and both of them were very zealous Covenanting Presbyterians who by word and work violently forced others to be like to themselves They commonly styl'd the Independents erronious Sectarians periur'd persons and Covenant-breakers Any word spokē against the Covenant or Presbytery was called by them horrible blasphemy And yet shortly after the Independents became Maisters they begun to extoll highly a new light that had appeared vnto them and on a suddaine they quitted both Covenant and Presbytery as humane inventions and became Independents This change so vnexpected was the cause of much admiration to many and of many observations but this which I heard a friend make before some company seem'd to me most remarkable Either said he these Ministers were ignorant before their chāge of the falshood which they now acknowledge in the Covenant and Presbytery or they were not ignorant but knew the falshood of thē If they where ignorant Then they were scarcely worthy to be Ministers much lesse to be esteemed of so great learning as one of them was reputed heretofore and both are now declared to be by their new preferments to the highest places of dignity and learning that can be had in a Colledge or an Vniversity Were these men Maisters in Israel and yet vere ignorant of a question that had been so long in agitation for which there had been so much trouble and bloodshed Did they not know so much as what Governement Christ had established in his Church If they were ignorant of the falshood which they now acknowledge to be in the Covenant and Presbytery Then in the time of their ignorance they could have no cleare and certaine knowledge of the truth of them How then could they be so vnreasonable as to preach and cry vp these shings as divin truths and cleare engyring lights Yea how could they be so vn-Christianly cruel as to persecute and force others making them swear these things to be divin truths whereof themselves had no certaine knowledge and which now they condemne as grosse falshoods and humane inventions Math. 15.14 Our Saviour saith If the blind lead the blind both shall fall into the ditch These men did not only blindly lead but they did also furiously drive both the seeing and the blind into the dirch If it be said that they were not ignorant but knew well enough the falshood of the Presbyterian Covenanting way which they followed and yeelded to the times for some wordly respects Then they fall into a worse inconveniency then before For by that means they would be guilty of most deepe and damnable hypocrisy since they had not only professed and practized such things as were directly against their owne conscience but also fotced many others to doe the same with oathes against their consciences Thus he For my part I do not know how to free these Ministers of one of these imputations And many thinks it probable that this new light would never have clear'd the eyes of their minds if the light of some temporall interest had not first illuminated the eyes of their bodies Shortly after this separation there arose scandalous dissensions betwixt an old Apostle of the Covenant and one of these new Independents who had agreed before like Simeon and Levi to do hurt For neare the space of a yeare their sermons preached in the same Church were nothing but continual contradictions railings and scoffings at one another What was said by the one in thefore noone was cōtrould out of the same pulpit by the other in the after-noone The Presbyterian did bend all his wits to prove that Presbytery was iure diuino And the new convert would neither have it to be good nor expedient iure humano Yea sometymes they would choose the same text and in the same Church before the same Auditory they would with contentious zeal deduce contradictory conclusions As out of this text Psal 93. v. 5. Holynesse becometh thy house O Lord the new Independent did amply inferre that none ought to be acknowledged members of the Church except those who were visible saints And from the same text the old Presbyterian did strive to shew that in the Church there was both chaffe and wheate the evill mixed with the good Some of the people tooke great scandall and others especially the old Episcopal Protestants made good sport of these dissensions And although by intercession of some friends an agreement was made
at last betwixt these two Ministers to make them abstaine from their publique and scandalous contradictions yet that concord did not laste long their inward fire did shortly burst forth For one day after Sermon the Independent inviting the people to his Communion which he was to give the next Sunday he was publickly interrupted by the Presbyterian who accused him of Apostasy from the Covenant and Presbytery and straitly charged the people to receive no Communion from him And with this confusion the meeting ended but the Ministers bauling continued a space thereafter The event did shew that the Presbyterian got the better of this conflict for the other did not appeare at the day appoynted to give the Communion as he had promised Yet the fulnesse of the Presbyterians victory was much diminished by reason the others place was supplyed by his Colleague who besids others had both the Presbyterians daughter and son-in-law for two of his Communicants I conceived that all these dissensions and divisions did fall forth by Divin providence to give people sufficient notice that a Church of so great confusion cannot be the true Church of Christ which ought to be a house of great order and Vnity and to shew that these Ministers who are the Rulers or rather M s-rulers of such a confus'd Church and who bragge so much of the Spirit are not led by the Spirit of God which is not contrary to himsef but by the Spirit of errour and giddinesse And although sometymes the Ministers to cover the vgly deformity and great scandals of all their dissensions would pretend that their differences were not in fundamentall points yet at other times their words did varie and their actions contradicted ever their words For they changed their tongue as the diversity of questions did trouble them or the interest of their cause did presse them When they were not vrged with their dissensions then they cry'd vp Presbytery as the only scepter of Christ the only governement of the Church iure divino the only means to vphold Christs Kingdome and to hold out the wild boare of Anti-Christianity It 's well knowen also how necessary and fundamentall a point the Covenant was esteem'd and how the Ministers put it very neare in ballance with the booke of life But their actions did shew more sensibly then their words that they esteem'd their dissensions to be in substantiall and fundamentall matters Or else they have been voyde not only of Christian charity but also of humane discretion For how could they haue embroyl'd all these kingdomes into so great confusion and bloodshed for such matters as themselves esteem'd only circumstantiall and not substantiall How could they with any discretion force these points of their now Reformation which they thought only ceremoniall and not substantiall so furiously and substantially vpon others But whither their differences were in fundamentals or not for the Matter It 's euident that they were substantiall and fundamentall for the manner to the substantiall destruction of one and other and almost to the fundamentall subversion of three kinhdomes Yea I found that the Presbyterians in Queen Elizabeth and King Iames time were more ingenuous and confessed freely that their differences from the English Church were in weighty and substantiall matters For thus they speake in M. Rogers M. Roger praefat Doct. Aug. num â—1 13. The controuersy betwixt them and vs is not as the Bishops and their favourers would deceive the world concerning Corner Capes Surplices c. but of more weighty matters as of the true Ministery the Governement of the Church And againe wee contend with the Formalists whither Iesus Christ ought to raigne In this cause we ought so to oppose Ever the Conformists that if we had as many lives as we have haires we ought rather to loose them all then to leave off our enterprise Vpon the other part the English Church or the old Protestants do acknowledge that they differ Substantially from the Presbyterians Covell iust d f. art 11. p. 67. This Doctour Covel plainly protesteth in all their names Least any man Saith he should thinke our contentions with Puritans were in smaller points and difference not great each side hath charged one the other with heresies if not infidelities yea euen with such as quite owerthrow the Principall foundation of our Christian faith And albeit they would not confesse their differences to be in fundamentalls yet it is evident they are so For what is more fundamentall to a Church then the Gouernement established by Christ what is more fundamentall then the foundation of faith to wit the Apostles Creed what more fundamentall then the Sacraments of the Church and the Lords prayer And in all these they have Tragicall differences besids in many other points no lesse substantiall although not so sensible as in Predestination and Reprobation Vniversall grace whether God absolutly decerns or only permits sin whether the Sacraments confers grace whither Christs body be really present in the Eucharist Whither Christ redeem'd the world by shedding his blood and corporall death or by suffering in his soule the paines of Hell Whither man after the fall hath free will and many more which may be seen collected in the Protestants Apology Apol. Protest tract 2. c. 3. sect 5 sub 2. 3. ad 10 in all which the old Protestants and the Presbyterians do teach ooposite doctrines and accuse others of grosse errours and sometymes of blasphemies Having then diligently considered these things I made this reflection with my self How can this Scottish Church which is like a Babel of confusion be the true Church of Christ which for order and Vnity ought to be like to the heauenly Ierusalem How can that Church which is the vnhappy roote of so much Dissension and Division be the Church of Christ which is no lesse the roote of Vnity then it is the pillar and ground of verity I see that ever one sect begets an other which not only divids but strives also like vipers brood to destroy the former Such confusion and Dissension becomes not the Church of Christ but are more proper for the Synagogue of Anti-Christ If the true Church may be knowen by her Vnity then the false Church is no lesse but more easily discerned by its Dissension Math. 7.16 Our Saviour saith of all false Prophets who appeares at first in sheeps raiment you shall know them by their fruits Aug. in psal 149. and S. Augustin sheweth that their fruits are dissensions We sought saith he among them the fruits of charity and we find the thornes of Dissension If therefore we observe our Saviours rule and iudge the Ministers by their fruites we will soone find them not to be true Prophets and their Church wherein their is such Dissension not to be the true Church of Christ but rather a Babel of confusion Therefore I will endeavour by Gods assistance to seek out a Church which hath not only constancy but
Superiours can never be obedient to their heavenly Soveraigne When the lawes of men are against the law of God then it 's better to obey God then man but when there is no such opposition then the law of God obligeth vs to obedience and subiection S. Paul doth earnestly exhort all Christians to this duty when he saith Rom. 13.1 seq Let every soule be subiect to higher Powers for there is no power but of God And those that are of God are ordained Therefore he that resisteth the power resisteth the ordinance of God And they that resist purchasse to themselves damnation S. Peter also maketh the like exhortation 1. Pet. 2.13 and 17. How the Presbyterians have caried themselves in the duty of Subiects to the Civil Magistrate and to their other Superiours is so generally knowen and so fresh in all mens memories that it needs not be described nor amplifyed The very naming of a Presbyterian is sufficient now to raise in mens minds the true notiō of one who will obstinatly deny obediēce to those to whom he oweth it and will rigorously exact obedience from those who owes him none Indeed if the Presbyterians owne words be taken they will be esteem'd not only Saints but also most loyall and obedient subiects for so often they have tearm'd themselves But their actions alwayes bewrayes their words Conf. Vvest ch 33. n. 4. They professe in their new Confession of faith that no difference of religion yea infidelity it self cannot take away the Civil Magistrats iust right nor his peoples obedience and duty to him And yet in their practise they would not admit the King till he swore and subscribed their Covenant and solemn League which many thought were very bitter potions that went much against his stomacke Many other instances may be brought of their inordinat cariage to their Superiours and others by which they rais'd both scandal and preiudice against their religion for people seeing them to be evil Subiects and worse Masters could not think them to be good Christians but I forbeare not being willing to rip vp too much their sores wishing rather that all their bypast miscariages may be forgot and buried by their calme cariage and dutifull obedience in time to come But apparantly some in present power have no great hopes of much voluntarie amendment in them vnlesse the rod of disciplin be still kept over their heads for an eminent English Officer in his printed letter above cited speaking of the Presbyterians Christ Mod. p. 74. saith If they be not closely look'd vnto they will set all on fire againe Then for their pretext of piety I observed great shew but no substance some floorishes but small fruits huge pretexts but no performances We had indeed much preaching praying fasting and such like exercises But what were their long preachings Nothing but continual praises of the Covenant the Solemn League and Presbytery which they cryed vp to the heavens and omitted as our Saviour observed of the Pharisees the weighty matters of Gods law Math. 23. v. 23. as Iudgement mercy and faith Yea their sermons were replenished with constant and most bitter railings against their Opposers and all those who did not favour their cause by which means they armed the people with fury to aduance the Covenant and Presbytery What were their fasts But humiliations as the Prophet Esay saith for strife debate Esay 58. v. 6. and to sinne with the fist of wikednesse God faith to the Iewes Is not this the fast that I have chosen to loose the bands of wickednesse to vndo the heavie burden and to let the oppressed go free that ye break every yoke But the fasts which the Presbyterians have choosed were contrary for their fasts were to tie more firmely their Covenant which hath proved a band of wickednesse to lay heavier burdens vpon the peoples Consciences to oppresse these who were free and to augment their yokes by inventing many new oaths to the oppression of many soules It was much observed that shortly after their solemne fasts we were alwayes sure of some great claps The fast was ordinarly a preparation to some violence or evil worke that was intended This made many vnderstand what Queen Marie Stuart mean't by that famous saying That she was as much affrayed of a Fast of the Ministers as of an Armie of Souldiours for experience taught her that these fasts were sure prognostikcs of ensuing tempests Their long prayers also which were often seasoned with Tautologies and somtimes with no good sense did not prove them to be Saints more thē the like did sanctify the Pharisees They bragged much of the Spirit but shew no fruits of the Spirit if these be the fruits which S. Paul reckons out to the Gallatians Gal. 5.22 The fruit of the Spirit saith he is Love ioy peace long-suffering gentlnesse goodnesse faith meeknesse c. They rather shew and perform'd the works of the flesh which the same Apostle doth there recount The works of the flesh are manifest Ibid. v. 19.20 which are fornication c. hatred variance emulation wrath strife seditions heresies Envyings murders c. If they lived in the Spirit then they should have walked in the Spirit as the same Apostle exhort's and so they would have been better beleeved In a word if piety consists in many externall sighes and grones in long prayer and graces in wringing of hands making of strange faces in turning of the eyes and in dolefull houlings and cryes which were commonly called the Sough If piety I say consists in such things we had abondance of it but if it require some greater perfections and better fruits Then we were very scarce of it Indeed if we would heare and believe these Presbyterian Ministers we were the happiest people of the world for they said we only of all Nations had the honour to be Covenanters with God we had the truth of the Gospell in greater purity then Geneva it self We had such a clear and engyring light that the like had not shin'd to any other nation since the time of the Apostles Yea one who is esteem'd a principal Apostle among them did not sticke to affirme in the pulpit amidst the manyfold Confusions troubles and miseries which had fallen vpon this Church Nation That the Angels and Saints of heaven if they could leave the sight of God would be glad to come down and see the admirable order and beautie of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland Neither is this to be much wonder'd at for it 's probable he spoke as he thought and as the proverbe is The Crow thinks ever her owne bird fairest And every foole esteem's much his owne Babel But many indifferent men thought that he was one of those of whom S. Paul speaks to the Philippians Philip. 3.18.19 Enemies of the Crosse of Christ and whose glory is in their Confusion These practises at least a great part of them were the
occasion of my first doubting that the Presbyterian Church could not be the true Church of Christ For by the Prebyterians changes and inconstancy in doctrin I saw evidently they were not govern'd by the Spirit of truth which Christ promised to his Church but by the Spirit of errour whic is alwaies various By their great Dissensions and Divisions I perceived they had no vnity as becometh the house of God but were a confus'd Chaos as many heads so many different opinions and that it was not truth nor authority that prevail'd in their meetings but the vsurpation of some few Ringleaders who owerawed the rest and made them succumb Yea I saw that inconstancy in doctrin flowes naturally from their principles and that their inconstant Church doth necessarly breed dissensions but hath no means to lay them nor take them away By their cruell severity over mens Conscienâ— and persons c. I saw they had little Christian Love and meeknesse which vertues Christ had recommended so earnestly to his true disciples by which he said the world should know them By their clear contradicting their owne principles I perceived they were not men led by reason but miscaried by passion and inconsiderat zeal which made them fall into inconsequentiall discourses not worthy of men of prudence and by which themselves shew the falshood of their owne principles By doing their duty so ill to man I saw evidenty they perform'd not well their duty to God by their violent disobedience to their Earthly Superiours I knew they could not be humbly obedient to their heavenly Soveraigne By their great pretext of pietie without any substance and by their bragg's of the Spirit without any fruites of the Spirit but rather with the works of the flesh I perceiv'd they were both corrupt in faith and manners And albeit some of the more simple had great zeal and no evill intentions yet others of a higher or be who moved the rest gave no small ground to make many suspect that they were not sincere Christians Although all that hath been already said which are not old nor hidden stories but such things as were done in our owne times and obvious to our senses did shew vnto me sufficiently the vnreasonablenesse of the new Presbyterian Reformation yet for my further satisfaction and least I might be deceived I resolved to try diligently and impartially the grounds of these new changes and alterations and to vse the Apostle S. Iohns counsel to prove the Spirits My deerest saith he believe not every Spirit S Iohn 1. Epist ch 4. v. 1. but prove the Spirits if they be of God for many false Prophets are gone out into the world Now the triall which I intended was to trie their doctrin by the pure word of God which these Reformers gave out to be their only ground When the Scripture was expresse and clear then I was resolved to be fully satisfyed but when the Scripture was not evident and the question diâ— not so much concern the scripture as the true sense of it then I intended to follow the interpretation sense of the holy and learned primitive Fathers who have been after the holy Apostles the Pillars and Propagators of Christianity and I resolved to prefer their constant testimonies according to the practice of the primitive Church to the inconstant guesses of new vpstarts according to the practice of their wavering Church who are as far inferiour to the holy Fathers in Holynesse and Learning as they come short of them in Antiquitie and Renowne And with this resolution I began to examin the question of Epicopacy which gave so great occasion to all the broiles and alterations that have ensued CHAP. VII Of Episcopacy condemned as Anti-Christian by the Presbyterians AS I knew the Church of Christ which is often called in the Scripture the kingdome of heaven to be the most excellent Society that ever was vpon earth to tend to a most Spiritual and heavenly end and to be directed by most holy and divine lawes So I iustly conceived that the goodnesse and wisdome of Christ had established a most excellent order and forme for the governement of that heavenly kingdome which he had founded vpon earth and that whosoever would strive to overturne that order and government would be guilty of Spiritual Treason and of Sacrilegious Presumption We have had for many yeares furious contentions in our Nation concerning the governement established by Christ in his Church The Bishops who had governed from our infancy were deposed at the beginning of the troubles and their office was declared to be contrary vnto the purity of our first Reformation to have no warrant in Gods word and to be in it self vnlawfull and Anti-Christian And in place of Episcopacy was brought in a parity of Ministers and the Presbyterian disciplin as the only governement established by Christ in his Church and only conform to his word c. But after due triall I found the Presbyterians in all these matters to come very short of their pretences To begin then with our Reformation I imagined a good space that Episcopal governement was not vsed till many yeares after the Reformation wherein I was deceived by two reasons 1. because it was generally affirmed that King Iames brought first in Bishops at the Assembly of Glasgow anno 1606. 2. Because the Puritanicall Ministers were accustomed to accuse the Church of Scotland for having fallen from her first love and they alwayes pretended that they were to reduce all things vnto the purity of their first Reformation But I found the contrary in their owne Records For M. Knox his Chronicle sheweth that at the beginning of his Reformation which happened in the yeare 1559. the Church newly planted was governed by Super-intendents who had authority over whole Shires could ordaine and depose Ministers had a larger stipend then others and kept their places all their lifetimes It expresseth also the manner of their election and the names of those who were first chosen with the bounds of their power and iurisdiction as may be seen in the said Chronicle pag. 253. 284. and 325. of the London impression And what is this but Episcopal power vnder an other name This governement remain'd vnquestioned the space of 16. yeares till M. Andrew Melvil a man of a firie and Presbyterian Spirit comming from Geneva in the yeaere 1575. began to make factions and by all means laboured to introduce the holy Geneva disciplin which he cry'd vp to the heavens and as far abased the Episcopal function as a meere Anti-Christian corruption The whole matter is largely described Spots woord hist lib 5. p. 275. in the late Bishop of S. Andrewes history where he sheweth that the confusion troubles and tyranny which the Presbyterian governement brought into the Church and the Seditions it raised in the State were so great that K. Iames who had often that sentence in his mouth No Bishop No King was forced to reduce things vnto the
Tim 3.13 what the first Reformers who could not on a suddaine deny all truths left vntouched your second Presbyterian Reformers haue abolished as they haue done here the hymne of Glory which was said in praise of the holy Trinity and for which you haue got the noble exchange of cōtinual praises of the Covenant Presbytery But as the great Councel of Nice did add vnto the ancient hymne of Glory to the Father c. that clause As it was in the beginning c. For confusion of the Arian heresy So also it hath by the same addition prophetically foretold the continuance of it for ever to the confusion of this new sect called Presbytery which is most consonant to that of S. Paul To God be glory in the Church and in Christ Iesus to all generations world without end Amen Ephes 3.21 That Church which hath triumphed over the Arians who corrupted this glorious hymne will also triumph over the Presbyterians who have abolished it Yea this hymne shall not only continue to the worlds end in the Church Militant but it shall be also the exercise of the Church Triumphant which shall never cease for all eternity to sing praise glory vnto the most holy Trinity Thus ended my Catholique friend whose words I found to be more waighty a good space after then they appear'd to me at the time when he spoke them Moreover I remember he desired me to consider that these innovations against our Lords prayer and the hymne of Glory were such blacke actions that the prime Presbyterians who introduced them were ashamed to make acts to forbid them as they had done for abolishing of Episcopacy and some other points but only brought them in by a desuetude as they speake and so wore them out of vse Which sheweth said he that they would gladly haue some things done covertly which they are asham'd to avow publickly CHAP. X. Of the Apostles Creed denyed to be Apostolical by the Presbyterians THERE was hardly any thing that the Presbyterians did which made me stumble so much as their Innovation concerning the authority of the Apostles Creed They were not content with their Reformation or rather abrogation of the Apostolique governement vnlesse they also did deny the Creed to be made by the Apostles and so weare it out of vse as they had done our Lords prayer At the end of of their new Catechisme they speake thus of the Creed Shore Cat. Vvest in fine Albeit the substance of the doctrine comprised in the Abridgement commonly called the Apostles Creed be fully set forth in each of the Catechismes so as there is no necessity of inserting the Creed it self yet it is here annexed not as though it were composed by the Apostles c. In which words they reach covertly two things 1. That the Creed it self is not necessary if we have the substance of it as it is explain'd in the new Presbyterian Catechisme 2. that it needs not be esteemed to be composed by the Apostles But their practise did shew more evidently their meaning For they did not only declare it not to be Apostolical and therefore to be only a humane collection but also they did no more say it neither did they require it to be said any more of others as the custome was formerly at Baptismes And by these means they put it out both of estimation and vse This innovation gave great scandal to many who thought iustly they could thereafter be sure of nothing since their Creed was called in question This was vniversally esteem'd before the Covenant began the badge or mark of a Christian and the principal foundation of the Christian religion The authority of it was held so sacred that it was an ordinary proverbe in mens mouth 's when they would give great assurance of performing any thing they had promised that before they failed They would as soone deny their Creed As it was called the Apostles Creed so it was taught for such so it was believed and esteemed to be It was publickly said in the Church by parents at the Baptisme of their Children and it was required to be said by the people when they were Catechized But all these things were altered and overturned by the Presbyterians The authority and esteem of the Creed was dash't by their denying it to be Apostolicall and the custome of saying it both publikly privatly was taken away so that it was soone worne out both of vse and request If they did this so easily with our Lords prayer which is contain'd in Scripture how much more easily would they do it with the Creed which is not in Scripture and which they pretend to be a meer humane collection And so in a short time they would get it to be altogether slighted as a humane invention and banished out of the memories of men Wherefore being desirous to penetrat this matter more inwardly I found after some diligence that the same grounds which can be brought for the Apostolique authority of the Scriptures are also brought and that in an eminent degree for the like authority of the Creed And therefore if we receive the one we cannot reiect the other I shall briefly collect what I found or hath been shewed vnto me for the Apostolique authority great excellency frequent laudable vse of this diuine Symbol Baron tom 1. Annal. an 44. n. 15. seq Cardinal Baronius in the 1. tome of his Annals doth shew by the testimony of the holy ancient Fathers that the Creed was composed by the holy Apostles a little before they were to part and goe into several Countries to preach the Gospel vnto the Gentils to the end there might be a certaine short clear rule of faith in which they all agreed wherein they were to instruct all persons and by which as by a certaine badge all Christians might he knowen For this cause it was not committed to writing but was delivered by lively voice and imprinted in the hearts of Christians by the faithfull diligence of the Apostles This S. Hierom Hier. epist 61. and S. Augustin do testify The first saith The Symbol of our faith hope which was delivered by the Apostles is not written in paper or inke but in the fleshly tables of the heart The other affirmeth Aug. ser 119. de temp Idem ser 69. de expos Symb. that the Creed was not written that it might be retain'd in the hearts of the faithfull And againe he saith The holy Apostles did deliver a certaine rule of faith which being comprehended in tuelve articles according to the number of the Apostles they called a Symbol by which the faithfull may hold Catholique vnity and tread vnder feete heretical impiety To these two great Doctours Ambro. ser 38. epist 81. agrees also S. Ambrose who saith The holy faith is contain'd in the Symbol of the tuelve Apostles who as skiful Artificers meeting together haue made a key by common
counsel And againe Let vs believe saith he the Symbol of the Apostles which the Roman Church doth ever preserve and keep 's inviolate And if we will ascend higher S. Iren. lib. 1. c. 2. lib. 3. c. 4. S. Clement epist 1. ad frat Domini Basil de de Sp. S c. 27. S Ireneus Bishop of Lions and disciple of S. Polycarpus sheweth that diverse Nations believed without Scriptures by tradition which certainly was of the Apostles Creed S. Clement the disciple of S. Peter Coadiutor of S. Paul doth testify the same Diverse other Fathers may be seen cited in Cardinal Bellarmin tom 1. de verbo Dei non scripto lib. 4. cap. 4. S. Basil doth reckon the Apostles Creed as a principal Apostolique tradition And in a word I found that all Christian Nations and Ages have borne testimony of this truth Moreover I found that in the primitive times this Symbol was holden in so great reverence that in General Councels it vsed to be first recited Baron vbi su pra Aug. de Symb. and lay'd downe as the ground of the whole Ecclesiastique building as Baronius doth shew To this purpose S. Augustin calls it The foundation of the Catholique faith vpon which the edifice of the Church built by the hands of the Prophets and Apostles did rise ad Cat. lib. 3. c. 1. Leo ad Pul. Aug. ep 96. And S. Leo saith that this short and perfect Confession of the Catholique Symbol which is sealed by 12. sentences of the Apostles is so furnished with heavenly armour that by this sword alone all opinious of Heretiques may be cut of As I found such greet testimonies to prove the Apostolique authority of the creed so I did find that the holy Fathers did highly praise the excellency of it as of a worke worthy of such diuine Architects S. Augustin calls it Aug. ser 42. de trad Symb. The comprehension perfection of our faith It 's simple saith he short full That it's simplicity might serve the rudnesse it 's shortnesse the memory its fulnesse the instruction of the hearers Elswhere he calls it the Compend of the Scriptures lib. 1. ad Catech. Id. m ser in Vigil Pentecost And againe he saith This is a Symbol briefe in words but large in mysteries For whatsoever is prefigured in the Patriarchs whatsoever is declared in the Scriptures or foretold by the Prophets c. is contain'd and briefly confessed in it And in his Sermon above cited de Traditione Symboli speaking of the Creed he saith These are not humane words but heavenly mysteries of our Lord. But most notable and efficacious are the words of Rufinus to this purpose The Apostles Rufin in praef de expos Symb. saith he being to part from one an other to preach they lay'd downe this marke of their faith and agreement Not as the children of Noe being to part from each other rearing vp a tower of bricke and slime whose top should reach vnto the heauens but building the fortresses of faith of liuely stones and heavenly pearles which should stand stedfast against the face of the enemy which neither the winds should shake nor floodes subvert nor boysterous stormes or tempests move They therefore being to separate building the tower of Pride were deservedly punished with the Confusion of tongues that not one could vnderstand the speech of his neighbour but these who built the tower of Faith were endued with the skill and knowledge of all languages to the end that the one might be the marke of Sin and the other the monument of Faith Thus Ruffinus Lastly the same holy Fathers do shew the frequent laudable vse of the Apostles Creed in the primitive Church It was first taught and delivered vnto those who desired Baptisme and it was required to be publickly said by them immediatly before their baptisme This custome as Ruffinus sheweth was carefully observed in the Roman Church Ruffin ibid vt supra S. Augustin also doth witnesse how the God-fathers did say it in name of the Infants whom they presented to Baptisme and therefor he earnestly exhorts every Christian when he comes to the yeares of discretion to say frequently the Apostolique Creed which he professed by the mouths of those who presented him to Baptisme and call's it the Mirrour of a Christiā Render saith he your Symbol render it vnto the Lord Aug. homil 42. be not weary to rehearse it the repetition of it is good least forgetfulnesse creep on thee Do not say I said it yesternight I said it to day I say it every day I haue it well Remember thy faith behold thy self Let thy Creed be a Mirrour vnto thee there see thy self if thou believe all that thou confesses thy self to believe and reioyce dayly in thy faith Let it be thy riches the dayly Apparell of thy Soule Do you not cloath your self when you rise So by remembering thy Creed cloath thy Soule least peradventure forgetfulnesse make it naked S. Ambrose calls it the Seale of our heart which we ought dayly to review and the Watch-word of a Cristian Amb. lib. 3. de Virginib tom 4. which should be in readinesse in all dangers By all which irrefragable testimonies the sacred authority great excellency and frequent laudable vse both in publick and private of the Apostles Creed did appeare sufficiently vnto me So that I found for it the consent of peoples and Nations the testimonies of the holy Fathers the Martyrs Saints and Christians of all ages that is of the Vniuersal Church the piller ground of truth which are the greatest assurances that can be had vpon earth And therefore I rested fully satisfyed with them But I was much more confirmed in this resolution when I vnderstood by a serious conference with a friend that there was the same certainty for the Creed that there is for the Scriptures to witt the Tradition or testimony of the Church S. Augustin delivers clearly this truth concerning the Scriptures Aug. cont epist fund c. 5. I would not haue believed saith he the Euangel unlesse the authority of the Catholique Church had moved me c. and that authority being once weakned neither can I believe the Euangel This testimony authority of the Catholique Church was proved to me to be the most easy manifest and infallible ordinary way that can be had on earth to come vnto the certaine knowledge of what books are Scriptures yea it was clearly proved to be the only way so that if once this testimony be weakened there is nothing left but guessings wanderings after the manner of blind men as experience doth shew in the difference between the Lutheranists the Calvinists who agree in all their supposed wayes of knowing the Scripture and yet can never agree in the same Canon of the Scriptures But of this matter we shall haue occasion to speake more fitly hereafter in the question of the Church If then the
Scriptures cannot be certainly knowen but by the testimony authority of the Church and are to be believed for the samâ— as S. Augustin doth affirme the Creed also may be knowen and ought to be believed to be Apostolical for the same very reason since the same testimony authority are for both Yea the Tradition Testimony of the Church for the Apostles Creed hath in a certaine manner some preeminence above that which is for the Scripture For it is more ancieÌ„t more vniuersal more manifest More ancient because the holy Fathers and the whole Church do constantly affirme that the Symbol was composed by the Apostles before any part of the new Testament was written It was more vniversal because it was received every where at the very first plantation of Christianity whereas diverse parts of the Scripture being directed only to some particular Churches could not be communicated but after some space to the whole Church It was also more manifest because there were some bookes of the Scripture doubted of by some of the ancient Fathers till the Vniversal Church did determin the Canon of the Sciptures but there was never any ancient Christian who doubted of or denyed the Apostles Creed there was such a clear and Vniversal tradition for it And besides the Creed in it self is very clear as being a short rule of faith ordain'd for the capacity of the most simple according to which the Scriptures that are more obscure ought to be vnderstood Seing then the whole Church in the primitive times and in all ages hath professed that the Apostles made taught the Creed it remaines most certaine that the Apostles did teach it for greater certainty then this cannot be had If the Apostles taught and delivered it vnto the first Christians then they being so taught were obliged to receive it with the sâ—me reverence wherewith they did receive the Scriptures which were delivered or directed vnto them by the same Apostles And if the first ChristiaÌ„s were so obliged why not also their children their childreÌ„s children so downeward froÌ„ age to age vntill the end of the world shall haue the same obligation If this obligation held in the first age why not also in the second and in every succeeding age Or when should this obligation cease Or why more at one time then at an other since the same assurance remaines at all times Or why should it cease more for the Creed then for the Scripture since the same testimony is for both and if there be any preeminence in this matter the Creed hath it as has been shewed Wherefore as I was by these considerations fully satisfyed of the Apostolique authority laudable vse of the Creed in the primitive Church so I could in no wise approve the Presbyterians innovations against it but rather did much admire of their presumption For by their denying the Creed to be Apostolique I saw they denyed the clear rule and endeavoured to subvert the very foundation of the Christian faith By their taking away both the publick and private vse of it they would haue robbed Christians of the heavenly apparell and spiritual armour of their soules as the holy Fathers above call it And all this they do relying vpon no other grounds but their owne gesses which they oppose and would haue to be preferred to the constant testimony and irrefragable authority of the whole Christian world The Iewes brought at least Aug. in psal 63. v. 7. sleeping witnesses against the resurrection of Christ for which folly S. Augustin mocks theÌ„ and saith that they theÌ„selves were sleeping and failed in their search But the Presbyterians bring neither sleeping nor waking witnesses and yet they will blindly iudge in a matter done above 16. hundred yeares ago and boldly pronounce sentence against an ancient fundamental truth which had been received professed by the Christians of all ages But albeit the Presbyterians do reiect the authority testimony of the Church yet I saw if they followed their owne principles they might as easily discern the Creed to be Apostolique as they pretend they can know the Scriptures For the Maiesty of the style the harmony of the parts the purity of the doctrin and the like do concurre in the Creed in an eminent degree as we haue seen above out of the holy Fathers who do so highly praise it for its perfections as a worke Worthy of such heavenly Architects And the matter being considered in it self the Creed in all these qualities is equal if not Superiour by outward apparance vnto the Scriptures For in them there are many seeming contradictions hard to be explained but none in this Many things in Scripture not so full of Maiesty as about S. Pauls cloke c. 2. Tim. 4.13 but the creed is totally replenished with most sublime divine mysteries Therefore if the Presbyterians could by these marks discern the Scriptures they might as easily discern the Creed to haue been made by the Apostles Albeit I admired much how the Presbyterians could vpon so weake grounds deny the Apostles Creed against such invincible authorities yet I was much more stricken with admiration when I considered what they brought in place of it For in place of the Apostles Creed we got the Presbyterians Covenant As that was denyed to be Apostolical so this was cry'd vp to be Divine for it was called Gods Covenant the Confession of faith c. As parents were accustomed at the Baptisme of their children to say the Apostles Creed in which they promised to bring them vp so now they were made promise to breede them in the Covenant which was too long to haue by heart or to be repeated This was truly a rare exchange to deny the Creed to be Apostolique to cry vp the Covenant to be Divine To rob vs of a most ancient clear briefe positive Sacred Confession of faith made by the holy Apostles famous in all ages vniversally received troughout the whole world full of great mysteries divine expressions And to give vs in place of it a new long obscure negative Confession or rather Confossion of faith full of terrible oaths execrations combinations devised by some few discontented heads by cunning and force obtruded vpon this Nation much suspected at the beginning to be nothing but a meer pretence of religion as it was notoriously knowen to be a humane invention and as it 's now at lenth after all its disguises manifested for such vnto the world It 's good fame hath not lasted long neither at home nor abroad It got some footing in England by cunning and worldly interest but these soone failing it was quickly detected and reiected The Christlan Moderator saith to this purpose Christ Mod. p. 2. That the last Reformation setled with so solemn a Covenant and caried on with so furious a zeal is already by better lights discovered to be meerly humane therefore deservedly lay'd aside Therefore to
infidelis c. Who them except au Infidel will deny Christ to haue been in Hell Behold what in S. Augustius iudgment are all Presbyterians who do contradict the prophecy which he saith cannot be contradicted and who vnderstand it in a contrary sense which S. Peter did expound least any man should presume to vnderstand it otherwise Which is indeed to goe against the Scriptures both the old and new Testament the Prophets and Apostles the holy Fathers the whole Church and in a word as S. Augustin speaks to be Infidels S. Hierome expounding that place of S. Paul in the 4. to the Ephesians Hier. in cap. 4. ad Ephes And that he Christ ascended what is it but because he descended also first into the lower parts of the earth saith The inferiour parts of the earth are taken for Hell to which our Lord Saviour did descend Where it is also shewed for what end our Saviour did descend He saith S. Paul ascending on high did leade captivity captive and gaue gifts to men Vpon which the same S. Hierome saith Our Lord and Saviour descended into Hell that being Victorious he might lead with himself the Soules of those who were kep't there inclosed Whence it came to passe that after his resurrection many bodies of the iust were seen in the holy Citie The Apostle sheweth the same truth in the 2. chapter to the Collossians Coloss chap. 2. ver 15. where he saith And Christ spoyling the Principalities Powers hath ledde them confidently in open shew triumphing them in himself I passe by for brevities sake Pet. 1 Ep. c. 3. v. 19. some other passages as that of S. Peter how Christ in his Spirit did goe downe and preach'd vnto the Spirits in prison and the like which are vnderstood by some of the holy Fathers of Christs descēt to hell these already brought appeared to me to be most clear sufficient Moreover I found S. Aug. vnderstanding the words of Christ to the good theefe This day thou shalt be with me in Paradise far otherwise then the Presbyterians do For he saith Non ex his verbis c It is not to be thought by these words Aug. epist 57. ad Dardan that Paradise is in heaven for the man Christ Iesus was not to be in heaven to witt that day but in hell according to his Soule and in the grave according to his flesh And a little beneath he subioynes The Scripture clearly shewes that he was in Hell according to his Soule But as the same holy Father shewes out of the 87. Psalme He was so in hell that he was free among the dead and did there begin his triumph over all infernal powers principalities and freeing the Soules of the iust from their captivity did carrie them gloriously with himself vnto the heavens into which he did first enter and opened them vnto all true faithfull Christians For so it was fitting That he who is the head of the body the Church Colos 1. ver 18. the beginning the first borne of the dead as S. Paul speaks the first fruites of these who are asleep 1. Cor. 15.20 may in all things hold the Primacie I know these things are laughed at as if they were fables by the Presbyterians who founds their faith vpon their owne groundlesse fancies and will believe nothing which doth not suite to their humours albeit it be most clearly contain'd in the Scriptures so vnderstood by the holy Fathers and so believed by the Christian world But I intend God willing to prefer these solid grounds to Puritanical imaginations which are without yea and against Scriptures the holy Fathers and whole ancient Church and lastly against the clear words of the Creed As I saw the true and clear sense of this article so I found that the Ministers haue vsed many crooked windings turnings to obscure and deny the true sense of it For first they haue not stood to corrupt the letter of the Scripture 2. they followed a sense invented by Calvin which was not only false but by many esteem'd blasphemous 3. When for shame they had abandonned that sense the Presbyterians haue of late invented a new one not so impious but very ridiculous And lastly to compleate the work they haue denyed the whole Creed to be Apostolical which is the cleanliest way that hath been yet vsed For their corrupting of the words of Scripture Beza Calvins entire brother may cary the prize For in the Bibles of his translation he turnes these words 2. Acts 31. Thou wilt not leave my soule in Hell After this manner Thou wilt not leave my body in the grave And when this manifest corruption of Gods word was obiected to him by Protestants he answers in defence of his version against Sebastian Castalio Beza cont Sebast Cast ap Bellar. lib. 4. de anima Cha c. 12. saying No man can doubt but here is mean't of the body grave vnlesse one would be blind in the mid-day This must be a strange light or rather a strong illusion which the Presbyterians alone see But the reason which Beza gives there a little before for his changing Soule into body and hell into graves is very remarkable I did not this rashly saith he since we see that this place is chiefly wrested by the Papists for establishing their Limbe and the ancients also devised from it the descent of Christs soule into hell Our Presbyterians in Scotland were one degree inferiour to Beza for they did not corrupt two words as he did but only one as may be seen in the great bibles printed at Edinburgh by Andrew Hart where they reade thus the foresaid text Thow wilt not leave my Soule in the grave putting grave for hell which corruption was amended in the new Translations that was made by order of King Iames who said in the conference at Hampton-Court that he had never seen a true and sincere translation of the bible in English but of all these he had seen that of Geneva was the worst Having thus corrupted the text they did also invent corrupt senses of it Calvin the great Foundator of Presbytery vnderstands by Christs descent to hell that he suffered in his Soule the paines of a damned man and that doubting of his Salvation he vtteted words of desperation For thus he writes in his Institutions Diros in anima cruciatus Cal. lib. 2. instit cap. 16. sect 10. damnati ac perditihominis pertulit c. that is he suffered in his soule the horrible paines of a damned lost man And writing on the 27. chap. of S. Mathew ver 46. he saith that a word of desperation did fall from Christ And a little after Sowe see saith he Cal. in 27. Math. v. 46. that he was vexed on all sides that being overwhelmed with desperation he ceased from calling vpon God which was to renounce Salvation O most strange doctrine which I find to be condemned by many
as flat blasphemy And yet Calvin esteem's so much this blasphemous fancy that he makes it the price of our Redemption For thus he writes Nothing had been done Cal lib. 2 instit vt sup if Christ had onely dyed a Corporal death but it was also requisite that he should feele the severity of the wrath of God And when this was obiected as a blasphemy by F. Campian Whitaker did second sustaine it Vvitak lib. ◠cont Dureum sect 18. saying that Calvin wrote most truly that nothing had been done if Iesus Christ had onely suffered a corporal death Yea he calls this a doctrin most full of comfort These doctrines are so fals against the Scriptures which shew nothing more frequently and clearly then that we are redeemed by the blood and death of Christ and they are in themselues so absurd and blasphemous that we neede spend no more time in refutation of them for they are of the same kind with those of which S. Hierome speaks when he saith that to discover them is to vanquish them Yea some Ptotestants have written against them as Doctor Bilson B. of Winchester in his booke Bilson in Apol. Prot. tract 3. sect 3. num 40. which he intitles The full redemptein of mankind by the death and blood of Christ And in the defence of the article that Christ descended into hell c. But notwithstanding all the grosse absurdities of this sense invented by Calvin yet it was generally followed by the Presbyterians and by many other Protestants who denyed the local descent of Christs soule to hell For although it sounded very ill yet it behooved to be kep't by the Presbyterians for want of a better vntill a new one more commodious was found out which now lately hath been performed by the new Reformers of these times who see further and more clearly then M. Calvin who although he was famous in his owne generation and was reputed to be an Apostle sent extraordinarly by God to reforme the Church yet did not so much as know his Catechisme nor the true sense of the articles of his Creed but invented such a sense as some of his disciples haue abandonned it as false and others as blasphemous As Beza in his version of the Scripture turned Hell into Grave so he vnderstood this article of the Creed he descended into Hell that is He descended into the grave Which errour together with the former coruption invented by M. Calvin a learned Minister in Edinburgh did publickly refute in divers Sermons a little before the troubles for which he was much persecuted by the Puritans He shew that Bezas corruption made a grosse Tautology in the Apostles Creed or it made an explication more obscure then the thing it explained The Tautology would be very grosse to say Crucifyed dead and buryed he descended into the grave that would be twice buryed Or if you make descending into hell the explication of burial that is a rare Commentary to explicate a matter which is cleare and needs no Cōmentary by that which is more obscure and cannot yet be rightly vnderstood by Protestants as appeares by their dissensions The same Minister shew that both these vices were against the end of the Creed and the wisdome of the holy Apostles who made it short and plaine that it might serve the capacity of all men and therefore it was to be free of idle Tautologies and obscure Commentaries But at that time this Minister did not know that the Presbyterians were to deny the Creed to haue been composed by the Apostles by which his arguments are answered although by falling into grosser absurdities The third sense devised by the Presbyterians at Westminster is subiect to the like inconveniences that is both of Tautologies and obscure glosses For they say by that article He descended into Hell is vnderstood that he continued in the state of the dead and vnder the power of death till the third day For first it would be a Tautology to say dead and buryed and then repeate againe he remained dead or in the power of death that is sufficiently knowen by the words that follow to witt The third day he arose from the dead For he behoved to remaine dead so long as he was dead and he was dead till the third day that he arose from the dead So that the addition of he descended into hell vnderstood in the Ministers new coyned sense would not be onely superfluous but also ridiculous Then if they will make Christs descent to hell an explication of Christs remaining dead the Commentary would be more obscure then the text which is clear of it self How would the Presbyterians be pleased if one would say of Iohn Calvin or Knox or of their late Apostle M. Henderson that they are dead buryed descended into hell And if this man being accused before the Presbytery would bring in his owne defence the Ministers new Commentary that he meaned only by these words that they remained in the power state of death because they are not as yet risen from the dead I am morally perswaded what ever Commentary could be brought either their owne or any other the Presbyterians would be ill pleased with such a Text and would thinke it was sufficient to haue said that they were dead and buryed without this addition They descended into Hell But of all the expositions that ever I found on this article that of the late Protestant Bishop Vsher is the rarest which D. Vane speaking of the Ministers iuglings describes thus D. Vane Lost sheep pag. 243 1. Edit O what Serpentine wriglings and windings to escape the assaulters do they make O what perverse ridiculous and contradicting answers and evasions do some of them make In which they shew at once both much wit and much folly For fooles could not speake as they do and wise men would not In so much that B. Vsher Primat of Armagh a very learned man to avoid the Confession of Christs descent into Hell according to the article of the Creed in the plaine sense thereof doth so turne it and wind it that he makes the sense of the words He descended into hell to be He ascended into Heaven To such pitifull refuges doth the weaknesse of a bad cause drive them c. Thus he And so by this Bishops Commentary for descend we haue ascend and for Hell Heaven But all these senses being nowayes satisfactory the Presbyterians tooke the cleanliest easiest way to deny the Creed it self to be Apostolique that so men might not care much or take great notice of the sense when all authority is taken from the text That shift might in some manner serve their turne if this truth were not as expresly in the Scripture as it is in the Creed Now I would inquire at any man of conscience or ordinary discretion who will consider impartially these things what I should do in this case should I believe the Presbyterians who haue
no Scripture for them in this point but in expresse words against them should I give credit to those who to maintaine their errour did first manifestly corrupt the words of Scripture with false translations and thereafter did pervert the sense of them with blasphemous interpretations should I believe those who although they quitted their first sense of blasphemy did invent another full of Tautology not so impious but very ridiculous And who last of all to compleate the worke did deny their Creed Or should I believe the old and new Testament the Prophets foretelling and the holy Apostles expounding the holy Fathers so vnderstanding the whole primitive Church assisted by the Spirit of truth so believing and professing And last of all should I believe my Creed which the whole Christian world did receive as a most perfect plaine rule of faith composed by the holy Apostles for the capacity of all men I must professe that after such a Triall I could not put these authorityes in the ballance together much lesse could I prefer the Presbyterians inconstant new opinion to the ancient constant beliefe of the whole world vnlesse I would haue renounced both Reason Conscience CHAP. XII A Reflection on the last and an Entrance into the Triall of the first supposed Reformation HAVING by the Divine grace by the former considerations discovered as well the falshood of the forsaid Presbyterian Innovaons as the ancient truth of the Catholique doctrine I was advised and much encouraged to make the like triall of the principal points of our first Reformation as concerning the Commandements our iustification the nature effect of the SacrameÌ„ts For iâ—t was represented vnto me that there was no lesse pretext of pure Scripture and a like lowd cryes of a great engyring light for the last then was for the first Reformation And seing by the former triall I had discovered these last pretences to be false Why may not I haue some confidence to do the like with the first if I would vse the l ke diligence And if the last Reformers haue been mistaken and misled by passion why might not also their Predecessours over see themselves too Or what assurance can any man haue of their infallibility more then of the others The Alterations that haue been lately made by the Presbyterians do shew even in their Iudgment that their first Reformers were not infallibly assisted 2. I was put in mind that I had found lately some of the most eminent among them to be Corrupters or as S. Paul speakes Adulterers both of the letter and sense of the Scriptures and therefore they are not to be altogether trusted without trial In a word great promises and assurances were made to me that I would by this triall find out the falshood of the first as I had done of the last Reformation by that means I might attaine vnto the possession of solid truth whereon I might safely rely for the good of my soule As truth can endure iust trial and desires nothing more by which it is more manifested so falshood cannot abide triall but alwayes shuns it because thereby it's deceits are detected Catoch Rom. q. 12. Sa pientisfime Maiores nostri c. Lastly it was showen vnto me that the ancient Pastours of the Church did most wisely reduce the whole substance of the Christian doctrin which is of it self so large and plenteous into these 4. heads to witt the Apostles Creed the Sacraments the Divine Commandements and our Lords prayer for all things which belong either vnto the knowledge of God the creation and governement of the world or the Redemption of mankind the rewards of the good or the punishments of the wicked are contain'd in the Apostolique Creed The signes and instruments which God hath instituted for attaining grace are the holy Sacraments The divine Commandements shew what we ought to do and our Lords prayer doth containe all what we can wish or desire And therefore these are as it were the foure great Pillars wheron the whole fabricke of Christianity relyes Now it was told me how I had found by the former triall that this last pretended Reformation had overturned two of these Pillars to witt the Apostles Creed the Lords prayer besides the fundamental governement established by Christ in his Church If then I should find also that the first Reformation had overturned the other two Pillars to witt the Divine Commandements the holy Sacraments Then I might Conclude that the end and intent of these Reformations what ever was the intention of the Reformers hath been vnder the pretence of Reformation totall Deformation and the destruction of the Christian religion and that betwixt them they haue compleated that hydeous worke of Desolation For if the first refomation tooke away two as the next hath taken away other two Then they both together have subverted so far as they could the 4. great Pillars of Christianity and the last Presbyterian Reformation hath compleated what the first had begun and had not perfected I begun then the trial of our first Reformation with it's doctrin concerning the divine Commandements and specially of the impossibility to keepe them which was taught by our first and is yet maintain'd by our last Reformers For it was showen to me if the Commandements of God were possible to be keept as all wise and iust lawes are ordain'd for that end that they may be observed Then we by teaching they were impossible to be keep 't destroyed the very end for which the Commandements were made and so destroyed the Commadements themselues CHAP. XIII Of the possibility to keepe the Divine Commandements with the assistance of Gods grace denyed by the Presbyterians and their first Reformers I had for some space a preiudicate opinion in this matter against the Catholique doctrin which affirmed as the Ministers taught that it was possible for any man to keep all the divine Commandements yea and to do more then God had commanded I conceived that to be false For since no man to my knowlege or their owne confession had kep't them all or doth keep them I thought it not possible they could keep them For it would seeme if a thing were possible some one among so many thousands would put it in act Vpon the other part I was not well satisfyed with our owne doctrine which teacheth that it is altogether impossible to keep the Commandements of God by reason of a dangerous consequence which a Catholique made me see to follow thervpon to witt That so many thousands should be damned for not doing that which was vtterly impossible for them to do I wondered how that could stand with the goodnesse iustice of God For greater Tyranny iniustice cannot be imagined then to punish one with eternal misery and grievous paines for not doing that which was altogether impossible for him to do The light of Nature would not permit me to impute such cruelty to God whose goodnesse
confirmed in this resolution when I vnderslood how Luther Calvin hauing no Scripture for them but against them haue grosly abused it to maintaine their errour For Luther the first Apostle in this last age of this new doctrine did two notable iniuries to the word of God For Seeing that this prime article of his faith was not expresly contain'd in the Scripture by an vnparallel'd presumption he added the word sola or Alone to the Scripture in his German translation of the Bible And whereas S. Paul saith we account a man iustifyed by faith without the workes of the law he makes him say by faith alone And when this high temerity of adding to the word of God was obiected to him Luth. tom 5. Germ. fol. 141. dâ—m he defended it with most insolent words saying that a Papist and an asse was the same thing and that the word sola should remaine in his Bible although all the Papists in the world shoud go mad and be transformed to in Asses The second iniury that he did to the Scripture was not by Addition but by Diminution wherin he was much more liberal then in the first for he added only one word but he took away many hundreds Because finding that the words above cited of S. Iames epistle were clearly expresly against his doctrin he expunged the whole epistle out of the Canon of the holy Scriptures Luth in praef in novu n Test Luth in cap. 22. Genes calling it an epistle of straw vnworthy the Spirit of an Apostle Yea he arrived to that impudency that he said the Authour of that epistle delirat that is dotes or raves By these two practises I was moved to think that Luther could not be the second Elias the Restorer of purity true religioÌ„ who would not only reform the Church but also the Scriptures yea in such a manner as he hath incurred not one but both the curses threatned by S. Iohn for adding to and pareing from the Scriptures And by this I perceived also what little esteem they make of the Scripture when it makes against their errours Calvin went more subtilly to work for although he followed Luthers doctrin of Iustification yet he neither added the word Sola to the letter of the Scripture neither did he deny S. Iames epistle to be Canonical But what Luther added to the letter Calvin added to the sense and what Luther denyed the other corrupted For Calvin would have Iustification by faith only to be as firmly believed as if the word only were there in Scripture which indeed is all one as if he had added with Luther that word to the Scripture Then the words of S. Iames which are clearly opposite to his errour and for which Luther did reiect the whole epistle he doth so corrupt with new senses which Luthers more grosse head could not invent that they passe many mens senses vnderstandings too and are against the words of Scripture clearly against the sense of the holy Fathers For he saith faith alone doth iustify but not alone Some others of his Schollers explaine it thus fides sola iustificat sed non solitaria Others say faith doth iustify and not works but yet faith not without works or a man is iustifyed with works but not by works and works are the means but not the causes of Iustification But all these inventions are directly contrary to the words of S. Iames. For he saith man is iustifyed by works not by faith only He doth not say man is iustifyed with works but by works he doth not say he is iustifyed by faith only but not by faith only And after the same manner and expression that he ascribeth our iustification to faith he ascribs it also vnto works He neither speaks of causes nor means these are the Ministers words and not the word of God which is not cleared but rendred more obscure by them It was made appear to me that the question at first between the Catholiques Luther was whether good works were in any respect necessary to our iustification and not whether they were required as causes or conditions Luther said they were in no wise necessary or else none could be iustifyed since the best works of the greatest Saints are mortal sins And in this he spake consequentially to his principles But Calvin finding that the Catholiques by innumerable Scriptures and particularly by that place of S. Iames proved the necessity of good works vnto Iustification he invented a distinction not to cleare but to confound the matter that good works were necessary but not as causes and faith was the only cause of Iustification And this he did also very vnreasonably against the principle which he holds common with Luther to witt that all our best actions are deadly sins For if good works be in any manner necessary how can any be iustifyed according to Calvin who maintains there can be no good works but that all are mortal sins For if a condition be necessary to any effect then if the condition be not fulfilled the effect cannot be produced As approximation of wood vnto the fire is ordinarly called the condition without which the wood could not take fire Therefore as the wood if it were not put near the fire would not conceive fire so also if good works be a necessary condition vnto iustification as Calvin pretends no man can be iustifyed since according to him there can be no good works Therefore Calvin speaks very inconsequentially if not also falsly Moreover it was showen me that the Lutherans were so highly offended with these new glosses of Calvin his Schollers that they call them the doctrins of the new Papists more pernicious then these of the old and Illyricus Illyr in praef ep ad Rom. a famous Lutheran doth not stand to call these Calvinists Seducers who by diuerse waye saith he would elude the propositioÌ„ of S. Paul c. For this cause the Lutherans deny all necessity of good works vnto Salvation either as means or causes For this they professed at the conference of Altenberg Coll. Al ten col 4 f. 75. We conclude say they with that worthy saying of Luther If works be necessary vnto Salvation then none can be saved without works and then we would not be saved by faith only So I found at length that this prime article of our religion to witt that man is iustifyed by faith only after so many great brags is not in Scripture but against Scripture as the Lutherans vnderstand it and as Calvin takes it it s not only against Scripture but also against his own principle who makes the whole matter to end in Philosophical termes for the most part neither vnderstood by speakers nor hearers Of which matter I had not long ago a notable experience For being in a Gentlemans house in the countrey where there chanced to be a Minister of esteem'd learning two Roman Catholiques and diverse Protestants as the
that themselves do acknowledge in end the necessity of good works But to know how they are necessary either as causes or conditions is not a necessary curiosity wherof few are capable and without which many have gone to heaven And so now I proceed to the Trial of our doctrin concerning the Sacraments CHAP. XVIII Of the Excellency of the Christian Sacraments and particularly how they conferre Grace which is denyed by the Presbyterians AS I knew the Christian religion to be the most excellent of all true religions that ever have been whether we consider that which was vnder the law of nature or the other which was vnder the law of Moyses so I iustly conceived that it was most agreeable to Gods goodnesse and wisdome to adorne and enrich it with most excellent Sacraments For since no religion whether true or false can be without some sensible signes Aug. lib. 19. cont Faust cap. 22. as S. Augustin hath observed the Christian religion which is not only the true but also the most perfect religion to which the former two served as preparations must also have the most perfect and efficacious Sacraments And so I found the same S. Augustin extolling the perfection of the Christian Sacraments above these of the ancient law Aug. lib. 3. de doct Christ c. 19. Aug. cont Faust lib. 19. c. 13. Our Lord saith he and the Apostolical disciplin haue delivered some few Sacraments for many and these most easy to be done most magnificent for signification and most pure to be observed And elswhere he saith the Sacramenss are changed they are made easier fewer holsommer happier Now the principal perfection of the Christian Sacraments was generally believed to consist in this that God by them did conferre grace vnto our soules Which truth is so engrafted in the hearts of Christians that I knew diverse Protestants could not be at first perswaded that Luther or Calvin or that their Church taught the contrary and. when that was sufficiently manifested to them they were much scandalized at it In so much that some of them did say If the Sacraments do not confer grace and baptisme doth not take away original sin for what vse serve the Sacraments for what end were they ordain'd Wherefore being thus stirred vp to try this question I found in end that the Catholique doctrine which taught that the Sacraments of the new Law do confer grace is conformable to the divine Scriptures that it was expresly believed by the holy Fathers and doth duly exalt the perfection of the Christian Sacraments Whereas the Presbyterians doctrin which denyeth the Sacraments to confer grace is not only false against the Scriptures but was also condemned as an ancient heresy by the holy Fathers that it vndervalues the vertue of the Christian Sacraments and is so absurd that diverse famous Protestants haue abandoned that opinion albeit it was taught both by Luther Calvin and in this point do agree with the Catholiques All which things for brevities sake I will only touch Of Baptisme S. Iohn said to the Iewes 3.11 Math. I indeed baptize yow in water but he who comes after me shall baptize you in the holy Ghost fire Ananias said to S. Paul be baptized wash away thy sins Acts 22.16 Titus 3.5 Eph s 5.26 S. Paul calleth also Baptisme the Lauer of regeneration by which we are saved The same Apostle saith that Christ hath sanctifyed his Church by the lauer of water in the word of life By which testimonies albeit we speak nothing of many others it appear'd sufficiently clear to me since we are said to have our sins washed away by baptisme to be sanctifyed to be born of new again that by it we receive also grace without which these things could not be verified and performed The like is also affirmed of the Eucharist of which our Saviour saith If any man eate of this bread Iohn 6.51.54 he shall live for ever And again He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath everlasting life Now this everlasting life is no otherwise had here but by receiving Grace which is the seed of Glory and of eternal life happinesse Therefore these two Sacraments which are all that the Presbyterians admit do confer grace by the vertue institution of Christ What was the belief of the holy Fathers and of the whole Church in this point it is so clear that Calvin himself and other chief Protestants do acknowledge it to be the same which is now believed by the Catholiques against their doctrin Cal. lib. 4. Instit cap. 14. sect 14. 26. For. Calvin confesseth that with great consent it was taught and believed for many ages That the Sacraments of the new Law do confer grace if they were not hindered by mortal sin which albeit he calleth a pernicious and pestilentious opinion and alleadgeth that it drawes men from God to rest in the sight of corporall things and not in God himself yet he confesseth also that it was taught by S. Augustin the holy Fathers whom he striveth to excuse by saying that in their immoderat praises of the Sacraments Cent. 2. c. 4. cent 3. c 4. Muscul in loc com p. 299. they vsed hyperbolical speeches The Lutheran Centurists do ascribe the same doctrin as an errour to the most ancient Fathers as to S. Clement Iustin Cyprian and others Musculus saith plainly that Augustin did rashly affirm that the Sacraments of the new law conferred grace These open confessions shall save our paines of citing the Fathers testimonies And that this doctrin of the Catholiques doth manifest the perfection of the Christian Sacraments it is so clear of it self that it needeth no illustration Vpon this consideratiō S. Augustin Aug. tract 80. in Ioan. admiring the wonderfull effects of the Sacraments cry'd out Vnde tanta virtus aquae vt corpus tangat cor abluat Whence comes saith he so great vertue to the water that it toucheth the body and cleanseth the soule Where he ascribes this wonderful effect to the goodnesse omnipotency of God which sheweth also that his speeches are not hyperbolicall as Calvin falsly pretends Thus much briefly to shew that I found the Catholique doctrin to be conforme to the Scriptures holy Fathers and to manifest the perfection of the Christian Sacraments And therfore Calvins opinion which is iust contrary must needs be against all these He himself confesseth that it is against the holy Fathers and consequently it cannot be conforme to the Scriptures whereon they founded their faith and not vpon humane imaginations That it taketh away a great perfection from the Sacraments denying them to conferre grace is so evident that it needs no proofe Calvin saw this so clearly that he pretended the Farhers vsed immoderate praises of the Sacraments and that this vertue which the Catholiques do ascribe to the Sacraments makes people to trust more in creatures them in God himself But as I found
sin so they belieue that it is not necessary for salvation that children dying without that Sacrament may be saved VpoÌ„ this dangerous doctrin followeth a most dangerous practise Fot they believing baptism not to be necessary suffer many children to die without it and they have also made a law abrogating all private baptism Our first Reformers shew their minde clearly The Scotiâ—h Confession c. of baptism Confess Vvestminst chap. 28. n. 5 Cal. in Antido to Concil ad sess 6. c. 5. lib. 4. instit c. 16. sect 24. 25. cont art Parisiens p. 307. F or Râ—yon de â—ortu progressu haeres lib. 8. c. 11. when they say in their first Confession That baptism isnoto of such necessity that the want of it can be hurtfull to the Salvation of children And they deny also the profitt of it when they subioyn that many have ben baptized and yet were never inwardly purged The same is almost repeated by our new Presbyterian Reformers in their late confession at Westminster where they say that grace and salvation are not so necessarly annexed vnto baptism that no person can be saved or regenerated without it or that all that are baptized are vndoubtedly regenerated These doctrines and practises are dâ—rived from Calvin the first Foundator of Presbytery who taught that the children of the faithfull are holy from their mothers womb are already sanctifyed and have remission of their sins and that they have need of baptism not as of a help necessary but as of seale ordain'd by God to seale in them the grace of adoption And if they die they may be saved without baptism And according to this doctrin he made a law in Geneva that the children to be baptized should expect sermon and he suffered a child to dye without baptisme because it was brought a little late to the Church as Florimond Reymond testifyeth Now I found the opposite doctrin to witt that baptism is necessary for the salvation of infants to be most firmly founded in Gods word to haue been strongly and zealously defended by the holy Fathers and the ancient Church and to be conforme to the general instinct of Christians Therefore the Presbyrian doctrin which is contrary must be against all those And besids I found it to be an auncient heresy and to be so dangerous and pernicious an errour that diverse famous Protestants have abandonned it All which points I shall briefly touch 1. Our Saviour saith clearly in the Scripture vnles a man be borne again of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God Iohn v. 5. Which place the holy Fathers and the ancient Church vnderstood of baptism Aug. lib. 1. de pecc mer. remiss c. 30. S. Augustin sheweth that this place was so expresse convincing that it confounded the Pelagians who denyed original sin and made them acknowledge the necessity of baptism although not for the remission of original sin which they denyed yet for the attayning of the kingdom of heaven But yet to maintain their errour they foolishly imagined that children might be saved without baptism although without it Vrb. Reg. 1. parte oper in Caetechismo minori fol. 104. 105. 107. they could not enter into heaven Vrbanus Regius a famous Protestant in Germany saith that the right beleeving Fathers and Christians vnderstood this place of baptism And to beleeve saith he that none either man or child can be saved without baptism both the Scripture and the authority of the auncient Church compelleth vs. For the Fathers we shall bring S. Augustin who writeth thus to S. Hierome Aug. epist. 20. ad Hier. Whosoever saith that such children shall have life in Christ who depart this life without participatien of the Sacrament of baptism that man questionlesse gainsayeth the preaching of the Apostles and condemneth the whole Church where such hast is made to runne with children because it is beleeved without doubt that otherwise they cannot at all be quickned in Christ And in another place he saith most earnestly Aug. lib. 3. de origine anâ—mae cap. Do not beleeve do not say do not tea h that children preveened by death before they receive baptism can attayn remission of their original sin if you desire to be a Catholique And that this was not only the belief of S. Augustin but also of the other holy Fathers as of S. Cyprian Nazianzen S. Hierom Câ—nt 3. c. 4. Cent. 4. c. 4 Aug. epist 90 92. S. Ambrose S. Hilarius c. the Centurists themselves do acknowledge yea the Carthaginian Milevitan Councels as S. Augustin testifieth professed the same and condemned their opinion who think that children can be saved without baptism And that the necessity of baptism is conforme to the generall instinct of Christians may appeare by the former testimony of S. Augustin where he sheweth that Christians make such haste and are so earnest to have their children baptised because they believe that otherwise they cannot be quickned in Christ Therefore the Presbyterian doctrin which denyeth the necessity of baptism gainsayeth the Scriptures Fathers and â—s against the common belief of Christians Moreover it was condemned Aug. lib de haeres c. 69. as an old heresy in the Pelagians For they denyed also that baptism was necessary for the remission of original sin There is indeed this difference between them the Presbyterians that they denying original sin thought it not necessary for the remission of it albeit they esteem'd it necessary for the attayning the kingdom of heaven But the Presbyterians graunting original sin believe that baptism is neither necessary for the remission of it nor for obtaining of heaven and so their errour in this point is greater then that of the Pelagians For they promise the kingdom of heaven to children dying without baptism which the Pelagians presumed not to do it being so clearly against the Scriptures That diverse famous Protestants have abandonned this errour and do hold that Salvation is not promised to the children of the faithfull dying without baptism Breirly sheweth in the Protestants Apology Prot Apol. trac 3. sect 4. n. 11. where he cites for this purpose the Confession of Auxburg Vrbanus Regius Hosmanus Bilson Bishop of Winchester and others King Iames also in the conference at Hampton-Court maintain'd that baptism was necessarie by the necessity of command albeit he did not think it necessarie by the necessitie of means All which considerations were more then sufficient motives to make me abandon the Presbyterian opinion and to embrace the Catholique belief concerning the necessity of haptism for the Salvation of infants But finding that the Presbyterians have principally two exceptions against the ancient Catholique doctrin I proposed them to a Catholique for my greater satisfaction First said I the Presbyterians do alleadge that the necessity of baptism is against the power of God by tying him to the ordinary means 2. They
c. and is turned vnto vaine opinions in which nothing is solid nothing stable that can satisfie the minde Therefore he striveth to satiat himself dayly with new opinions and idle inventions but all in vaine for these are nothing but husks which leave the bellie empty There is no remedie for him but to return with the prodigal child vnto his fathers house where he will be received with ioy and feasted with the bread of Angels But said the Catholique to make a general reflection vpon all that hath past vnder this Trial Do you not now clearly see how falsly these Reformers pretend alwayes the Scriptures to be for them when you have found the Scriptures so expresly against them in all these principal points of the Christian religion already examined And which is very considerable have you not seen these Scriptures to be so vnderstood by the holy Fathers in the pure and primitive times as they are now vnderstood by the Roman Catholiques Do y not now perceive how Heresy like a strumpet fardeth her self with the colours of the divin Scriptures by which fain'd and false beauty she allures and deceives many but so soone as she is brought near the fire of Triall how her fardings melt fall away and her own vglinesse appeares Among heretiques saith S. Augustin Aug. cont epist. fuÌ„d c. 1. Ioseph lib. 5 de bello Iudaico c. 5. there is nothing but the promise of truth a meer shew or pretext of it no performance Their doctrines are like the fruites of Sodom and Gomorrha which as Iosephus testifyeth have a specious shew and appear pleasant vnto the eye but so soone as they are touched fall into ashes So truly are all hereticall opinions they are given out for the fruites of pure Scriptures they appeare very specious and pleasant but so soone as they are tryed diligently according to the Scriptures and are touched as it were by the fingers of the holy Fathers they presently evanish and nothing remaines but the flammes of heretical dissentions like the smoak of Sodom Gomorrha as a testimonie of the divin iudgment vpon them Have you not now seen that these two pretended Scottish Reformations have between them compleated the hydious work of desolation and destroyed the 4 principal pillars of the Christian religion and that as the later hath taken away two to witt the Lords prayer and the Apostles Creed so the first hath taken away in effect the other two to witt the divin Commandments and the holy Sacraments and so the Presbyterians haye overturned what their Predecessors left vntouched In a word they may be briefly described thus They have a Creed from the Apostles which they do not beleeve they have a prayer from Christ which they do not say they have Commandments from God which they professe they will not keep and the two Sacraments of the law of grace which they had only left to themselves they have made altogether gracelesse almost vselesse And besids all this they have robbed the holy Trinity of Glory and the Church of the Apostolique governement together with all order decency to speak nothing of their other smaller pranks Therefore I am now confident that you have found what I promised at the beginning to witt that the first pretended Reformation was no better grounded then the last and that the end of both hath been total desolation and the destruction of the chief Pillars af the Christian religion whereas vpon the contrary you have seen the Catholique religion which you had heard so often calumniated with strong and shamelesse cries to be in all these principal points conforme to the Scriptures and holy Fathers and to the primitive Church Thus he As I was so clearly convinced in all these particulars that I behoved to renounce both knowledge conscience if I would deny them so I did ingenuosly confesse to him my satisfaction and withall I promised if I could find the like evidence for the Catholiques in all the other controuersies that I would by Gods grace render my self a Roman Catholique To which he answered that the triall of all the particular doctrines in controversie after the former manner was a long laborious md needlesse way and that God had appointâ—d more easie and shorter meanes to come vnto the knowledge of the truth or else what would become of those who are not capable to make such trials Therefore he would vndertake to prove shortly by a clear vndeniable Principle and granted by all Protestants the Protestant Religion their whole Church to be false and by the same principle to shew clearly the present Catholique Church in Communion with the sea of Rome to be the ancient Catholique Church established by Christ his Apostles and to have continued still in their doctrin without any variation And so with some confidence arising from my former experience I prepared my self to receive this new instruction CHAP. XXIII That the true Church of Christ must be perpetuall and must endure without interruption vnto the end of the world THE principle said my Catholique friend whereby I will demonstrate the Protestant Church not to be the true Church of Christ shall be so evident and convincent that as nothing is more expresly in Scriptures so nothing is more freely granted by Luther Calvin generally by all learned Protestants And this principle is the perpetuity of Christs Church or that Christ must have a Church which hath endured from his ascension vntill this time shall endure from this vntill the end of the world Before I proceed further I will first manifest vnto you the strength of this truth by the Scriptures Fathers by Protestants and their reasons The passages of Scripture for this truth are many but I shall content my selfe with some few which may serve for your satisfaction The first do concern the eternal kingdome of Christ by which all men vnderstand his Church Of this the prophet Daniel saith In the dayes of these Kings Daniel 2.44 the God of heaven shall set vp a kingdome which shall never be destroyed c. It shall break in pieces all these kingdomes and it shall stand for ever The Angel Gabriel speaking of the same kingdom of Christ to the blessed Virgin said And of his kingdome there shall be no end Luke 1.33 Calvin proveth by these places and others which speak of the kingdome of Christ the perpetuity of of his Church against Servetus So doth also Beza and the Confession of Holland If then the kingdome of Christ be perpetual there must alwaies be some to acknowledge him to be their King The second passages of Scripture contayne Christs promises to his Church Math. 16.18 and the Governours of it Vpon this rock saith he will I build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevaile against it By this place S. Augustin proveth both the perpetuity Auge lib. 1. de Symb. ad Catech c. 8 and inuincibility of
the Church The Catholique Church saith he fighting against all heresies may be opposed but cannot be overcome all heresies have gone out of her as vnprofitable twigges cut off from the vine but she remaines in her roote in her vine in her charitie the gates of hell cannot pervaile against her Christ promised also his perpetu l assistance vnto the Pastors of his Church Math. 28. ver vlt. Behold said he I am with you alway even vnto the consummation of the world Which place both S. Augustin and S. Hierome do bring to prove the same truth The first introduceth the Church speaking thus to Christ Shew vnto me the fewnesse of my dayes ug conc 2. in psal 101. how long shall I be in this world Shew this vnto me for those who say she was but now is not the Church hath made Apostasy and perished from all nations And he declared vnto me Behold I am with you alway even vnto consummation of the world S. Hierome saith that Christ Hier. in cap. vlt. Matth. by these words shews there should be alwayes some faithfull people in this world that he should never separate himself from them I passe by many more places of Scripture which is so evident for the perpetuity of Christs Church that S. Augustin said against the Donatists who denyed it Avg. pref in 2. expos psa 21. and affirmed the Church had perished They mock Christ in a matter which is evident in a matter where no man can say I did not understand This truth is not only evident in Scriptures and Fathers but it is also acknowledged by all Protestants whose minds are best knowne by their Confessions of faith which ought to be of more authority amongst them then the testimonies of their private writers Conf. Augu. c. 7. Saxoni ca c. 12. Helvetic c. 17 The confessions of Ausburg of Saxonie of the Suizers do not only affirm that the Church must still continue vnto the end of the world but they prove it by the expresse Scriptures above cited The Authors of our first Scottish Confession professe that they beleeve as firmely the perpetuity of the Church as they beleeve the mysterie of the Trinity 1. Scottish Conf. article 16. Confes Vvest ch 25. n. 5. for thus they speak As we beleeve in God the Father Son and holy Ghost so we do most earnestly beleeve that from the beginning there hath been now is and to the end of the world shall be a Church The new Confession at Westminster professeth the same truth And so do also Luther Calvin as we shall see presently Now the contrarie doctrin to witt that the Church of Christ did perish or can perish is censured both by Catholiques Protestants as a most damnable errour iniurious to God against the clear Scriptures S. Aug. testimonie shall suffice for the First For against the Donatists who defended the like error and said But that Church which was of all Nations is no more Aug. in ps 101. she hath perished he subioyneth this censure This they say who are not in her O impudent speech And after ward This voice so damnable so detestable so full of presumption falshood which is sustained with no truth enlightned with no wisdome seasoned with no salt vaine rash heady pernitious the holy Ghost foresaw By the great severity of this censure may be knowne the abominable falshood of that opinion Neither is the iudgment of Caluin against that error lesse severe For writing against Servetus who defended it and who was burnt by his order at Geneva he saith I did not touch that long banishment of the Church from the earth Cal. tract Theolin refvtatione errorum Serveti p. 762. which he faineth wherein he plainly accuseth God of a lie And afterward he maketh this profession But we indeed confesse that the Church was put in glorious places otherwise God would have lied who promised that he should alwayes have some people so long as the Sun and Moone shall shine in the firmament We know what the prophets do every where teftifie of the eternall kingdome of Christ The reason of these great censures is very evident For 1. there is nothing so often and so clearly promised in the Scriptures as the perpetuitie of the Church of Christ If then notwithstanding these clear promises the Church might perish then all the other mysteries reveal'd in Scripture might be denyed then it would follow that God were a liar as Calvin reasoneth against Servetus 2. If the Church could perish then that article of the Apostles Creed I believe the holy Catholique Church would be false and therefore none could believe truely that to be which had no being This reason is brought by Luther 3. It would follow that men could not be saved Luth. tom 7. de votis verae Ecclesiae f. 148. Conf. Vvest cap. 25. n. 2. for out of the true Church there is no ordinarie possibility of Salvation as our new Confession of faith acknowledgeth Now what could be more against the goodnesse mercy of God what more iniurious to the merits of Christs passion then to take away the means of Salvation which would be clearly taken away if the Church did perish By all which may be seen that the perpetuity of Christs Church is not only clearly contayn'd in the Scriptures holy Fathers but also that it 's granted by Protestants proved by their reasons and that the contrarie opinion to witt that the Church can perish is censured both by Catholiques Protestants as a most pernicious damnable Error Thus spake the Catholique I was so satisfied of the truth of this principle that I desired no more for the evidence of it and I professed if by it the Protestant Church were proved not to be the true Church that it could not be denyed but Protestants were convinced not only by a clear truth but also by their own principles But to perform this the better the same Catholique shew me that it was necessarie to lay down an other principle to witt the definition or description of a Protestant Church And although said he this be difficult by reason that Protestants are very inconstant and changeable in their doctrin which is the essence of a Church so that the definition which will serve them this yeare may perhaps not fit them the next for which cause some have affirmed that it 's as hard to find out a definition which will alwayes agree to them as to paint Proteus or make a fit coate for the Moone yet notwithstanding these difficulties a general notion may be had of them and the best appear's to be that which is taken from their Confessions of faith So that the Protestant Church of Scotland may be described to be a Society of people beleeving the whole articles of the Scottish Confession And other Protestāt Churches as of Englād France c. may be described after the same manner by
known to have been in the world before Luther although they have left many ruinous Monuments behind them since Luther seing I say after all this diligence we cannot find out this visible Protestant Church and yet these Protestants affirm that it was visible we most iustly require them to help tell vs where their Church was in what kingdome province or citie and if they cannot do this we may iustly conclude that their allegation is a groundlesse imagination invented to deceive men against their sense vnderstanding in a matter of greatest importance But wc do not as yet make any such conclusion we only require them to shew what we cannot see by our selves to point vnto vs where their Church was that we may fix our ey 's towards that place and for satisfaction we are answered that the demand is vniust and we impertinent if we do not beleeve vpon their bare word that their Church was visible albeit neither we can find nor they can tell where it was But all prudent and indifferent men would think it much more iniustice impertinencie both in them to require and in vs to beleeve that their Church was visible before it can be shewed where it was then in vs to require where it was before we beleeve that it was Who giveth credit quickly Ecclesi 19.4 saith the wise man is light of heart Any heretiques albeit never so grosse may pretend the same vpon as good ground and yet no reasonable man can think it vnreasonable to demand where their Church was before we beleeve them Moreover this is not only a iust and pertinent but also a most necessarie and important question For thereby all false Churches are clearly sensibly discovered even to the meanest capacities Because if the Church of Christ must be perpetual as hath been evidently demonstrated and if it must be also perpetually visible as these Protestants of whom we now speak do grant then it followeth when ever a new Church or Congregation ariseth with a new Confession of faith which was not see nor known before that that Church is not the true Church of Christ which ought to be alwayes both perpetual visibie For this cause the holy Fathers did vrge this question so hardly by which they confounded all heretical new vpstart Churches And whereas some Protestants do alleadge du Mou lin in his Nouueauté cont Card. Peron c. 12. that this question is a curiosity of history an old question which would require tventie yeares studie it is such a curiosiry of hystâ—ry that it can be found in none or else the laborious Centurists had not omitted it It is indeed an old question but was never well answered and will yet require a new answere as shall appear by the insufficiency of all the old answers And if it require twentie yeares study they cannot complain who have got now a hundred yeares to find out an answer to it But to speak no more of these shifts I shall shew how diverse Protestants being vrged by that fata question make many essaies to answer it and yet cannot make appear the visibility of their Church before Luther They run almost all the world over to find their Church They begin their iourney in France striveing to prove it in the Waldenses Albigenses 2. From France they go over to England to prove it in the Wicleffists 3. From England they passe to Boheme to find it among the Hussists 4. From Boheme they travaâ—le to Greece and from that to Aethiopia Armenia pretending that thâ—se Nations were Protestants 5. Having thus wearied themselvs all in vain the most learned are glad to come back again to the Papists saying that their Church before Luther was in the very heart of Popery 6. Finding that their new coin'd distinction of fundamental points involves them in great labyrinths and that the Papists will not acknowledge them for their Associats they passe from the later vnto the purer times before S. Gregory alleadging that the primitive Church holy Fathers were Protestants 7. After they have made this monstruous leap of 900. yeares and there find both Pastors people at the sacrifice of the Masse which the Protestants abhorre as Idolatry they run to their last shift which is to get out of the sight of the world and hide themselves in the hole of invisibiliy These many different answers shew that the Protestant Church hath no great certainty of its pedegree I shall briefly shew you the insufficiency of every one of these answers by which it shall be proved that the Protestant Church was not visible before Luther and hereby their first starting hole shall be either so stop't or lay'd that they cannot escape this way CHAP. XXV That the Protestant Church was not visible before Luther neither in the Waldenses Albigenses VViclifists nor Husits THAT the Protestant Church may be continued in the Waldenses and the same is to be observed of the Albigenses and the rest two things are to be proved by Protestants 1. That the Waldenses have ever continued since the time of the Apostles And this is clear by the first vndeniable principle of the perpetuity of the Church 2. That the Waldenses were intirely of that faith which the Protestants do now or did professe that is beleeved any of their Confessions of faith For without this whole agreement the Waldenses could not be a Protestant Church as is evident by the second principle above setled Now it is impossible for them to shew either of these two For first concerning the continuance of the Waldenses all histories do affirm that they began in the twelfth age and that their Author was one Waldo a marchant of Lions about the yeare 1160. whom the Centurists place in the 12. Century How can it be then proved Cent. 12. c. 8. that the Waldenses had continued since the Apostles time seing their Author who was before a Catholique a Laique lived neer 12. hundred yeares after the Apostles supposeing then that Waldo became a Protestant after he had been before a Catholique the question remaines where was the Protestant Church before Waldo The true Church must be perpetuall Secondly as the Waldenses did not continue since the Apostles so neither did they agree intirly with Protestants Luth. in Colloq c de Sacr. Calvin epist 224. in the principal articles of their religion to witt in Iustification by faith only if we beleeve Luthers testimonie And if we will trust Calvin they held also the reall presence in the Popish sense of Transubstantiation Therefore such men could not be Protestants Protest Apol. Tract 2. c. 2. sect 3. sub 3. Thirdly they agreed with the Catholiques in diverse other points as about the number nature of the Sacraments the vow of chastity the necessity of childrens baptism They began a kind of religious order for which they were called the poore men of Lions and sought confirmation of it from Pope Innocent
the third but could not obtayn it Lastly they maintaind diverse grosse errours which are condemned both by Catholiques Protestants Ibidem subdivis 4. As 1. that Churchmen by mortal sin lost all spiritual authority 2. That the Civil Magistrats by mortal sin fell also from their dignity 3. That Churchmen should possesse nothing in propertie 4. That it was lawfull to dissemble in religion and their practice was conform to their doctrin for they went to Masse confessed and communicated For which dissimulation the Protestants at the beginnining would not acknowlege them for their brethren These and other grosse errors they maintain'd as may be seen in the Protestants Apology where the Authors are at large cited But as these differences do shew the Waldenses not to be good Protestants so I will bring some few to prove that they were ill Presbyterians Gualte Chron. saeculo 12. c. de Vvalden er 2â— 32. 3. error 38. ibid. 1. They admitted no other forme of prayer except our Lords prayer the Presbyterians admitt many others but not that 2. They allowed only three orders in the Church to witt of Deacons Priests Bishops The Presbyterians have abiured Episcopacy the whole hierarchie of the Church 3. The Waldenses affirmed that all oaths were vnlawfull The Presbyterians have tak n and enforced others to take many vnlawfull oaths in the Covenant 4. The Waldenses maintain'd 4. error 40. ibi that it was not lawfull to put any man to death hy the sentence of a Iudge and therefore they abolished all Iudicatories in the cause of blood The Covenanters have shed much blood vnder pretence of Iustice spareing none of their opposers who came in their reverence 5. error 31. ibid. 5. They consecrated ordinarly their Sacrament vpon that day only whereon our Saviour was betrayed and they kept it thus consecrated all the yeare long to be given to the sick The Presbyterians do not professe to consecrate at all they give their Sacrament very seldom to the whole and they have made an act never to give it to the sick I can find hardly any thing wherein the Waldenses agreed more with the Presbyterians then with other Protestants Error 37. except in this alone that they contemned the Apostles Creed which the Presbyterians have more then probably done by denying it to be Apostolical By all which it is evident that the Waldenses did not continue since the time of the Apostles and from the time they arose they were not Protestants much lesse Presbyterians and so are deficient in both the principles Fox Acts. pag. 41. Illyric in Catalog test p. 730. Therefore M Fox Illyricus and other Protestants have their recourse very groundlesly to the Waldenses to prove the continuall visibility of their Church by them And for this cause we must leave them passe to the Albigenses ALBIGENSES These men had their name from the towne of Albingia in France where the greatest part of them remained They began in the same age with the Waldenses and was a branch of their sect Osiand Cent. 13 l. 1. c. 4. Fulk de success Eccles pa. 332. as Osiander Fulk do confesse Their late riseing sheweth that they had not continued since the time of the Apostles and therefore could not be the true Church as is evident by the first principle and consequently albeit they had been Protestants the Protestant Church could not be shewed continually visible in them They are also deficient in the second principle because they did not beleeve any Protestant Confession For they held the same doctrin with the Waldenses Baron anno 1176. 1. Prateol Sander ap Gualter error 2. 2. error 28. ibid. 3. error 10. apud Gualt except some few things which they added of their own As 1. they maintain'd with the Manichees that there were two beginnings to witt God and the Devil 2. With the Saducees they denyed the resurrection of the body 3. With the Manichees Seleucians and other ancient heretiques they reiected baptism And maintain'd many other errors which are condemned both by Catholiques Protestants and they committed some abominable and prophane villainies in the Church of Tolouse Hence it is that albeit some Protestants do seek to perpetual their Church by them yet others do clearly reiect them Iewell saith plainly Iewel in defenfione Apol. p. 48. non sunt nostri they are not ours And Osiander reiects them more clearly Their doctrin saith he was absurd impious heretical they remained obstinatly in their errors and impiety whence men think that they have been possessed with Anabaptistical furie And yet notwithstanding these grosse errors which they maintain'd and their great differences from Protestants M. Fox reckons the Albigenses in the number of Protestant Martyrs and some other Protestants Spark in respons ad Ioan. de Albins pag. 58. Fulk p. 332. vt supra as M. Spark Fulk do very gtoundlesly pretend to shew the visibility of their Church by them But seing the Protestant Church cannot be continued neither in the Waldenses nor Albigenses in France we must passe next to the Wiclefists in England WICLEFISTS Fox Acts Monum p. 85. Iohn Wicleff an English man was a Roman Priest and a Curate in England He lived in the yeare 1371. as M. Fox testifieth and from him began the Church of the Wiclefists for there was none or that religion before himself All the world saith M. Fox was covered with thick darknesse when Wicleff like the morning flarre did shine out in the midst of a cloude Therefore the Church of the Wiclefists which began so long after the Apostles cannot be the perpetual Church which we are seeking 2. The Wiclefists were not Protestants because they did not beleeve any Protestant Confession of faith yea they did not beleeve the principal point of the Protestant faith to witt Iustification by faith only For Melanchton saith of Wiclef Melanc epist ad Miconium Truly he neither vnderstood nor held the iustice of faith 3. He agreed with the Catholiques in many other points against Protestants as in the intercession of Saints Veneration of Images the rites ceremonies of Masse Extreme Vnction all the 7. Sacraments Protest Apol. Tract 2. c. sect 4. Concil Consta. cap. 8. as Breirly sheweth out of his own works Lastly he maintain'd diverse grosse errors condemned both by Catholiques Protestants as that all things fall out by an absolute and fatal necessity that God ought to obey the Devil as the Councel of Constance doth testifie Vpon which words his disciples made many violent intricate glosses which may be seen examined in D. Stratfords disputation of the Church D. S. Disp of the Church l. 1. c. 1. sect 3. He held also that Church men in mortal sin did not baptize nor conferre orders That Princes Magistrats fell from their dignity power by mortal sin That Churchmen ought not to enioy any temporal things but should
beg many other seditious errors he taught All which shew that Wiclefs Church which raise so lately decayed so quickly is not the true Church of Christ founded by his Apostles which must endure for ever and that neither he nor his Associats for the short time they endured were Protestants Therefore Fox vt sup Huniph in vita Iuelli p. 263. the Protestant Church cannot be continued visible in them albeit M. Fox D. Humphrey and others falsly so pretend HVSSITS From England we must follow some Protestants to Bohemia where they vndertake to prove their Church visible in the Hussits These men had their origine from I. Husse who lived in the yeare 1405. That is some few yeares after Wiclef He was first a Catholique a Priest before he became Author of his sect Therefore the Protestants cannot by this new-vpstart and his Congregation although they were granted to be Protestants continue the visibility of their Church vnto the Apostles 2. Husse held not the Protestant Confession of faith For M. Fox giveth this testimonie of him What did the Popish faith define of Transubstantiation Fox in Apocal. cap. 11. which he did not confirme Who said Masse more religiously then he who kep't more chastly the vowes of Priestly single life Yea he affirmes also that Husse maintain'd also free will iustification by works merits veneration of images and other points of the Roman faith which shew that Husse was no good Protestant Luth. in collo cap de Anti Christo Fox Acts Mon. p. 190. p. 258. Therefore Luther saith that the Papists burnt Husse when he did not go so much as a finger breadth from Popery And last of all he maintaind almost all the same errors with Wiclef which are condemned both by Protestants Catholiques And yet it 's a wonder how M Fox calleth him a most holy Martyr his disciples Defenders of the Gospel CHAP. XXVI That the Protestant Church hath not continued visible in the Grecians Armenians nor Aethiopians ALBEIT the Grecians were granted now to be Protestants yet they were not alwayes so and therefore Protestants cannot continue the visibility of their Church by them For they were at least seven or 8 hundred yeares in the Communion of the Roman Church as witnesse the first eight General Councels all held in Grece and approved by the Popes of Rome The first revolt was made by the Grecians denying the procession of the holy Ghost from the Son They were vnited again diverse times to the Church of Rome and lastly in the Councel of Florence Concil Florent sess vlt. This sheweth that the Grecians have not alwayes remain'd in the same doctrin and therefore they are not the perpetual Church which we are now seeking 2. Since the tim that they began their Schisme they were not Protestants for they have reiected the Protestants Communion and disproved their Co fession Censura Orietal Eccles c. 7.10.12.13 c. as is well known by the Censure which they have published against it where they maintayn Masse Transubstantiation 7. Sacraments invocation of â—aints and diverse other points of the Roman faith Lastly they hold an error condemned both by Catholiques Protestants to witt that the holy Ghost proceeds only from the Father not from the Son Therefore the Protestants cannot continue their visible Church by the Grecians who were for many ages Catholiques who never were nor yet are Protestants and are known to this day for a great part to be Roman Catholiques The like may be said of the Armenians For first supposing they were now Protestants they were not alwayes of that religion for they remaind Catholiques BaroÌ„nius an 685. ever till about the 7. age Therefore the Protestant Church cannot be continued in them 2. They never held the Protestant Confession of faith For they maintayn the real presence the vnbloody sacrifice prayer for the dead invocation of Saints 3. They were vnited to the Roman Church with the Grecians Concil Flor. de instruct A menor in he Councel of Florence And lastly since their falling away they hold errors which are condemned both by Catholiques Protestants For they deny the Procession of the holy Ghost from the Son they confound the two natures in Christ and reiterate baptisme All which do shew that they neither were nor are Protestants From Greece and Armenia we must now at length go to Aethiopia where M. du Moulin affirmes the Protestant Church was Du Moulin Contr Card. Peron e. 12. before Luther But supposing they were now Protestants they were not alwayes so For near the space of 5. hundred yeares they were Catholiques at which time they began to be corrupted with the heresie of Eutiches Therefore the Protestant Church for 5. Hundred yeares was not visible in them 2. since their Schisme they never beleeved intirly any Protestant Confession and never held iustification by faith only Godingus l 1. de reb Abyssi nor 3. They agree with the Catholiques against Protestants in the 7. Sacraments invocation of Saints prayer for the dead Masse Transubstantiation c. as D. Stratford sheweth out of their own Authors They call the Pope head of all Bishops as is evident by the letters of their Emperour to Pope Clement the 7. Whereof a part is recited in the upplement of Spondanâ—s Sponda in Clement 7. â—uno 1524. and they have offered diverse times obedience to the Pope Lastly they held diverse errors which Protestants cannot approve For they deny the procession of the holy Ghost from the Son Godingus lib. 1 â—e rebus Abyssinor c. 18. with the Grecians they acknowledge one only will in Christ with the Mono helities and one only nature in him with the Eutichians and with the Iewes they abstaine from certain meats and observe Circumcision Therefore the Protestants cannot continue their Church by the Aethiopians nor by any of their forâ—er pretences which serve for nothing but to make it visibly appeare that there was no visible Protestant Church in any part of the world for no age or time before Luther how much lesse for the whole time between the Apostles and Luther Yea albeit the Waâ—denses and all the rest above named to whom the Protestants do pretend were granted to have beleeved the Protestant Confession as it 's evident they beleeved it not yet the Protestant Church could not be continued by any or all of them because they did not continue from the Apostles and the most part of them lived at diverse times without any Society or lineal descent hanging often assunder whole ages one from an other and the first being long decayed before the others did appeare For this cause some learned Protestants seeing the impossibility of continuing the visibility of their Church by such broken and vanishing troopes and being ashamed to claime as members of their Church such erronious persons or notorious heretiques have vndertaken by two other wayes to shew their Church to
advertised of her maladies and desired to cure them would admit no medicine which the Protestants taking at length in a cup of Reformation did purge themselves of all infirmities and thereby their Church was rendred whole and sound So that there is no more difference between the Roman Protestant Church then between the same man whole sick who by health and sicknesse is not substantially different but remaines still the same man The Protestants who followed this course were famous in their own generations and much cryed vp for learning prudence as Hooker the Bishop of Spalato Feild Bunny Potter Chilingworth and diverse others as may be seen in the B. of Calcedons treatise of fundamental points and in the Protestants Apologie I shall content my self with the testimony of M. Bunny who writes thus Bunny Tract de Pacification sect 18. p. 108. No question ought to be made for our separation from the Church For we make not a distinct Church from them nor they from vs. There was therefore no separation made froÌ„ the Church neither did any of vs go out from them The only question may be which of vs are to be esteemed the more wholsome members of the Church we or they Neither is there any other question approved by vs. Yea he acknowledgeth that vnlesse this answer be made the Papists have great advantage in their old question seing the Protestants cannot shew a Church distinct from the Roman before Luther But this answer of these late Authors is as false and insufficient as any of the former First it directly contradicts the d ctrine practice of their Reformers who are supposed to have been heavenly Apostles For they accused the Roman Church of Idolatrie superstition and diverse grosse fundamental errors which make not a Church to be only sick but also kill and destroy it and as the Presbyterians speak make it of the Church of Christ become the Synagogue of Sathan Anti-Christ Then for separation 〈◊〉 first Reformers were so far from denying it that they invited all persons to separate themselves from the Roman Church which they called spirituâ—l Babylon And according to this doctrin their practice followed Therefore it is evident that the first Reformers did not think the Roman and Protestant Church all one in fundamentals neither did they deny separation from the Roman Church but rather the quite contrarie is most clear and certaine Secondly Diverse other famous Protestants condemne this new opinion as im ious For M. Perkins writes thus Perk. in c. 8. ad Galat. v. 9. Whita cont 2. quaest 6. c. 3. The Politician who is of no religion saith hat we and the Papists differ not in substance And Whiteker saith plainly that the Roman Church hath taken away many fundamental articles of faith and corrupted faith in the principal parts All the oâ—her late Protestants and especially the Presbyterians condemne the same opinion For nothing almost can incense them m re then to say that the Church of Rome is a true Church and that the Protestants made no separation from her Hence it came to passe that M. Hooker was sharply reproved for this device by the Puritans in their Christian letters Thirdly besids all these confusions contradictions among themselves the answer in it self is false insufficient For when we are seeking a Protestant visible Church before Luther these men shew vs the Popish Church and albeit all the world knowes that Papists are not Protestants yet they affirm that the Popish and Protestant Church are all one differ not substantially which is a double deceit first â—o shew one thing very different for another and then to affirm that they are both one But I conceive it can hardly enter into a mans imagination vnlesse it be troubled to think that these Churches are substantially one which differ and are clearly opposite in the principal substantial points of religion as in Sacrifice Sacraments the observation of the divine Commandments iustifying faith good works and many others particulars The one Church approveth External Sacrifice as a most acceptable service and worship due to God and offers vp the Christian sacrifice as the most excellent of all sacrifices and adores it as God The other hath no sacrifice at all but condemnes that as great abomination grosse Idolatrie which the first makes the greatest obiect and exercise of its piety This difference alone albeit we speak of no more is so great that M. Dallie a renown'd Min ster in France doth affirm in his Apologie which he wrote lately for the reformed Churches and is approved by his Colleagues the Ministers of Charenton that it was sufficient to iustifie the Protestants separation from the Roman Church and to hinder their vnion again with it as being a most substantial and fundamental difference By which it 's evident that the ground whereon this answer is founded to witt that there are no fundamental differences between the Catholique Protestant Church is false both in it felt in the iudgment of the first Reformers of many other famous Protestants But whither there be fundamental differences or not the answer is not sufficient For the qâ—estion still remaines where was the Protestant Church before Luther that is a Church believing all the articles of a Protestant Confession whither some of them b called fundamental or not fundamental or if they please of men holding all these articles and esteeming some of them fundamental and some not For we are now seeking a Protestant Church before Luther and according to the definition above setled such a Church is a society beleeving all the articles of their CoÌ„fessioÌ„ Therefore they must shew vs such a ConfessioÌ„ or else they do not shew vs a Protestant Church Yea the points which they call not fundameÌ„tal wherein they disagree froÌ„ the Papists are these which make them properly Protestants If then they confesse as they must do that no society can be had before Luther which believed all these points which they call not fundamental they must also grant that there was no visible Protestant Church before Luther which is directly to succumb faile in that which they vndertook to shew So that albeit this distinction of fundamentals c. were admitted as good true whereas indeed in their sense it 's false and deceitfull as we shall see more clearly hereafter yet in relation to the present question it would serve them to no purpose These reasons are more then sufficient to shew that this new answer is false and insufficient and is nothing but a meer shift devised to elude the question And that it cannot be satisfactorie to any man who is searching for the truth which is condemned by famous Protestants as fâ—lse and impious and which is contrarie to the doctrin practice of the first Reformers This sheweth clearly the great straight necessity wherevnto such learned and prudent men were reduced in answering this hard question which
required an accompt of the Protestant Church before Luther For they could not say the Church had perished which had been a blasphemous falshood against the most clear Scriptures they saw also that all the other pretences to the Waldenses and the rest were false and frivolous seing none of these agreed intirely with Protestants neither had any of them perpetual continuance and being ashamed of the Puritans invisible Church which we shall see to be a meer Chimera they had no other refuge but to flie vnto the Roman Church which they were therefore enforced to acknowledge to be the true Church which had alwayes remain'd albeit their first Reformers had abandonned it as a false Church accusing it of superstition Idolatrie as the most part of all visible Protestants yet continue to do But this refuge hath been shewed to serve them to no purpose These men do in a part resemble the prodigal child who never thought of returning to his Fathers house till he had spent all hâ—s means and till great misery necessity compelled him so these learned Protestants after they had fare travailed wearied themselv's much and spent all their braines in seeking out their Church before Luther and not finding it any where at length by meer necessity had their last refuge vnto their Fathers house the Catholique Church which they had before left But there was this deplorable difference between the prodigal child and them that he being truly penitent and confessing his fault with great humility was by his Father most lovingly met embraced kissed cloathed and feasted whereas they returning not with humility repentance for their separation but with idle excuses and vaine accusations without any other intention save only to get their nakednesse covered and their other vrgent necessities supplyed were neither met nor received clothed nor feasted but have perished for famine and cold and are now almost all with the decay of their late ill founded Church exstirpared out of the world They called the Roman a sick Church and their own a whole Church yet it is verifyed that their whole Church is dead and hath decayed before the sick Church And as their Church according to them was only visible in the Roman Church before Luther so it 's now invisible in it self and only visible as it was in the beginning and like to continue so vnto the end By all which considerations it is evident that no visible Protestant Church can be found before Luther and much lesse a continuall succession of it from the time of the Apostles We have travailed almost all the world over seeking this Church and we have followed diverse Protestant Guides who vndertook to shew it vnto vs but ever in the end they faile of their promises Therefore we must passe now from the Protestant visible Church which cannot be seen before Luther to their invisible Church which we shall see cannot be found before him CHAP. XXVIII That the Church of Christ ought to be alway's visible and therefore an invisible Church cannot be the true Church HAVING gone hitherto along with diverse Protestants who promised to shew vs their Church visible before Luther we must now leave them as falling short of their promises and quit all further search of this Church in the light and follow these other Protestant Guides who vndertake to find out their Church to vs in the dark For vnto that old demand where was your Church before Luther They answer that it was although invisible And in this answer of invisibility the most part of all visible Protestants and especially Presbyterians do now acquiesce thinking this last refuge such a strong and retir'd hold for them and so well guarded by the Scriptures in that answer which God gave to the complaint of Elias that they cannot be smoaked out of it But notwith â—anding these pretences the same Catholique shew me that the Church of Christ ought to be alway's visible that the invisible Protestant Church is a meer Chimerical invention against the Scriptures Fathers famous Protestants against the ends for which the Church was instituted against Protestants own principles and that many grosse absurdities follow vpon it to the disparagment of the Christian religion and advancement of Atheism The Scripture which affirmeth so clearly as we have seen above that the Church must be perpetual affirmes no lesse evidently that it must be manifest and visible For this cause the Prophet Esay compareth the Church to a Mountain Esay 2.2 The Mountain of the Lords house saith he shall be established in the top of Mountains and shall be exalted above the hil es and all Nations shall flow vnto it Again the same prophet speaking of the Church saith Vpon thy walls Esay 62.6 o Ierusalem I have appointed wâ—tchmen all the day and all the night they shall not hold their peace for ever Conforme to this first prophecie our Saviour compares his Church vnto a City seated on a hill which he saith cannot be hid Math. 5.14 and vnto a light shining in the world Conforme to the second prophecie S. Paul sheweth that Christ hath established Pastors to remain continually in the Church for the consummation of the Saints Now Ephes 4.11.12 what is more manifest then a Mountain a City built vpon a hill what more visible then light shining and Pastors continually teaching Therefore according to the Scriptures the Church of Christ which must be perpetual must be also visible and cannot be hid or invisible For the Fathers we shall bring S. Augustin who produceth the same places which he calls clear and evident to prove the same truth against the Donatists There is nothing Aug. tract 1 â—n epist Ioan. saith he more manifest then a Mountain but yet there are some Mountains vnknown because they are placed in one part of the earth The Mountain of the Church not so it must be known because it hath filled the whole face of the earth And elswhere bringing our Saviours words Idem de vnit Eccles c. 14. he saith The Church is not hid because it is not vnder a bushel but vpon a candlestick that it may shine to all who are in the house A City seated on a hil cannot be hid c. But it is as it were hid vnto the Donatists because they hear such clear and manifest testimonies which shew her to be in the whole earth and they choose rather with shut ey 's to dash against that Mountain then to go vp to it And further he saith Cont. Petil. li. 2. c. 104 Chrys hom 4. in 6. Esay The Church hath this most certain mark that she cannot be hid To the same purpose S. Chrysostom affirmeth That it is easier for the Sun to be extinguished then that the Church shall be obscured So that it is all one both in it self and with the holy Fathers to say the Church had perished and that it is hid or invisible And therefore if the one
be so abominable the other is no lesse detestable S. Augustin who censured so heavily the opinion of the Donatists who taught that the Church had perished every where except only among themselves as if he had foreseen this Presbyterian shift which pretends the Church had not perrished but was invisible writes thus against it Aug. de pastor c. 16. Some one may say It may be God hath other sheep but I know not where of which he taketh care but I know them not O how absurd is he vnto humane sense who imagines such things We have seen how this opinion is against the Scriptures Fathers and now in S. Augustins iudgment it 's against sense we shall see presently how it is against reason and famous Protestants All men ordinarly agree in this general notion of the Church that it is a society of people instructed in the faith of Christ governed by lawfull Pastors and having Communion together in the Christian Sacraments But if the Church were invisible there could be no instruction no governement no administration of Sacraments And hence will appear that an invisible Church is against all the ends for which God had established a Church vpon earth The first was to instruct and guide the members of the Church vnto the port of Salvation And for this end are necessary instruction in the faith administration of Sacraments which require visibility both in the Pâ—stors and in the people For invisible Pastors cannot instruct nor administrate Sacraments and therefore the Church which consists of Pastors people must be visible For as D. Humphrey saith Whilst the Ministers teach Humph Iesuit part 2 rat 3. others learn they administrate the Sacraments these receive them c. who seeth not these things is more blind then a Mâ—odiwarp But if the Church were invisible there could be no instruction consequently no faith no Sacraments so none could be directed in this invisible Church vnto the port of Salvation This sheweth that the Church must be visible at least to the members of it The second â—nd for which the Church was ordain'd was to receive the Gentils and to afford to all persons who are astray the means of salvation by entering into the Church This the Prophet Esay speaking of the Church foretold Esay 60.11 Thy gates shall be open continually day and night they shall not be shut that the strength of the Gentils may be brought vnto thee But if the Church had been invisible her gates had been worse then shut for they could never have been found to be knokt at and so the Gentils heretiques albeit never so desirous could never have entered which is against the Scriptures and goodnesse of God This reason proveth that the Church must be visible even to strangers The third end was to compose diffâ—rences which might arise among Christians according to that of our Saviour Math. 18.17 Tell the Church But had the Church been invisible she could neither have been told nor found Invisible Iudges cannot compose differences The fourth end was to oppose all errors heresies Ephes 4.11 For which cause God established Pastors in the Church to conserve the people in the true doctrine froÌ„ the circuÌ„vention of error But had the Church been invisible she could not have opposed heresies they had prevailed without coÌ„troul It there had been no Church to oppose heresies before the Protestants peep 't vp what had become of the Christian religion Surely it had been a puddle of errors or a Masse of Confusion So that this invisible Church is against all the cheef ends for which God established a Church vpon earth It is also against famous Protestants who sharply censure it Melanchton whom Luther equaleth to the Fathers Melan. in Concil Theol p. 393.394 calls it Monstruous It is necessary saith he to confesse the Church to be visible Wherevnto tendeth this monstruous speech which denyeth the visible Church It abolisheth all testimonies of Antiquity it causeth an endlesse confusion and induceth a Commonwealth of vnruly Ruffians or Atheists where no one careth for another Humph Ies par 2. rat 3. Enoch Claph in Antid schi p. â—7 D. Humphrey saith It is a manifest Conclusion that the Church ought to be conspicuous Another Protestant saith of the Puritans They affirm against the Scripture that the Church for some ages was not visible This cannot be a sound article of the Protestant religion which such Protestants so sharply censure Now we shall see how it is against Protestants principles yea and destroyes it self For they ordinarly assign two necessary marks of the Church to witt the right preaching of the word administration of the Sacraments To which the Presbyterians add their disciplin as a third mark I inquire then if this Church which some of them make invisible for 900. some for 1000. and others for 12. hundred years had preaching and Sacraments during that time or not If it had then it could not be invisible for invisible people can neither be instructed nor baptized If it had no preaching nor Sacraments then it hath been a miserable Church or rather no Church at all which wanted these two things which are necessary to constitute a Church If a famous Presbyterian Minister took occasion lately whilst he was baptizing a child on a cold winter day to say against the Anabaptists It is cold dipping to day I love not Sommer Sacraments May not any one say more iustly against the Presbyterians In many dayes an invisible Church cannot be found out I love not a Church wherein for a thowsand years above there were neither sommer nor winter Sacraments Moreover either this invisible Church had some government or it had none If it had any it could not be invisible as is evident and if that governement was Presbytâ—rian disciplin that Church had not been only visible to these who obey'd it but also very sensible to those who did not willingjy stoop to it or else it hath been very far different from the nature of our Scottish Presbytery If that invisible Church had no government then it wanted that which no society can want and without which there is no order but confusion Yea this invisible Church is such a rare device that it destroies it self For no Church albeit never so invisible can be imagined without internal faith at least Now faith coms by hearing Rom. 10.17 according to S. Paul and how shall they heare saith the same Apostle without a preacher But in an invisible Church there could be no preaching or instruction and so no faith and no faith no Church Not so much as an invisible one In a word this invisible Church which wanted preaching faith Sacraments and government hath been a miserable or rather a Chimerical Church Lastly this invisible Church doth highly disparage the Christian religion For it makes the Church of Christ of whose glory above the Synagogue of the Iewes so much is
recorded in the Scriptures not equal in glory but more inglorious then the Iewish Synagogue hath been even since the coming of Christ For ever since that time the Iewes have professed their religion and had visible Synagogues in diverse famous nations whereas the Presbyterians make the Church of Christ to be invisible for many ages of that time in which not one could be found who had the courage or devotion to professe the true religion Now what can be more against the Sriptures and the honour of Christ then this wicked device what more opprobrious to all the Christians of these times God speaking of the Church Aggai 2.9 saith by the Prophet Aggai The Glory of this later house shall be greater then of the former But if the Christian Church had been so many ages invisible it had been more inglorious then the Synagogue of the Iewes which was all that time visible Christ is called by S Paul Heb. 8.6 the Mediator of a better Covenant which was established vpon better promises But by the Presbyterians invisible Church he is made Mediator of a worse Covenant and to have failed of his promises S Hierom saith Hieron cont Lucifer cap. 6. Nimium prophani sunt c. They are too prophane who affirm the Iewes had more Synagogues then the Christians had Churches Therefore they may be called most prophane who affirme the Iewes had many Synagogues and deny the Christians to have had so much as one Church throughout the whole world Whence this opinion gives great advantage to the Iewes and infidels against the Christian religion For they may iustly pretend that the Christian Church if it was so many ages invisible could not be the true Church kingdom of the Messias which the Prophets foretould clearly should be eternal conspicuous and glorious and that Christ could not be the true Messias who had failed so palpably of his promises Yea this opinion is very dangerous to Protestants so that it hath made some to stumble at the Christian religion and it hath drawn others into flat Atheism Sebastian Castalio Professor of Basil having cited some clear testimonies of Scripture for the perpetuity of the Church and the conversion of Kings Nations writes very perplexedly vnto Edward the 6. King of England Sebast Cast in praef Biblior lat Truly saith he We must confesse that either these things will be or that they have been or God is to be accused of aâ— lie If any man say they have been I inquire of him when I inquire how the knowledge of God and pietie which was promised to be eternal and more aboundant then the waters of the sea was not altogether perf ct Osiand in epitom cont 16. parte 2. p. 647. and could so soon decay By which words he shewes what stuck in his stomack David George a Protestant of Holand proceeded further vpon this ground of the visible decay of the Church blasphem'd against Christ saying If the doctrin of Christ his Apostles had been true the Church which they planted had endured Idem p. 818. And here vpon he became an impure Apostat from the Christian religion Adam Neuserus the chief Pastor of Heydelberg of a Minister became a Turk and was circumcised at Constantinople Prot. Apolog. tract 2. cap. 1. sect 5. These and some other examples may be seen in the Protestants Apology By all which may be seen how false dangerous pernicious this opinion of the invisible Church is against a most clear truth to witt that the Church cannot be hid Therefore as S. Augustin did conclude against the Donatists Aug. li. 2. cont pâ—til c. 104. in these words The Church hath this most certain mark that she cannot be hid she is then known to all Nations the sect of Donatus is vnknown to all Nations that then cannot be she So we may conclude more forcibly against the Presbyterians The Church of Christ hath this most certain mark that she cannot be hid or invisible She is then known or visible to all Nations The Protestant Church before Luther was invisible and vnknown to all Nations as the Presbyterians do confesse Therefore the Protestant Church cannot be she CHAP. XXIX That albeit the true Church might be invisible yet the Protestants had no invisible Church before Luther IT hath been already proved that albeit the Protestants had had an invisible Church before Luther yet it could not be the true Church which must be alway's visible Now remaines to be shewed the second thing which was vndertaken above to witt that albeit an invisible Church were sufficient yet the Protestants had not so much as one of that nature before Luther and so they succumb as well de facto as they have done de iure and consequently this device of an invisible Church for two reasons will serve them to no purpose Which is shewed thus An invâ—sible Protestant Church is a Church which beleeved the Protestant faith in their heart albeit they made no external profession of it But de facto there was no Church before Luther which beleeved the Protestant confession of faith Therefore there was no visible Protestant Church before Luth r. The Maior is evident because there is this difference between a visible and an invisible Church that the first professeth the faith the other professeth it not but they both agree in this to have inwardly the faith Without which there cannot be any Church Therefore an invisible Protestant Church is a Church which beleeved inwardly the Protestant faith The Minor is proved of the time immediatly preceeding Luthers preaching For either Luther himself before he began to oppose the Pope was a member of this lurking Protestan Church beleeving the Protestâ—nt Confession or these who adhered to him were members of it or some others who did nor ioyne with him and besids these no others can be found or imagined But none of these can be said For Luther is avowedly confessed by himself and all men in ad lat to have been a Roman Catholique a Priest a friar of S. Augustins order and as himself acknowledgeth said Masse devoutly and honored the Pope in his heart Therefore Luther before he opposed the Pope did not beleeve inwardly the Protestant faith and was not a member of the Protâ—stants lurking invisible Church but was a member of the Roman visible Church But so were Melanchton Carolstadius the Saxons and all the rest who followed him Papists or Priests professing the Roman religion knowing nothing of the Protestant till Luther taught them Therefore all these who adhered to Luthers new doctrin were before that time not lurking Protestants but profes't Papists Neither were there any other members of that suppos'd lurking Protestant Church who did not ioyn with Luther For if there had been any they should and would have come out of their lurking holes so soon as Luther began to preach and got the protection of secular Princâ—s For then there
by fulfilling it so there is no other way to know it to be fulfilled but by visible and sensible performance of it By what is said may be easily seen that the complaint of Elias which is alway's in the Puritans mouth makes nothing for their invisible Church before Luther For first Elias was only speaking of Israel as a famous Protestant confesseth Enoch Cleopham in Antidot Schism p. 17. in these words Our vnskilfull Reformers say that the Church was invisible in the time of Elias but the holy Spirit testifyeth that he spake this of Israel and not of Iuda for he knew that good Iosaphat was reigning in Iuda and that the Church was not only visible there but also floorishing in great piety Wherefore it is an evil parity to say the Iewish Synagogue was invisible a short time in one province albeit it was visible at the same time in another Therefore the Christian Church may be or was invisible throughout the whole world for a thowsand years above 2. These who were lurking in the time of Elias bowed not their knees to Baal which if they had done they had not belong'd to the invisible Church of God But all the suppos'd invisible Protestants as Luther and his followers bowed their knees to the Masse which they esteem Idolatry as hath been shewed Therefore they could not be the invisible Church of God 3. Although these good Israelits were invisible to Elias at such a distance when he fled yet he knew many of them to be visible both to others 3. Kings 18.13 and among themselves For Abdias told him a little before that he had hid 100. Prophets of the Lord in two Caves where he fed them But all Protestants before Luther were invisible both to others and themselves For not so much as one person knew himself to be a Protestant before Luther taught that religion as hath been proved 4. Although the whole Iewish Synagogue had been invisible which is most false yet it followes not the whole Christian Church may be or was so too For this as S. Paul testifyeth is founded vpon better promises 5. Heb. 8.6 Salvation was not altogether tyed before Christ to the Iewish Synagogue for there were some faithfull Gentils as Melchisedeck Iob c. But the Presbyterians by making the whole Christian Church to be invisible for many ages take away all the ordinary means of salvation which only can be had in the visible Church Lastly Albeit all the faithfull both Iewes and Gentils had been invisible in the time of Elias yet this would make nothing for Protestants vnlesse they had been also invisible before Luther But de facto there were no lurking Protestants before him as hath been clearly proved Therefore although the Church could be invisible yet the Protestants had no invisible Church before Luther And besides the reasons brought above against this invisible Church it may seem truly strange that for so many ages not so much as one person of it was heard of or known never so much as one false brother could be found among them to reveale them And which is most strange when this invisible Church became visible not so much as one person did appeare who had been a lurking member of it Such groundlesse conceipts require strong imaginations to fancy them but much more credulous hearts to beleeve them Wherefore Elias complaint for many reasons makes nothing for Protestants but is cleary against them So is also their other refuge to the Church of the predestinate which they say was invisible before Luther For 1. there is no such Church because Christs Church is a Congregation of all true beleevers as well reprobate as predestinate Math. ch 3. ch 13. There is in his floore both wheat and chaffe and in his field both corne tares 2. The Predestinate are as visible as the reprobate S. Peter was as visible as Iudas 3. Although it were granted there had been some invisible Predestinate before Luther yet none of them could be Protestants because none believed the Protestant faith till Luther taught it as hath been proved 4. Either these supposed Protestants before Luther professed their faith or not If they professed it then they were not invisible Rom. 10.10 If they profess'd it not then they were not predestinate For with our heart saith S. Paul we beleeve vnto iustice and with our mouth Confession is made to salvation 5. It is at least requisite that the predestinate should not deny their faith if they will not confesse it or else they cannot be predestinate But all the supposed invisible Protestants before Luther denyed their faith by professing Popery as hath been shewed 1. Cor. 11.19 Therefore they could not be predestinate Lastly heresies and persecution make the predestinate more conspicuous Heresies saith S. Paul must be that these who are approved be made manifest among you Who are more approved before God then the predestinate Who are made more manifest before men then they especially when heresy persecution do arise For then by their close adhereing to the true faith and their profession of it whereas others either through error or feare fall from it they are rendred more conspicuous as the Scripture shewes and therefore they are not made hid invisible as the Puritans do alleadge Hence it is that the Church is so far from being invisible in the predestinate more then in others that vpon the contrary when that might happen in others either by error infirmity or feare of persecution then the true Church shall be most manifest in the predestinate Aug. epist 48. ad Vincent and is principally conserved in them For then as S. Augustin speaks In suis firmissimis eminet she shines in her most stedfast members Predestination indeed is invisible and so is reprobation but the predestinate are as visible as the reprobate yea Mel. in locis com cap. de Eccles they are the most eminent members of the visible Church out of which they cannot be found as Melanchton confesseth Let vs not dreame saith he that the elect can be found any where but in the visible Society of the Church But the Protestants had no visible Church before Luther therefore they had no predestinate and so many wayes this Babel is overturned The Apostles and all the ancient Christians who were predestinate were members of the visible Church and professed their faith in the time of the Heathen persecutions which were more cruel vniversal then any that has hapned since They had not Giges ring to make themselves invisible not the black arte of dissembling in religion as the invisible Protestants if there were any behoved to have which are qualities very vnbeseeming the predestinate By all which it remaines sufficiently proved that the Protestant Church cannot be the true Church For to resume briefly the argument The true Church must have still continued since the ascension of Christ to this time But the Protestant
Church hath only continued since the revolt of Luther Therefore the Protestant Church is not the true Church There is nothing more certain then the Maior The Minor hath been proved because if there had been any Protestant Church before Luther it had been either visible or invisible But there was neither Not the first because there was no Church nor person before Luther that professed entirely any Protestant Confession for any little time much lesse for the whole time between the Apostles Luther Not the second because if there had been any invisible Protestant Church before Luther it had become visible when Luther appeared and the feare of persecution was taken away But no such invisible Church did then appeare And moreover it hath been shewed that although the Protestants had had an invisible Church before Luther yet it could not be the true Church which ought to be alwayes visible and that an invisible Church is against Scriptures Fathers reason Protestants own principles disparageth the Christian religion gives great advantage to Iewes and infidels and leads men into Apostasy and Atheism And so both the holes of Visibility and Invisibility by which these foxes were accustomed to escape are now lay'd or stop't The diverse essaies which many Protestants make to find their Church shew the difficulty of the question so that they see what they ought not to say but cannot see what to say that hath any probability of truth They have travailed much to find out their Church before Luther they have been above these 100. years in seeking it and we have followed the most famous Guides among them But both they we have laboured in vaine to find that which cannot be found Yet we make much profit of our labour if we have discovered that the Protestant Church before Luther cannot be found not because it was hid but because it was not as hath been proved and therefore leave off any further search of it following S. Augustins advice who writes thus to the Donatists about the like purpose Some thing saith he may be Aug cap. 16. de vnitate Eccles and yet not found out but that which hath no being cannot be found Let them therefore leave off to seek that which they could not find not because it was hid but because it was not To this purpose spake the Catholique who vpon my desire delivered me thereafter these things more fully in writing which after serious consideration of them gave me such satisfaction that I desired him to proceed to the proof of his own Church which he did in the manner following CHAP. XXX That the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and she alone is the true Church HAVING already proved to your satisfaction said my Catholique friend to me your Church not to be the true Church and that by the vndenyable principle of the perpetuity of the Church I will now endeavour with the assistance of Gods grace to prove no lesse clearly by the same principle laying aside other proofs the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and her alone to be the true Church Which I briefly do after this manner That is the only true Church which has had a continued succession from Christ his Apostles to this time But the Church in Communion with the ea of Rome and she alone has had a continued succession from Christ his Apostles to this time Therefore the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and no other is the true Church The Maior is clear For to have a continued succession to be perpetuall is the same thing Now as we have seen above that the true Church must be perpetual or must have continually endured from Christ his Apostles to this time so it is no lesse evident that that is only the true Church which has been perpetual or has still endured This the holy Fathers do testify this the light of reason doth evince S. Hierom saith Hieron Dial. cont Lucifer I will bring a short and clear declaration of my mind that we ought to remain in that Church which being founded by the Apostles endures even vnto this day And the reason is because we ought to remain in the true Church and that according to S. Hierom is the true Church which hath still endured from the Apostles Tertull. lib. 4. contr Marcion c. 5. To the like purpose Tertullian saith That is true which is first that is first which was from the beginning that is from the beginning which was from the Apostles And therefore that is the true Church which has continued from the Apostles This same truth is also cleared by the light of reason For the true Church was first founded by Christ his Apostles before any heresies or false Churches which carie the name of Christian were or could be raised by heretiques Because truth is alway's before falshood the body is before the shaddow and the good seed is sow'n in the field before the tares Therefore that is the true Church which was first and from the beginning and consequently that is the only true Church which hath been perpetual for that only could be first from the beginning Moreover this truth is confirmed For it is certain that de facto no heresies or false Churches have continued from the primitive times because these which arose of old have long ago evanished and these which remain to this day have but for a short time endured Therefore if it be most certain that the true Church must be perpetual then it is also certain that that only is the true Church which has been perpetual since one only Christian Church hath been perpetual Yea albeit any heresy had continued even from the ancient primitive times as never any of them by Gods special providence can see so many dayes yet it could not be perpetual because it could not be first and from the beginning which only the true Church can be as we have seen but it behoved to be raised thereafter by heretiques and therefore could not be so ancient as the true Church and consequently had not perpetually endured By all which the Maior of our argument is sufficiently cleared The Minor to witt that the Church now in Communion with the sea of Rome and she alone has still endured or has had a continued succession from Christ and his Apostles to this time is proved by all the evidences whereby such a proposition can be proved whereby the holy Fathers proved it in their times For all histories all Monuments records publique fame the Consent of people Nations and as S. Augustin speaks the Confession of mankind bear witness that this Church and she alone has had a continued succession For this was the Church which in the primitive times suffered and overcame all the cruel persecutions of the Iewes Pagans this is the Church which hath converted Kings Nation from infidelity to Christianity which
hath had her gates continually open day night in all generations to receive the strength of the Gentils and in a word which has made the world Christian This is the Church which alone in allâ—ges has opposed all the heresies which did arise in their diverse ages from the beginning of Christianity and albeit they all have shut out their hornes against this Church and both by slight might have endeavoured to destroy her yet she alone hath fought against them all and gloriously triumphed over them all This is the Church which has held all the General Councels which hath condemned all errors and heresies which has had Pastors and people professing the faith in all ages without interruption and in which all the Saints Martyrs and Doctors have lived These things might be shown by a particular Catalogue of this Churches chief Pastors Councils Nations converted and publique Professors in every age if it were not too longsome and besids it is so clear that it is not here necessary especially seing the Lutheran Centurists who have raked together all they can both for themselves and against the Roman Church yet can shew the succession and continuance of no other but only of this Church And the reason of this is clear because this Church and she alone hath so clearly this succession that no other Churches which carie the name of Christian can so much as pretend to have it in the least degree of probability For it is evidently certain that all other Churches which are separated from this Church were once of her faith Communion and went vndeniably out of her and therefore they cannot be so ancient as she and consequently they have not alwayes had a continued succession from the Apostles and if they pretended it they would be most ridiculous making an evident lie against sense Therefore the Protestants wisely pretend no such thing Yea their whole Reformation is grounded vpon a contrary pretext that the whole Church had fallen into desolation grosse Errors Heresy and Idolatry which is in-indeed to pretend that the succession of the Church had failed and that they were now sent to set her vp again By all which it is seen that the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and she alone has had a continued succession from Christ his Apostles and that so clearly that no other Church can pretend to have it This same truth was testifyed by the holy Fathers in their time S. Hierom 〈◊〉 said above that he would bring a clear declaration of his mind that that is the true Church that hath still endured to witt the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome which he esteem's so much to be the true Church that he affirmes those who have no Communion with her to belong not to Christ but to Anti-Christ For thus he writes to S. Damasus Bishop of Rome With the successor of the Fisher and with the disciple of the Crosse I speak I Hior epist ad Damas following none chief but Christ hold the fellowship of Communion with thy Holynesse that is with Peters chaire Vpon that rock I know the Church to be built Whosoever shall eate the lambe without that house is a prophane person c. He that gathereth not with thee scattereth that is saith he who is not Christs is Anti-Christs This old doctrin is far different from the Presbyterians new opinions S. Cyprian saith Cyp. tract de simplicitate Prâ—tator who leaves the Chaire of Peter vpon whom the Church was built does he think to be in the Church But let vs hear S. Augustin the most glorious Doctor of the Church shewing this same truth For after he had spoken much of the sincere wisdom great holynesse and fruits of piety of the Church and of the great authority which God hath conferr'd on her he subioyns these remarkable words to his friend Honoratus Aug. de vtilite crede c. 17. Seing therefore we see so great help and assistance from God shall we make any doubt or question at all of retiriing into the bosome of that Church which to the Confession of mankind from the sea Apostolique by the succession of Bishops hath obtain'd the Soveraignity principal authority Heretiques in vain barking round about it being condemned partly by the gravity of Councels partly also by the Maiesty splendour of Miracles vnto which not to grant the chief place is either indeed an extream impiety or a very rash and dangerous arrogancy Thus he Here we see what Church in the time of the holy Fathers had this continued succession and the same is no lesse evident to this day In the Scriptures we read the prophesies and Christs promises of his Church and in this Church alone we see no lesse clearly the performances What the Scripture had foretold Aug. de vnitate Eccl. c. 8. in ps 149. here with ioy as S. Augustin speaks we may see fulfilled The Church before was only read in books and now it is seen in Nations By all which authorities evidences both the Maior and the Minor of the argument proposed are sufficiently proved to be manifest truths to witt That that is only the true Church which has had a continued succession from the Apostles to this time And that the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and she alone has had a continued succession From which the Conclusion followes clearly Therefore the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome is the only true Church of Christ You see this reason is neither new nor obscure For it was vsed by the holy Fathers as a most clear short and convincing way whereby the true Church may be known If it was so easy strong then it is no lesse but rather more evident forcible now If the succession of the Church for 3. or 4. hundred years and of 30. or 40. Roman Bishops was esteem'd so strong by the Fathers to prove the true Church how much more forcible is the successioÌ„ of the Church for above 1600. yeares above 2. hundred Bishops of the sea Apostolique to prove the same truth Nothing could be said by the AncieÌ„t Fathers in confirmatioÌ„ of this truth which may not as iustly be said now and nothing can be pretended now by the present Enemies of the Roman Church against it which might not have been as iustly preteÌ„ded by her ancient enemies the old heretiques Neither is there any way to shun the force of this Demonstration but either by affirming that the true Church had perished which is detestable blasphemy or by saying she became invisible which we have shown above to be a grosse falshood and desperate folly This whole matter may be further illustrated and confirmed There is nothing more clear in the Scripture then that the Church of Christ must still endure or have a continued succession of people professing the same faith which was taught by the Apostles Now it is no lesse clear it
after it began how furiously it ran what great noise it made how it carried down almost all with it Now you see it runs more calmly it is almost run out and the great noise of it is past Again the true Church is like the Sun ever shining in all generations according to that of the Psalmist He hath put his tabernacle in the Sun Psal 18.6 which S. Augustin expounds thus He hath placed his Church in manifestation And such has been the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome always visible and ever shining since the time of Christ But all heresies are like Comets which arise at certain times being made vp of terrestrial vapours make a great blaze so long as their grosse matter lasts but so soō as that failes they quickly evanish So indeed are heresies made vp for the most part of tēporary interests which make thē for a short time give a great glister but so soon as the grosse matter of these interests failes as it cannot laste long then they begin to shine dimnly then they languish in end evanish How great a light was the Covenant esteem'd What a great lustre did it make in great Britain so long as the interests concurred But these soon failing new lights have risen which have discocovered the former to be meerly humane have made it to languish and in a word have shown it to be a Comet Moreover the Church of Christ is frequently compared by the holy Fathers to a ship strongly built and wisely governed by Christ which ever since his time hath sailed through the seas of this world and notwithstanding the many tempests which the Divel and wicked men have raisd against her yet she riding out them all hath carried in her all these who have been saved vnto the port of Salvation She has been many wayes tossed but could never be overwhelmed For Ambros lib. de Salomone c. 4. as S. Ambrose saith excellently She cannot suffer ship shipwrak because Christ is exalted on the mast that is on the Crosse the Father sits pilot in the sterne and the holy Ghost preserves the fore-Castle Such is the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome as we have seen But heretical Churches are like little boats neither made nor governed by Christ but by new Sect-Masters who foolishly abandoned the ship of the Church Who promise a safe and more easy passage to heaven whereby many are rashly drawn to entrust their soules to them But within a short space the stormes arising these new vnskifull Pilots being of contrary iudgments fall into horrible dissensions and their passingers into bloody factions to the destruction of one another So that in end these boats which came but lately vpon the sea of this world which intended fondly to sink the Church are das't against rocks split in pieces and all these miserable soules which remain'd in them are overwhelm'd with waters Hieron epist ad Damaum For whosoever saith S. Hierom is not in the ark of Noah shall perish by the raging deluge And thus all false Churches after a little time have perished Lastly the Church is compared by Christ vnto a house built by himself as by a wise Master-builder vpon ◠rock which must stand for ever And such is the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome which hath stood vnto this day But heresies are new houses built by foolish sect◠masters not founded vpon a rock but vpon the sand which are soon shaken overthrown Wherefore to conclude I hope now through Gods goodnesse that you having seen such evidence for the truth of the Roman Catholique Church will make your self a domestique of this heavenly house which can never be shaken that you will enter into this ship which can suffer no shipwrack that you will walk in this light that can never be eclipsed and that you will runn this channel wherein all the Saints have pas't vnto paradise To this purpose spake the Catholique After I had considered diligently all these things which were given me thereafter in writing and had seen that this reason was so well grounded in the Scriptures and was vsed by the holy Fathers as a most clear and convincing way to prove the true Church I was much satisfyed therewith But yet I desired the Catholique if he would fully satisfie me to shew that the Roman Catholique Church had never changed her doctrin and had still kept that same which she had received from the Apostles For I doubt not said I but you know that the Ministers accuse her to have fallen from the Apostolique doctrin in many points and to have brought in many corruptions Wherevnto he answered that by proving the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome and her alone to have had a continued succession he had proved clearly her to be the true Church and so consequently to haue stil retained the same doctrin which was taught by Christ and the Apostles for change of doctrin changeth the Church and so the doctrin being changed the Church had not continued But said he for your more full satisfaction to take away all doubts and to dispell the mists of these calumnies I will prove the same truth by another special way CHAP. XXXI That the Church in communion with the sea of Rome holds now and has still held the same doctrin which was taught first by Christ his Apostles ALBEIT this truth hath been sufficiently proved by the continued succession of the Church yet now it shall be demonstrated by the special manner whereby this Church has received and still conveighed all her doctrin and for more clearnesse I frame my reason thus That Church which in all ages believed nothing as the doctrin of Christ his Apostles but what she received from her immediat Ancestors as their doctrin holds and hath still held the true doctrin of Christ his Apostles But the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome she alone hath in all ages received all her doctrin after that manner Therefore she alone holds and hath still held the true doctrin which was first taught by Christ his Apostles and consequently she has never changed the doctrin which she first received The Maior is proved after this manner That Church which in all ages believes the same doctrin which Christ and his Apostles taught in the first age hath ever held the true doctrin of Christ his Apostles But that Church which believes nothing as Christs doctrin but what she received as such from her immediat Ancestors believes in all ages the same doctrin which Christ his Apostles taught in the first age Therefore that Church which receives so her doctrin has ever held the same doctrin which was taught at first by Christ his Apostles The reason of this vniformity of doctrin in all ages is because that principle of receiving no doctrin as the doctrin of Christ his Apostles but what was delivered immediatly
by the Christians of the preceeding age makes the doctrin of every following age the same with the doctrin of the preceeding age and so makes the doctrin of all after ages the same with the doctrin of the first age For suppose that the Church now in this age relies vpon that principle to believe nothing as Christs doctrin but what her predecessors of the 15. age taught her to be his doctrin it is evident that the doctrin of these two ages will be the same And the Church of the 15. age relying vpon the same principle must hold the same doctrin which the Church of the 14. age held and so vpward the doctrin of the third age will be the same with that of the second and the doctrin of the second will be the same with that of the first and so if this principle has been carefully observed in all ages the doctrin of all ages will be the same with the doctrin of the first age which is the doctrin of Christ and of his Apostles The Maior then is evident The Minor is proved thus The Church now in Communion with the Roman sea holds in this age that principle For she professeth to believe nothing contrary to the doctrin of her immediat Ancestors and presumes to add nothing as Christs doctrin vnto the doctrin of her Ancestors Therefore she professeth to believe nothing as Christs doctrin but what she received as such from her immediat Ancestors If the Church of the present age professeth so as it is evident she doth then the Church of the fifteenth age behoved to make the like profession or else the Church of this age could not make it For so many persons as are now in Communion with the Roman Church cannot concurre to make so notorious sensible a lye as to say they professe nothing but what was profes't and taught by their immediat Ancestors if these of the 15. age had not made truly such a profession of the same doctrines And for the same reason these of the 15. age could not make that profession and teach it vnto this age vnlesse the 14. age had done the same and so you may ascend vpward even vnto the first age Therefore the Church professing to observe this principle now in this age hath profes't it alwayes If she has profes't it alwayes she has also observ'd it alwayes for the same reason because so many Nations as are in Commmunion of the Roman Church cannnot make so notorious a lye as to say they believe nothing but what they received from their immediat Ancestors if they believed any thing else as Christs doctrin which they had not received Therefore seing they affirm in all ages even vnto the first that they received all their doctrin from their Ancestors it must be true that they did receive it all and it must be also true that with the other doctrine they received and observed this principle To believe nothing but what has been delivered by their immediat Ancestors For this is as it were the rule ground of all particular doctrines So that by proving that the present Church in Communion with the sea of Rome professeth to observe this principle it 's proved she profes't it alwayes and by proving that she profest it alwayes it is shown she has observ'd it alwayes and this principle been alwayes profes't and observed it has been ever delivered with the rest of the doctrin as the main ground whereon the Church hath relyed by which men may come vnto the sure knowledge possession of the true doctrin which was taught by Christ his Apostles So that if the whole Church hath not made a notorious sensible lye in one age to damn themselves and their whole posterity she hath ever received all her doctrin from her immediat Ancestors and so it will be true that the doctrin of all ages is the same with the doctrin of the first age which is the true doctrin of Christ his Apostles Now it rests to be shown that this Church alone observes the former principle which is easily done For if there had been any other society of Christians which had constantly kept that principle it had also kep't the same doctrin which the Roman Church keeps as is evident by what hath been said Secondly No other Churches and especially the Protestant can so much as pretend to keep this principle For they are so far from professing to receive all their doctrines from their immediat Ancestors that at their first rising they accuse their Ancestors and the Church in their time of Errors whereof they professe themselves to be Reformers and that not by doctrin which they had received immediatly from others but what they had received or pick't out from the Scriptures by their private collections which has been the ordinary custom of all heretiques And this is evident in Protestants who do acknowledge that they have their doctrin not by the testimony of the age immediatly preceeding Luther but from him who opposed the whole Church in his time and for many ages before him which he pretended to reform by the Scriptures The whole strength of this proof is grounded vpon this manifest truth that a full report from whole worlds of fathers to whole worlds of Sons of such things as they heard and saw is altogether infallible since sensible evidence in a world of eye witnesses vnanimously concurring is altogether infallible And such is the test mony of the whole Church in every age for her doctrin that it is the very same which was delivered by Christ and his Apostles and therefore it was truly delivered by them For neither can the Church be mistaken in this testimonie since whole Nations cannot be deceived in what is told them not once or twice but what is dayly beaten into their ears what they are bred with and what they see dayly with their eyes or else we may say the whole world erres in iudging white from black Neither can all the Christians in the world dispersed through so many Nations malitiously conspire to make so notorious a lie as to say they heard this taught and saw it practised if they had not seen and heard it For that were to testify a lie in a matter subiect to sense against their greatest interest to witt the Salvation of themselvs of their posterity If it be impossible that all the persons of a great Citie and much more of a whole Nation should think affirm that they saw and heard such things which truly they neither saw nor heard How much more is it impossible that all Christians Cities Nations should think and affirm they were instructed in such doctrines saw such practices if it were not really true that they had received these doctrines seen these practices Hence it remaines evident that this continued testimony of so many Christian in every generation is a most sure infallible way to attayn vnto the certain knowledge of what
doctrin Christ his Apostles taught and that the Catholique Church by her constant treading this way has still held the same true doctrin which she first received and consequently has never changed her doctrin nor brought in corruption as the Ministers do caluminate And therefore their pretended Reformation having no other ground but this calumnie is a groundlesse imagination and a destruction of Christs true doctrin But that the truth of this whole matter may yet more fully appear I will shew you briefly that this constant testimony is the only sure infallible way to attayn vnto the certain knowledge possession of our Saviours true doctrin that it is also most easy vniuersal for all sorts of persons that the holy Fathers primitive Church did follow it and that all Errors heresies have been clearly confuted by it We have already show'n that this testimony is a sure infallible means now that it is only sure infallible Aug. cont ep fond c. 5. is shewed For if there were any other it would be the Scripture as Protestants pretend But that cannot be 1. Because we cannot beleeve the Scripture without the testimony of the Church as S. Augustin clearly avoucheth 2. Albeit we could know it without that testimony yet by the Scripture we cannot know the whole doctrin of Christ especially since the Scripture it self saith 2. Thessal 2.15 Hold fast the Tradition Thirdly principally Albeit the Scripture contain'd the whole doctrin of Christ yet how shall I know assuredly by the letter of the Scripture the true sense of it without which I have not the true doctrin of Christ Yea I may corrupt the Scripture or follow those who corrupt it as S. Peter shewes many do vnto their own perdition Here many if not all Protestants are perplexed to show how by the Scripture the true sense of it may be had Some say that the Scripture is clear in all things necessary to Salvation so that every man may easily vnderstand them Others think that the Scripture is not so clear but an Interpreter is necessary But they are divyded in assigning this Interpreter Some say the Scripture in one place expounds it self in another Others assign the private Spirit and last of all some assign for an Interpreter every mans natural reason But all these are false frivolous pretences For first they could never shew what these necessary points are Besides this is an open confession that by the Scripture we cannot know assuredly our Saviours doctrin in these points which they call not necessary Then is not the true belief of the Sacrament necessary for the Church and yet we see what contrary glosses the Lutherans Calvinists make on our Saviours clear words Lastly if there needed no Interpreter for things necessary every one although vnlearned who could but read might pick out what are necessary which troubles the most learned heads among them to find out and these who could not read behoved to pin their implicit faith at at other mens sleeves Now what confusion would this make what vncertainty would there be in this case of our Saviours doctrin And how contrary are these things to truth and experience to Protestants principles practices So it is evident that by the Scripture alone we cannot come to the sure and infallible knowledge of our Saviours doctrin Neither can we attayn to it by the Scripture assisted by any Interpreter which Protestāts assign For it is false that the Scripture expounds it self it being obscure in many places which are not interpreted by others more plaine as may appear besides other reasons by the Protestants dissenssions in many points The conference of places study and the like which some require to be ioyn'd with the Scripture are but humane helps subiect to error and not infallible Then for the private Spirit it can give vs as little assurance of the sense as it can of the letter of the Scripture We see what contrariety is among those who all equally lay claim to it Neither is the last Interpreter to witt every mans reason assigned by M. Chilingworth the last peaceable Refiner of the English Church any white better but rather worse For besids that this opinion makes humane reason not the divine authority the main ground of our faith which is a dangerous errour it is so far from bringing men vnto the sure knowledge of what our Saviour taught that it professeth no more but a moral certainty for the truth of the whole Christian religion and leaves all particular doctrines to be pickt out of the Scriptures according to the diversity of mens particular reasons And so diuerse men according to the diversity of their reasons collect from the Scriptures opposite doctrines For what some think reasonable accept others esteem vnreasonable and reiect as is evident in the Socinians who deny the divinity of Christ principally vpon this ground because it chokes their reason as the Calvinists also chiefly for the same reason deny the reall presence So that this Interpreter brings as great vncertainty to know our Saviours doctrin as any other And therefore it remaines evident that the Scripture even assisted by any Interpreter which Protestants can assigne much more the Scripture alone is not a sure infallible means for this end and consequently the testimony of the Church is the only sure infallible means But here I did enquire of the Catholique If the Scriptures were as cleer every where as S. Augustin affirmes they are concerning the Church where he saith they need no Interpreter might they not then give vs vndoubted assurance of our Saviours doctrin To which he answered That although the Scripture were never so clear and as evident in every sentence as words can be written Yet because these words may be diversly vnderstood taken indifferent senses they cannot be so sure infallible away to certifie vs what was our Saviours doctrin as the living words testimony of the whole Church which received the true doctrin and the sense together with the letter of the Scriptures which she hath constantly transmitted vnto posterity This is evident in a very principal point of the Christian religiō to witt the holy Sacrament What words can be more clear then these of our Saviour This is my body which shall be given for you c And yet vpon these clear words there are reckoned about two hundred diverse interpretations since Protestāts arose How then should a man amōg such variety of senses come vnto the true sense be sure that he has attayn'd vnto it in which only Christs true doctrin consists Therefore it is evident in this case that the written word cannot do it and this only the Church can perform which has conserved both the letter and sense of the Scriptures from corruptions If then the Scriptures although they were written in most cleer words cannot certifie vs fully of the true sense of our Saviours doctrin
how much lesse can they as they are now being in many places hard and obscure These Protestants who reiect all but Scripture would make Christ to have been the most imprudent Lawgiver that ever was in ths world to have left vs only a written law or a book in many things very obscure and expose it to every man to scance vpon without assigning an Interpreter who could give vs full assurance of the true sense of it That way would never bring men to the sure knowledge of Christs doctrine and the true sense of his law but would make all things vncertain and bring in a confusion more worthy of Babel then of the house of God But his divine wisdom hath otherwise provyded We haue seen then said the Catholique that the testimony of all Christians in every generation is the only sure infallible way Now we shall see that it is the most easy vniversal way to attayn vnto the certain knowledge of what Christ his Apostles taught For what is more easy then to hear a continued testimony of Pastors people who constantly depose that this is the doctrin which they have receiued from their Forefathers what can be more easy then to open our eys and see the practise of all Christians No man of sense will deny if the true doctrin can be surely known hereby but it is a much mor easy way then by the Scriptures which are so hard and obscure or by any written word although never so cleer And it is also evident that it is more vniversal for the Scriptures are only for those who can read and vnderstand them but this serues for all sortes of persons learned or vnlearned these who can read or cannot and even for the meanest capacities This was certainly the meaning of God when he promised vnder the Gospel a direct way so that fooles cannot erre by it Therefore this being so sure Esay 35.8 so easy so vniversal a way the wisdom goodnesse of God who disposeth all things wisely and sweetely has made vse of it This may be yet further illustrated and confirmed by the manner how the Christian religion was planted First the Apostles stayd long in one place that they might diligently inculcate the Christian doctrin as S. Paul said to the Ephesians Acts 20 27.31 I haue not spared to declare vnto you all the Counsell of God c. For three years night day I ceased not with teares to warn every one c. Secondly the Apostles earnestly exhorted their disciples to keep carefully what they had received 2. Timoth 2.2 Galat. 1.9 to entrust it vnto faithfull witnesses and not to admit any doctrin contrary to that which they had received not although an Angel from heauen should preach otherwise Thirdly The mysteries of the Christian religion were not only sensibly taught to the eare but they were rendred visible to the sight by the â—ractise devotion of the Christian people Fourthly The Christian religion was planted at once in many diverse nations Therefore it was easy for the primitive Christians to know what was the Apostles doctrin which they had heard so often beaten into their eares which they saw practised with their eys and which was profest through out the whole word and great reason had they not to receive any doctrin contrary to it It was also easy for them to discern hold out all new false doctrins For although some would pretend never so much the Scriptures against the publique doctrin of the Church yet the ancient Christians knowing certainly that the Scriptures are not contrary to the doctrin which the Apostles had clearly delivered by lively voice and publickly establish'd in the Church they vnderstood the Scriptures according to the clear rule of faith left by the Apostles They did not vpon pretext of contrariety between the doctrin of the Church the Scriptures abandon the Apostles clear lively doctrin vniversally establisht and follow a new glosse of their writings contrary to it which had been indeed grosse follie and directly against the Apostles command in the Scriptures as has been shown And as this was an easy way in the first ages to know the truth and to discern error so it has been in the succeeding ages For the rule of faith ought to be immoveable as the faith it self is God himself promiseth the continuance of this easy way when he said by Esay Esay 59.21 My Spirit which is in thee and my words which I have put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth and out of the mouth of thy seed for ever And again Vpon thy walls ô Ierusalem Esay 62.6 I haue appointed watchmen all the day all the night c. The Scripture directs vs to this way Deuter. 32.7 Remember the dayes of old saith Moyses Consider euery Generation ask thy Father and he will show thee thy Elders they will tell thee God himself saith in Ieremy Ieremie 6.16 stand you in the ways and see and ask for the old Paths where is the good way and walk therein and you shall find Rest to your soules Because many leave this old good way we see they change many wayes and can find no rest and never will vntill they return again to the old good way which they foolishly abandoned Christ directs vs to this way Math. 18.17 when he saith Tell the Church and who heares you heares me c. The holy Fathers followed this way S. Augustin shewes that this is the way to put an end to all doubts to attayn vnto the truth to be at rest which he knew by his own experience Aug. de vtilitate cred cap. 8. If thou seeme to thy self saith he to have been already sufficiently tossed and would make an end of these labours paines Follow the way of the Catholique Disciplin which has proceeded from Christ by his Apostles even vnto vs and from hence shall descend and be conveighed vnto posterity Tertullian affirmes there is no other way to know the Apostles doctrin Tertull. de praescrip c. 21. What the Apostles taught saith he I will prescribe ought no otherwise to be proued then by these Churches which the Apostles founded And that we must begin with the testimony of the Church in the time wherein we live to ascend by every generation vnto the ancient Church and so to the very mouth of Christ his Apostles the same Tertullian shewes who makes this ladder of belief Tert. de praes c. 21. What I believe I receiued from the present Church the present Church from the Primitive the Primitive from the Apostles the Apostles from Christ c. According to this tradition the holy Fathers did vnderstand the Scriptures Vincent Lyr. cont heres c. 1. S. Vincentius Lyrinensis shewes the necessity of this rule to avoid the turnings and windings of diverse errors where he cites and commends the following words of
S. Ambrose Let vs therefore keep the precepts of our Elders and not with temerity of rude presumption violate those seals descending to vs by inheritance To the same purpose Origen writeth In our vnderstanding saith he of the Scriptures Orig. tract 27. 〈◊〉 we must not depart from the first Ecclesiasticall Tradition nor believe otherwise but as the Church of God has by succession delivered vnto vs. By this way also all heresies have been clearly discovered condemned Theodoret l. 1. hist c. 8. Theodoret expresly witnesseth that the heresy of Arius was condemned by the doctrin not written which had been always profest in the Church For there was no end by Scripture the Arians pretending that as well as the Catholiques Tertullian saith There is no good got by disputing out of the texts of Scripture But either to make a man sick or mad And the reason is because albeit you would bring never so clear Scriptures the heretiques will expound all according to their pleasures and they never faile also to bring Scriptures for themselvs so that the victory is vncertain or not so evident but by the constant belief of the Church all heretiques are clearly confounded S. Athanasius by this means confounds the Arians Behold saith he we have proved the succession of our doctrin delivered from hand to hand from father to son But as for yov ô new Iewes and Sons of Caiphas Athanas lib. 1. de decret Niceni CoÌ„ what progenitors can you name for your selvs By this means also the Error of rebaptizing those who had been baptized by heretiques was refuted and the custom of the Church to the contrary prevailed over all S. Cyprians reasons and many authorities collected from the Scriptures Aug. lib. 2 de bapt c. 9. As yet saith S. Augustin there had been no General Councell assembled in that behalf but the world was held in by the strength of Custom which was opposed to those who would bring in that novelty S. Stephen Pope and Martyr wrote to S. Cyprian in these words Nihil innovetur nisi quod traditum est Let nothing be changed nothing received but what has been delivered Herevpon I proposed this difficulty that some things were believed after the definition of a General Councel which were not believed before Therefore it would seem that the Church has not always relied on that principle to believe nothing but what was delivered by the constant testimony of their immediat Ancestors To which the Catholique answered that the clearing of this difficulty would manifest the strength evidence of the former proof First said he it is evident that the principal if not all the points maintain'd by Catholiques and now questioned by Protestants did ever appear externally in the profession practise of the whole Church and were not defined by anterior Councils Therefore according to S. Augustins rule they are Apostolical Aug. lib. 4. de baptis c. 24. For that saith he which the vniversal Church doth hold and was not instituted by Councels but has been still retayn'd in the Church is most iustly believed to have descended from no other authority than from the Apostles Therefore this obiection makes nothing for the benefit of Protestants who condemn many things which were publickly vniversally profest and practised in the Church before they were by any Councils authorized Secondly These points of faith which were determined by General Councels were not defin'd as new doctrines For either they were generally constantly believed by the whole Church till some heretiques began violently to oppose them or there were some points not so generally believed practised throughout the whole Church but some Catholiques did with submission to the iudgmeÌ„t of the Church doubt of them Now it is evident that the Church in the points of the first kind believed the same thing after the definition of a General Council which she believed before as we haue seen out of S. Athanasius concerning the Divinity of Christ which was believed as well before the great Councell of Nice as after it Neither were these other points of which some Catholiques doubted defin'd as new doctrines but the whole Church assembled in a General Council after due examination having found these points to have descended by sufficient approued testimony or tradition and being assisted by Christ the head of his body which is the Church the holy Ghost the Guide of it according to our Sauiours promise special necessary providence over his Church proposeth them to be vniversally believed without any more doubt And whosoever after this definition of the vniversal Church of her supreme authority call these things any more in question become heretiques are cast out of the Church But all good Christians who had any doubt before for want of the Churches proposeall having now got that do acquiesce and are put out of all doubt for to oppose the whole Church Aug. epist 118. ad â—anuar as S. Augustin observes would be most insolent madnesse This whole matter is clear in the question of rebaptization For it was decided by a General Council according to the custom or Tradition which was opposed before the Council to S. Cyprian Therefore the same thing was a matter of faith was believed before the Council although some did not know it to be such till the Church did interpose her supreme authority declare it to be so S. Augustin shewes how much himself relies on this iudgment and that S. Cyprian would have yielded to it if in his time it had been interposed Aug lib. â— de bapt c. 4. Neither durst we saith he affirm any such thing if we were not well grounded vpon the most vniforme authority of the vniversal Church vnto which vndoubtedly S. Cyprian also would have yielded if in his time the truth of the question had been cleared declared by a General Council established Vpon the other part these who after the determination of the Council maintaynd the same error of rebaptization were esteemed Heretiques Vincent cont he es c. 9. which made S. Vincentius cry out thus O admirable change the Authors of one self opinion are called Catholiques and the followers of it Heretiques And the reason of the difference is because as S. Augustin observes An erring disputer may be suffered in other questions not diligently tried not as yet strengthned by the full authority of the Church Aug. serm 14 de verbis Apostol in these matters an error may be suffered But after the iudgment of the Vniversal Church which is the highest authority on earth has past and condemned any error then it is no more to be suffered then these who will not hear the Church are by our Sauiours command to be esteem'd as Heathens Publicans By which the difficulty proposed is clearly answered the proof stands good That the Church has alwayes believed that which from father to son has been delivered
and amongst all doctrines which have been delivered there is none descended more clearly then the irrefragable testimony of the Catholique Church either as she is dilated throughout the whole world or as she is assembled in a General Council whereof the continual practice of the Church from the beginning is a superabvndant evidence From this truth we will briefly deduce some Corollaries 1. Since we neither ought nor can arrive vnto the certain knowledge of our Saviours and his Apostles doctrin but by the testimony of the Catholique Church this Testimony is not only necessary for the knowledge of the doctrines not written but also of these which are written because the true sense of these cannot be infallibly known but by this lively rule of faith 2. The doctrines not written which have been still believed and profest in the Church are truly Apostolical divine as well as these doctrines which are contain'd in Scripture because we have the same infallible assurance for them that we have for these 3. Since the Testimony and authority of the Vniversal Church is the only means by which we can be fully assured what was the doctrin of Christ and therefore is the formal motive of our belief it followes that what ever the Church testifieth to be revealed by God has been truly revealed and ought to be beleeued whither the matters themselvs be great or small And hereby the Protestants distinction of points fundamental not fundamental is quite overturned and shewed to be impertinent Because neither of these points are beleeved for themselv's but for the divine authority revealing them and this cannot be known but by the testimony of the Church by her authority proposing them Therefor the formal motive being the same for all points they are all alike to be beleeved when they are by the same authority of the Church sufficiently proposed and in that case to deny any thing albeit never so small for the matter is a fundamental error and clearly opposite to the formal motive of our faith for which all the points of faith are beleeved and whosoever disbeleeves any thing at all so proposed denies faith to God reiects his authority 4. He who contemnes or neglects the testimony of the Catholique Church in the time wherein he lives which is a testimony beyond all exception most worthie of credit can never come to the full certain knowledge of our Saviours doctrin For that is as it were the first step of the ladder vpon which if one set not first his foote he cannot arrive vnto the top that is vnto the first age wherein Christ his Apostles lived 5. From this principle flow all the notes of the Church As first her Vnity in all points of faith For if she has alway's beleeved nothing but what was received from hand to hand from father to son by the testimony of the Christian world and all persons within her submit to the same supreme authority of one chief Pastor of General Councels the Church cannot but have Vnity in all points of faith Secondly the holynesse of the Church flowes also from the foresaid principle For if the doctrin of the Church was holy at the beginning as all Christians must confesse and the doctrin by this continual testimony remaines ever the same as hath been proved Then the Church is still holy in all her doctrines which all tend to holynesse Thirdly the Church is also Catholique For it is by the testimony of Christians in all Nations that the doctrin of Christ is infallibly conueighed vnto vs. Lastly the Church is Apostolique For it is by her continued testimony that the doctrin of Christ is known in all generations and therefore she must have a continued succession from the Apostles Wherefore to conclude I hope that I have proved now sufficiently the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome by receiving all her doctrines in all ages from her forefathers has ever kept the same doctrin which she first received from Christ his Apostles never changed it and therefore as she was so she still is the spouse of Christ being a fruitefull Mother yet a chast Virgin never parting from Christ for she could never be drawn from the doctrin which she once received from him neither by the bloody persecutions of the Pagans nor by the deceitfull pretexts and allurements of heretiques yea she never did dissemble the least Error in her deerest children Iude v. 3. but as S. Iude exhorts has ever contended earnestly for the faith once delivered to the Saints She has indeed been ever falsly accused as an Adulteresse by all heresies which are themselvs as we have seen before harlots and strumpets But she remaines pure chast Adulterari non potest Cypr. in tract de simplicitate Prelator Osee 2.19 saith S. Cyprian Sponsa Christi c. The Spouse of Christ cannot become an adulteresse she is chast incorrupt What she once knew of Christ she still holds and never at all parts from him as he never parts from his Church to which he said I will espouse thee to my self for ever S. Paul speaking of the great love of Christ to his Church saith that he delivered himself for it Ephes 5.25 c. that he might sanctifie it and present it vnto himself a glorious Church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing c. And of the indissolvible coniunction between Christ and his Church he saith This is a great Sacrament Ibid. v. 32. but I say in Christ his Church As the Iewes did loaden our Saviour with lies calumnies so all heretiques strive to defame oppresse his Spouse by the same means but all in Vain For as the innocency of Christ did appear and the whole earth was filled with his praises whereas his enemies were cloathed with shame confusion were scattered through the earth had their Temple destroyed and their Nation ruined So within a short time the vnspotted innocency purity of his spouse is manifested to the shame confusion of all heresies which being accursed by the Church with all their lies calumnies are ever at length destroyed from the face of the earth for as the Wiseman has observed Ecclesiastic c. 3. v. 11 the Mothers curse rooteth vp the foundation If it was a great sin in the Iewes that they not only refused to hear and obey Christ but also falsly accused him and many wayes lyed and blasphemed against him It cannot be a small sin in heretiques that they do not only refuse to hear the Church for which crime alone they are by Christs command to be holden as Heathens Publicans but also they falsly accuse his Spouse which he loves so deerly for an Adulteresse and charge her with Idolatry Superstition all sorts of abomination These calumnies if not blasphemies are the ground of all their new doctrines pretended Reformations By which we may know the rare fabrick
which is erected vpon it But all these lies calumnies false accusations and railings can prevaile nothing against the Church which may say truly as the Prophet David foretould of her Psal 128.1 seq How often have they impugned me from my youth How often have they impugned me But they have not prevailed against me Sinners have built vpon my back they have prolonged their iniquity Our iust Lord will cut the necks of sinners Let them all be confounded and turned back which hate Sion S. Chrysostom writing on these words of the psalme The Queen stood at thy right hand said truly and excellently of her The Church is opposed Chrysost ver 10. Psal 44. and overcomes being pursued by snaires she gets the vpper hand being provoked with wrongs and reproches she is made more illvstrious She is hurt but yields not to the print of the woūds how ever she be tossed she is not overwhelmed She endures great tempests and yet for all that suffers no shipwrack she wrestles but is not thrown down Thus he Thererefore this cloud of the Ministers calumnie to witt that the Catholique Church had changed the doctrin of Christ brought in corruptions which is the very same which all heretiques have vsed the new Arians vse to this day being dispelled I am confident that by Gods grace you see now the admirable light of the Catholique Church and therefore abandoning the darknesse of all error will walk in this light by which all the Saints have attain'd vnto the light of heaven To this effect with many more words spake the Catholique After I had diligently considered all these things the heads of which were given me in writing I did not only by Gods grace see with my vnderstanding the truth of the Catholique Church but also I was bent with my will to follow embrace it laying aside many worldly difficulties which only stood in my way And having heartily thanked my Catholique friend by whose paines charity I had received so much help I earnestly desired that for the accomplishment of the work he would assist me to consider how the true Church may be known by these 4. notes which are contain'd in the Nicen Creed and which he briefly touched above to which he willingly condescended shewing me that any man who believes the Scripture may find the true Church so manifestly there described by these properties that he may easily find her out or rather clearly see her so that S. Augustin saith Aug. conc 2. in psal 30. de vnite Eccl c. 5. lib. 1. ad Cres c. 33. The Scriptures speake more obscurly of Christ then of the Church that they are so clear for the Church that by no shift of false interpretation they can be avoided that the impudence of any forehead that will stand against such evidence is confounded and that it is prodigious blindnesse not to see which is the true Church I shall collect briefly the summe of our conferences in this matter CHAP. XXXII The true Church proved from the Scriptures first by her Vnity AS the great dissensions of our Ministers furnished to me the first occasions of my doubting that their Church could not be the true Church so the very light of Nature did shew me that the true Church being the work of God must have Vnity For what more belongs to the house of God which ought to be a house of Order then Vnity what more fitting for his Kingdom which must endure for ever then Vnity which tends to preservation what more vnbeseeming them then disorder division which at length produces ruine destruction The Scripture is full of clear testimonies to this purpose as where it is said of the Church My Dove is one my beloved is one Cant. 6. and it 's called by our Saviour one sheepfold Iohn 10 16. S. Paul doth also excellently shew the vnity of the Church in which are diverse functions by the Vnity of mans body in which are diverse members but all animated with one Spirit as the whole Church is quickned by one faith For else where he saith There is one Lord Ephes 4.5 one faith one baptism But of these other passages of Scripture which were brought there was one which had a special influence vpon me and that was our Saviours prayer in the 17. of S. Iohn where after he had prayed most earnestly for the Vnity of his Apostles he prayes also for the Vnity of the whole Church Iohn 17 20. saying Neither pray I for those alone but for them also who shall beleeve in me through their word That they all may be one as thou Father art in me and I in thee that they also may be One that the world may beleeve that thou hast sent me I did seriously ponder this reason which our Saviour brings to obtain his desire which was much vrged also by the Catholique who shew me that our Saviour declared thereby the vnity of his Church should be so admirable that the world should be moued thereby to beleeve that he was the Son of God a true Prophet sent from heaven as some Fathers have also obserued Therefore it 's evident by the Scripture that the true Church must have Vnity Apud Maldonat in hunc locum and that that cannot be the true Church of Christ which wants it And if we shall speak of the holy Fathers they are so much for this Vnity of the Church that some of them have written whole Treatises concerning it Now it is no lesse evident both to sense and reason that this Vnity agrees better to the Church in Communiō with the Sea of Rome then to the Protestant Churches or rather it agrees fully to the one and not at all to the other For who may not see by the manifold Schismes Divisions which are now among Protestants all other Sectaries as well in Doctrine as Government which we have touched above and which do dayly augment that the Protestant Churches have no Vnity Shortly after Luthers rising the Protestant Church was divided into three principal sects to witt the Lutherans Calvinists Zuinglians that we may speak nothing of the Anabaptists and Libertins But now their divisions have so multiplyed that they can hardly be numbred And these divisions are not only great for the matter being in some principal points of doctrin but also have been very great for the manner For thereby diverse Protestants have kild and destroy'd one another made bloody warres and overturned kingdome Commonwealths So that if there were no other Christian Church but the Protestant the world could not be moved by the Vnity thereof to beleeve that Christ was sent from heaven or had been a divine Architect who had built such a Babel of Confusion But if laying aside rancour preiudice we will cast our eyes vpon the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome this Vnity appears wonderfully in her For how
can it be but wonderfull to consider that this Church being dilated throughout the world in so many diverse remote Kingdomes Provinces Countreys of different languages Customs worldly interests and some of these being enemies to others in worldly affaires should all agree in the Vnity of the same Catholique faith as if they were one man Whereas all other Churches which go out from this vnder pretext of greater purity although they do not fill the earth but are comprized in small bounds fall into such horrible dissensions and divisions that they never rest till like generations of vipers they destroy one an other and oftentimes the later destroies the former as we have seen in our time The Church in Communion with the sea of Rome may be known to be the true Church by this admirable Vnity for which Christ prayed and Christ by it may be known to have been sent from heaven who had establish't vpon earth so large a Kingdome of such admirable Vnity If the Vnity of the Catholique Church were not a special blissing of God how could it fall out to her alone How could it have continued so long among such great multitudes of people as have been and are of her Communion How comes it to passe that Vnity could never be conserved among heretiques who although but few and new could never shun the curse of Division which ever destruction followes at the heels For my part I cannot resist vnto this clear reason As this Vnity in the Catholique Church proceeds principally from the blissing of God so secondarly it flowes from the ordinary means which his divine wisdome has appointed and whereof all false Churches are destitute As first from this principle that she beleeves nothing but what has descended vnto her by the constant testimony of her forefathers in all ages from the time of Christ his Apostles By which means it has been shown that she cannot but keep Vnity in faith Secondly She receives the Decrees of all General Councils which in all reason ought to be believed to preserve that which was delivered by the Apostles and if any doubt arise about the sense of the Scriptures are more able to interpret them then any other persons To which therefore all the members of the Catholique Church do modestly wisey submit their iudgments they never ransack any matter of faith once defined but it remaines ever inviolable And lastly All Catholiques submit themselves to one Supreme Pastor whom they acknowledge to be establish't by Christ over the whole Church From whom the holy Fathers do affirm that the Vnity of the Church doth much depend This person appoynted by Christ they shew out of the Scriptures to have been S. Peter to whom Christ said Math. 16.19 Iohn 21 16.18 Cypr. in tract de simplicite Praelator I will give thee the keys of the Kingdome of Heaven c. and again Feed my sheep feed my Lambs Vpon which S. Cyprian saith That Christ might shew Vnity he establish't one Chaire and he disposed by his authority the Origin of that Vnity to proceed from One c. The Primacy is given to Peter that one Church of Christ and one Chaire might be shown S. Hierom seeing the necessity of One head Hieron lib. 1. cont Iovinian for keeping Vnity saith excellently One is chosen that a head being appoynted Occasion of schisme might be taken away And that the Bishop of Rome is successor to S. Peter in that same Dignity Primacy and that the Vnity of the Church depends vpon his authority all the holy Fathers do affirm The same S. Hierom writing to S. Damasus Bishop of Rome saith Hier ep ad Damasum With the Successor of the Fisher with the Disciple of the Crosse I speak c. I am ioyn'd in Communion with thy Holynesse that is with the Chaire of Peter vpon that rock I know the Church is built who gathereth not with thee scattereth S. Augustin affirmes Aug. cont epist fundament c. 4. that the Succession of Priests from the seat of Peter to whom our Lord after his resurrection commended his sheep to be fed vntill the present Bishop held him within the lap of the Church There is nothing more ordinary with the Fathers then to reckon out the succession of the Roman Bishops from S. Peter vnto their time Aug. epist 166. Cypr. epist 73. 45. S. Augustin tearmeth the sea of their residence the Chair of Vnity and S. Cyprian calls it the beginning of Vnity the roote of the Catholique Church As by these means the Vnity of the true Church is preserved so for want of them there can be no constant Vnity in false Churches For they all reiecting the infallible testimony authority of the Catholique Church by which we are certified of our Saviours doctrine as has been shewed put their own election and private iudgment in place of it and their iudgments being diverse they make diverse faiths having no Compasse to steer by but the Scriptures which they diversly interpret according to their pleasures Neither do they submit themselv's to the sentence of any Church for they beleeve that all Churches may erre neither is their own Church constant in her sentence for one Assembly ransacks and condemns as heresy and Anti-Christian what another has defined approved as Christian truths Neither have they any supreme Pastor to whom they obey And in a word they have no bond to ty them together except sometimes worldly interest or the hatred of another religion And when these interests faile when by mutual assistance ioyn't forces they have subdued or overturned that Church which they esteem their Common adversarie then they instantly begin to be miserably scattered divided as fresh experience sheweth how after the destructiō of the late English Church the brethren of Scotland and England became hugely divided notwithstanding the solemne League Covenant which had before so straitly tyed them together Yea it is impossible for the wit of man to make it otherwise For besides that it is impossible that many men can a long time adhere to the same falshoods as we suppose all heresies to be the nature of man being so strongly bent vpon truth this confusion division followes from the nature of their principal doctrin which is the ground work of all the rest to witt that every one should have liberty of reading interpreting Scripture and iudging the Preachers doctrin thereby From which ground there must needs arise variety of sects in religion according to the various conceipts and apprehensions of people Moreover God in his iust iudgment sends ever the curse of division among heretiques for according to their sin so are they punished They endeavoured to divide the Church and themselvs are divided and so at length destroied This God promised by the Prophet Esay when he said Esay 19.2 I will set the Aegyptians against the Aegyptians and they shall fight every one
against his brother and every one against his neighbour citie against citie and Kingdome against Kingdome S. Augustin saith it is the iust iudgment of God Aug lib. de agone Christi c 29. lib 1. de bapt c 6. that those who seek nothing else but to divide the Church should themselves be miserably divided And so he shewes how the Donatists were cut into small threds S. Chrysostom affirmes that the sin of dividing the Church is so great that nothing doth so provoke the anger of God So that when we have done all other manner of good Chrysâ—st hom 11. in ep ad Ephes we deserve no lesse severe punishment for dividing the Vnity fulnesse of the Church then those who pierced divided Christs own body Salomon saith that there are six things which our Lord hates Proverb 6.16.19 and the seventh is abomination to him which is He who soweth discord among brethren How much then must he hate and abhorre those who sow discord in his Church which is his body and his spouse for which he died and for the Vnity whereof he so ardently prayed And therefore it 's no wonder to see the curse of division fall ever among them And as this division and contrariety ariseth naturally from their principall doctrin the ground of all the rest besides Gods iudgment on them so they have no way to take it away when it doth arise For albeit they pretend the word of God to be their Iugde of Controversies to which they promise all obedience yet this Iudge could never hitherto end any controversy among them and indeed it is not the word but the sword which decides all their Controversies The iust contrary is in the Catholique Church For albeit all heresies and sects do first arise out from her 1. Cor. 11.19 as the Apostle saith There must be heresies and S. Iohn affirmeth They went out from vs but were not of vs yet they do not arise from the nature of the Churches doctrin or from her principles which are constant immoveable all tending to Vnity but from the malice of the Devil And when they arise the Church loseth not her Vnity thereby For if these coyners or followers of new doctrines do not submit themselvs to the iudgment of the Church they are iudicially cutt off from that body from which they first cut themselvs by misbeleef and by this means the rest of the body is preserved entire and at Vnity within it self So that when any question ariseth the Church has a solid way to take away all Controversie and to preserve Vnity But the Protestants principles tend to division and they have no means to take it away as has been shewed Since then it is so evident by the Scripture that the Church of Christ must have Vnity it is no lesse evident that that cannot be the true Church which wants Vnity and is full of Dissensions Divisions as the Protestant Church appeares now evidently to be even to the weakest vnderstandings by her great Schismes and divisions both in doctrin government And therefore he who believes a Church of so great division or confusion to be the true Church cannot be said to follow the Scriptures but rather to controul them and to follow his own fancies Whereas the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome by her admirable Vnity both in doctrin disciplin all the world over even to the least article or point of faith may be easily seen to be the true Church of Christ which was founded by him and he by the same Vnity may be known to be the true Messias who was sent from heaven CHAP. XXXIII The true Church proved by her holynesse THE second mark whereby the true Church is described in the Nicen Creed is Holynesse I beleeve One holy c. Church which property is also assign'd to her in the Apostles Creed I beleeve the holy Catholique Church Besides these authorities the very light of Nature and the Scripture show that the true Church ought to be holy For this being a society of people ordain'd by God for a most holy end to witt to enioy himself who is the Holy of Holies for all eternity must have holynesse of doctrin to direct them and holynesse of life to bring them to so holy an end This the Prophet David sheweth Psal 92 vers vlt saying Holynesse becometh thine house O Lord for ever S. Paul saith that Christ delivered himself fâ—r his Church that he might sanctifie it c. that he might present it to himself Ephes 5.26.27 a glorious Church not hauing spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it may be holy and vnspotted It is evident then by the â—reed by the light of Nature and by the Scriptures that the true Church must be Holy And the holynesse of it for our present purpose consists principally in two things to wit in holynesse of doctrine holynesse of life Therefore that Church which teacheth impious doctrin and wherein there is little or no holynesse of life cannot be the true Church Let vs then briefly see to which Church whither to the Protestant or to the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome this mark of Holynesse doth best agree First concerning doctrin I find that the first Apostles of Protestants teach doctrin directly repugnant to the goodnesse of God to the Nature of man to the holynesse of the Christian Sacraments to the observation of Gods commandments besides many other particulars Calvin the great Foundatour of Pressbytery teaches that God is the Author of sin for thus he writeth Cal lib. 1. instit cap. 18 par 3. Now I have clearly enough shewed that God is called the Author of all these things which these Controwlers to witt the Papists will have to fall forth by his idle permission onely And such things which according to Catholiques God willeth not but only permits are sins of which Calvin there speaks as of the blindnesse and tyranny of Achab of the incest of Absalon and the like of which he calls God the Author Again he saith Man by the iust impulsion of God Ibid par 4. doth that which is not lawfull for him to do And of Pharao he saith Deus voluit vtique illum iussui suo non obtemperare immo vt ei repugnaret In Rom. pc 454. ipse in eo effecit God willed him not to obey his Commandment yea he himself wrought that in him that he might disobey it Many more places are collected by Becan in a Treatise which he wrote on this subiect de Authore peccati Where he cites diverse testimonies of Beza and other Protestant Authors to the same purpose Now that this is an impious opinion and against the very clear light of nature is evident For all men conceive by natural instinct that God is not only good in himself but also goodnesse it self the Author and fountain of all goodnesse But
how can he be goodnesse itself and the Author of goodnesse if he be the Author of wickednesse A holy Father saith Basil quod Deus noe sit auctor malor It 's the same madnesse to deny God and to say he is the Author of sin For if he be the Author of sin he is not good if he be not good he is not God The Manicheans taught the same impiety but with this difference that they made not the good but the evil God the Author of evil Moreover it 's evident that God cannot be the Author of that whereof he is the punisher But he is the punisher of sin Therefore he cannot be the Author of it I know some Protestants strive to make a faire face vpon this doctrin of Calvin but all in vain for it is so black and vgly of it self in the tearmes which he vseth that as it is in the proverb these who would blanch it vndertake to wash a black-Moore The text is so bad that it can admit no good Commentarie Feuardentius lib. 2. Theomachiae Calvinisticae cap. 12. So that the Lutherans in Germanie have condemned it as contumelious against God pernicious to mankind and the Zuinglians of Berne caused Calvins books wherein these black errors were contain'd to be burnt publickly by the common Executioner He teacheth also some doctrin no lesse pernicious in the iudgment of many concerning predestination as that God by his only will has ordaind many without any consideration of their merits to damnation Cal. lib. 3. Inst c. 22. par 2. His words are these By his only will and without any consideration of their merits they are predestinated to eternal death Such doctrin which transformes God into the Devil and represents him as the greatest Tyrant imaginable cannot be holy no more then he who taught it can be heavenly albeit he be much esteem'd by the Presbyterians who keep still this doctrin lying at their hearts though vpon some occasions they are ashamd to profess it Secondly As he robs God of his goodnesse so doth he also spoile man of his free-will which is not only false against common experience and the confession of mankind for as S. Augustin saith no fewnesse of the learned Aug. lib. de vera relig c. 14. no company of the vnlearned do deny it but also in the iudgment of many Protestants it makes all exhortations admonitions and threats which are so frequent in the Scriptures both vselesse and ridiculous it hinders all exercise yea and attempt of vertue holynesse and with the opinion of Gods absolute decree of reprobation it brings men to despaire Thirdly their doctrin of the impossibility to keep the divine commandments even with the assistance of Gods grace we have seen above to be iniurious to the goodnesse wisdom and iustice of God to be a great hindrance of the growth of piety and of the care of a good life from which wicked doctrin flowed the impious sect of the Anti-Nomians To which if we shall add that doctrin which they call the life of their religion to witt their iustification by a special faith only whereby they beleeve that all their sins are forgiven them what a wid gate is opened to all licentious liberty to the neglect of piety and of all good works Their doctrin also concerning the Sacraments is not holy which robs them of all grace and vertue of sanctification In a word if the proper doctrines of the Presbyterians be impartially considered there is almost nothing amongst them which hath appearance of holynesse or any invitation to it For they do not esteem their Churches holy they have no holy ornaments no holy Vessels no holy rites or Ceremonies no holy dayes or festivities no holy forme of publique worship or service of God and nothing that setteth forth the Maiesty magnificence of God or that can breed respect or reverēce in man Yea their principles if they be followed lead to prophanesse or Atheism whereof I will bring some few instances The first is of one named Godefridus a Valle who wrote a book Becan opusc disp An Deus sit Auctor peccati cap. 17. which he entitled Of the art of beleeving nothing In which he said all other things false and one only thing true as Becan relates to witt that he who would become an Atheist should first be a Calvinist as himself had been For from that doctrin of Calvin that God is the Author of sin and that by his absolute decree of Reprobation he had preordain'd the most part of men vnto damnation without any regard of their works but only for his own pleasure he collected that such a God was a most cruel Tyrant Therefore he would rather deny there was a God then acknowledge such a God And therevpon he became a profest Atheist and was burnt publickly in Paris in the yeare 1572. Another instance fell out not long ago in our own Countrey on another subiect For as the Presbyterian Ministers generally teach that the Church is no more holy then any other place nor no more reverence due vnto it except only when the Minister is preaching so a great Apostle of the Covenant taught that doctrin very eagerly in Aberdeen the fruite whereof did shortly thereafter appear For a covenanting souldier of the Saints army was found within few dayes in the Colledge Church of that town in vncivil conversation with a woman and being brought before the same Minister as I was credibly informed who did exaggerate the grievousnesse of the crime from the holynesse of the place he answered that there was neither preaching nor praying in the Church at that time By which he confounded the Minister Now of a long time they keep their Churches shut both night and day except only at such times as the Minister is to preach I knew also a young Lady who took great scandal at a Ministers sermon wherein he vndertook to prove against the Papists the impossibility of living chastly which doctrin she truly said was very dangerous to young people and loosed the reines to all lasciviousnesse So that in many points both concerning God and man the Sacraments the Commandments we see the Presbyterian Church is not holy in doctrin But on the other part the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome teacheth most holy doctrin in all these points For first concerning God she teacheth that in him there are all perfections in an infinit degree that he is not only good in himself but the fountain of all goodnesse and that no evil can proceed from him That he is neither the cause Author or approver of sin That he is so good that he would not permit sin to be vnlesse he could draw good from it That he has predestinate no man to damnation but only for sins which they willingly freely commit This is the doctrin of the Catholique Church and of the holy Fathers Aug. in Enchir. c. 100. S.
and others is confessed by the Centurists The approved sanctity of S. Francis Xaverius a Iesuite who in the last age converted sundry Nations of the east Indies is testifyed by Hacluite a Minister in his book of Navigations where he doth highly praise him Luther confesseth that in the Papacy is the very kernel of piety Breirly cites the words of diverse Protestants who acknowledge that there are many holy men women in the Roman Church that Protestants are not to be compared vnto them in the least degree and that the Catholique Church hath many excellent orders and holy institutions Apol. tract 2. c. 3. sect 9. subd 1. post F. for curbing of sin and advancing of piety whereof Protestants are destitute This must be a strong truth which extorts confession from Adversaries and this Confession is a most convincent proofe against themselves Moreover amongst many of the Catholique Church there is found not an ordinary but a sublime degree of holynesse For many persons in all ages of the greatest quality honour riches have renounced the world all its pleasures that they might serve and enioy God more freely so that they have not only by Gods grace kept but also gone beyond the commandments as S. Chrysostom speaks S. Augustin describing the manners of the Catholique Church in his time after an excellent apostraphe concerning the holynesse of her doctrin saith vnto her concerning holynesse of life Aug. lib. de morib Eccl Cat. c. 30. Deservedly with thee the divine Commandments are kept far and neer By good right with thee are many given to hospitality many dutifull many mercyfull many learned many chast many holy many so burning with the love of God that in highest abstinence from all worldly pleasures incredible contempt of the world they delight only in the desert And thereafter shewing the diverse degrees of holy persons in the Catholique Church as of the Anachorits who liv'd in the wildernesse of the Monks who liv'd a part by themselvs and of others who were gathered together into Communities of religious women who separating themselvs from the company of men served God chastly diligently and having described their diverse manner of living their divin contemplations fervent prayers frequent fastings and the rest of their holy exercises he saith of the Anachorits not without admiration Aug. ibid. cap. 31. What is it I beseech you that these men who cannot but love man do see and yet can be without the sight of man Truly whatever it be it must be more excellent then all humane things since for the contemplation of it a man can live without man And a little after To whom this excellent hight of holynesse doth not appear of it 's own accord worthy of admiration how can it appear to him by our words Then of them all he professeth himself vnable to praise sufficiently these holy manners these holy orders and institutions and if he would vndertake to do it he would be affrayed lest he seemed to detract from them as if they would not please men by the simple relation of theÌ„ In end as this were an vndeniable truth appealing to the heretiques own iudgment he saith These things O Mâ—nichaeans reprove if you can But if there had been any Presbyterians in his time he had found them not only reproving these most holy things but also renouncing abiuring and accursing them as may by known by their Covenant practice at the beginning of their Reformation In this indeed the Presbyterians go beyond the Manicheans S. Augustin proceeds to the praise of the holynesse of the Clergy the Bishops Priests Deacons whose vertue he saith is so much the more wonderfull how much it 's more hard to keep it in such a kind of troublesome life amongst so great a multitude of persons with whom for their spiritual goods they do converse And yet he saith that he knew many holy persons in all these vocations as also many of the laytie of all ranks qualities living holyly in the world as if they did not vse the world and who would willingly forsake all wordly things before they forsook the love and service of God This Description of the ancient Catholique Church which the Catholique shew vnto me did represent very clearly to my sight how fitly the present Catholique Church doth agree with it in all these holy orders and Institutions and it did no lesse evidently manifest vnto me how monstruously the present Protestant Church is different from it Lastly diverse histories as well of Enemies as of friends have recorded many famous miracles wrought in the Catholique Church for confirmation of her doctrin and for manifestation of the holynesse of some persons who have lived dyed in her Communion The Magdeburgian Centurists although Protestants have recorded many great miracles done by Catholiques in the 13. chapter of every Century for 1300. years together after Christ Therefore since holynesse of life doctrin testifyed by Miracles from heaven hath in all ages from Christ been found eminently in the Roman Catholique Church and in no other we may most iustly conclude That she and no other is the true Church and lawfull spouse of Christ Aug. epist 50. ad Bonifacium S. Augustin saith The Catholique Church alone is the body of Christ c. out of this body the Holy Ghost quickens no man And a little before For as a member if it be cutt off from the body of a living man cannot retain the Spirit of life so a man who is cut off from the body of Christ the Iust cannot retain the Spirit of Iustice CHAP. XXXIV The true Church demonstrated by her Vniversality for which she is called Catholique AS the true Church is designed in the Apostles Creed by her holynesse so is she also by her Vniversality I beleeve the holy Catholique Church She is clearly also described by the same vniversality Genes 12.17 in the Scripture God said to Abraham In thy seed all the Nations of the earth shall be blessed The Prophet Esay foretould the same when he said of the Church All Nations shall flow vnto it Esay 2.2 Psalm 2. God promised this to Christ I will give thee the Gentils for thine inheritance the vtmost bounds of the earth for thy possessions Christ himself declared it Luke 24.47 when he said that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name vnto all Nations beginning from Hierusalem S. Paul said to the Colossians Coloss 1.6 that the Gospel was in all the world fructifyed Therefore to forbear from citing more testimonies it 's evident by the Creed by the Law and the Prophets by the Psalmes and the holy Apostles and by Christ himself the most true describer of his own body that his Church must be Catholique or Vniversal for place having the Communion of all Nations She must be also Vniversal for time that is she must endure from the time of Christ
vnto the end of the world as we have seen above in the perpetuity of the Church For of Christs kingdom Luke 1.33 Mat. 16.19 there shall be no end and the gates of hell shall not prevaile against his Church These places of Scripture are so clear for the Vniversality of the Church that S. Augustin having produced them against the Donatists for the same purpose affirmeth Aug. de Vnitate Eccl. c. 11. no man how blunt so ever he be and slow of heart can say I did not vnderstand them That none but heretiques with head-strong frowardnesse and blind fury can bark against them And that no excuse is left for those who do not beleeve them because they contradict Christs clear words The next thing then that we are to do is to see to what company of Christians whither to Protestants or to those Christians who keep Communion with the Sea of Rome this property of Vniversality by which the true Church is so clearly described doth best agree We need not make great search in this matter For if we will speak of the time before Luther the Church in Communion with the Sea of Rome was so much Catholique in regard of Protestants that there was no little company yea nor one person at all of the Protestant religion to be seen or found to contest with her for this glorious title of Catholique Whereas from Luther vpward in every generation she may be proved by the most famous testimonies histories records Monuments in the world to have been alwayes Catholique that is to have been a most ample Society keeping the Communion of Nations and to have been most eminent above all other religions sects and heresies that went out from her which being condemned by this Church were as vnprofitable boughs cut off from the vine and so remaining where they fell in petty corners of the world did soone wither and decay Again if we will make now the comparison between the Church in Communion with the Roman sea and the Protestants Churches since Luther arose we shall find the last come very short of the other for Vniversality and that for the same very reason which S. Augustin brought against the Donatists Aug. de Vnit. Eccl c. 3. These sects saith he are not found in many Nations where this to witt the Catholique Church is and this which is every where is found also even where these sects are So it may be said Protestants are not to be found in many Nations where the Catholique religion is profest and Catholiques may be found where ever Protestants are For all the diverse sorts of Protestants are comprized within Europe and possesse only the Northern parts thereof there being some most famous large kingdomes provinces even within Europe where they are not to be seen or found as in all Spaine Italy Sicily and in others they are but scantly sowen as in France Poland Germanie where they are not a handfull to the Catholiques And in these Northern places which they possesse out of which they banished by force the publick exercice of the Catholique religion and still persecute the professors of it there are not deficient Catholiques who in the midst of the enemies of their religion have alway's profest their faith But in other parts of the world where the Catholique religion doth wonderfully flourish the name of Protestants is not so much as known For the Catholique religion is not only publickly professed in the most famous Kingdomes and Provinces of Europe but also it is to be found in Africk Asia and America And albeit in diverse Countries the publick profession be Heretical Mahometical or Heathnih yet even there the Catholique Roman Church hath Fathers and children professing her faith and what she lost by the falling away of Protestants in Europe she has gained with much encrease by the propagation of the Catholique faith in the East and West Indies now of late in the great Kingdom of China where many thowsands have ēbraced the faith If then the Society of Christians in Communion with the Roman Church remaines still Catholique notwithstanding that the Protestants have falne away from her and albeit they would muster together all their forces against her how much more is she Catholique in regard of Protestants if they be taken a part by their diverse sects scattered troops as in all reason they ought to be For none should be esteem'd of one religion but these who are of one Communion and therefore since Vniversality doth necessarly include Vnity no Protestant Church can be further Vniversal then her Communion is spread which will be found to be so little a way that every one of those Protestant Churches especially being compared with the Roman Catholique will deserve rather the title of particular then of Vniversal Moreover the holy Fathers have observed that as the Church in Communiō with the sea of Rome has ever had the thing signifyed by the word Catholique so she alone has ever possessed the glorious title of Catholique whereof heretiques have been very ambitious but could never obtain it S. Augustin did esteem the title of Catholique so plain an evidence of the true Church Aug. cont epist fund c. 4. that he said In the bosome of the Church the very name of Catholique holds me which not without cause amongst so many heresies that Church alone hath so obtayn'd that although all heretiques would have themselvs called Catholiques yet when a stranger enquires any of them where the Catholiques do assemble no heretique is so bold as to shew him his own meeting place Again he saith Idem lib. de vera relig c. 6. We must hold the Communion of that Church which is called Catholique both by her owne and by strangers This name of Catholique the true Church received from the Apostles to make her be known from all hereticall Congregations which she has ever caried as a badge of truth a title of great honour S. Cyril expounding the Apostles Creed saith Cyril Hierosol Catech. 15. For this end thy faith has given to thee this article the holy Catholique Church that thou mayst avoid the polluted Conventicles of heretiques And a little after When thou commest into a Town enquire not simply where the Temple of our Lord is for heretiques also call their dens Temples Neither ask simply where the Church is but ask where is the Catholique Church For that is the proper Name of this holy Church Vpon the other part as no heresies could ever be Vniversal for time or place for he who has prescribed bounds to the Sea has also ordain'd that no heresie can cover the earth so by the divine Providence they could never obtain the title of Catholique but were ever denominated from their Authors as Arians Pelagians Lutherans Calvinists or from some accident as Protestants for protesting against the Emperours Edicts Hierom. cont Luciferianos which sorts of names S. Hierom affirmes to be
evidēt marks of the Synagogue of Anti-Christ Neither indeed can any new sects with any probability call themselvs Catholiques For what would be more ridiculous then if the Independents or Quakers who are of so late standing and of so litle extension would stile themselvs Catholiques this word signifying Vniversality both of time place which they evidently want The same may be as iustly said of the Presbyterians or of any other Protestant Congregation And if any of these sects were so vnwise as to call themselvs so they would not be vnderstood but taken for Papists I remember that my Catholique friend shew me that it has been an ordinary custom of those who separat themselv's from the Catholique Church when they see that they neither have the thing signifyed by the word Catholique nor can obtain the title of it to shew themselvs enemies to both This the old Donatists did who pretended that it was not necessary Aug. cont Crescon l. 3. c. 66. the true Church should have communion of Nations or be Vniversal that truth is often among a few and that it was the fault of many to erre This same some Protestants do pretend Against which may be opposed the words of S. Augustin Aug. epist 48 who saith As he shall be Anathema or accursed who preacheth that neither Christ suffered nor rose again because we learned by the Gospel that it behoved Christ to suffer and to rise again the third day so he shall also be anathema whosoever preacheth the Church to be elswhere then in the Communion of all Nations because by the self same Gospel we learn in the words next following pennance to be preached in his name and remission of sins throughout all Nations Then for the word Catholique Luther was so great an enemy to it that he tooke it out of the Apostles Creed putting the word Christian in place of it Our Presbyterians ordinarly abstain from the word Catholique turning it Vniversal Beza in praefat novi Testam Beza calls it the vain tearme Catholique A great Apostle of the Covenant shew both his envie anger at this word For when a Gentlemā in the North who had been summoned not long ago to give an account of his faith before the Presbytery of Aberdeen had profest himself to be a Catholique the said Apostle was offended with that title and willed him to call himself a Papist which he neglecting to do the Min̄ister thē enquired of him If the women of his religion called themselvs Catholiques also Which question had such an vncivil sense as he proposed it that some of his more modest brethren sitting in iudgment with him shew both by their Countenance and words their dislike of his vncivility S. Augustin relates how the Donatists also were great Enemies to the word Catholique calling it a humane forgerie or fiction Aug. lib. 1. cont Gaudent c. 33. which the holy Father calls words of blasphemie To conclude therefore this point As it is evident both by the Creed and by the Scripture that the true Church must be Catholique so it 's very clear certain that the Protestant Church before Luther was not Catholique that as yet it is not Catholique and by all appearance never will be For according to the nature of heresie it gote all what it possesseth at the first hurle and these 80. years it hath made no progresse but rather by its own divisions hath gone backward and has been still on the loosing hand Therefore the Protestant Church not being Catholique cannot be the true Church Vpon the other part it is no lesse evident that of all Christian societies the Church in Communion with the sea of Rome was the Catholique Church in the time of the Apostles as it was also in the time of S. Augustin and of the holy Fathers and ever since it has had the Communion of Nations kept all General Councels made decrees condemned all Errors heresies And in a word what the holy Scriptures have so clearly fore-tould of the Vniversality of Christs Church and of the conversion of Gentils from infidelity to Christianity hath been accomplished in this Church alone and performed by her members Therefore this Church and no other is the holy Catholique and true Church of Christ CHAP. XXXV The true Church proved by her continued succession lawfull vocation of her Pastors for which she is called Apostolique BY this note or property of Apostolique the holy Fathers and auncient Councels would have the true Church clearly known and distinguished from all new sects heresies The Church is called Apostolique principally for two reasons First because it was founded by the Apostles and from their time must continue vnto the end of the world Secondly because the Pastors thereof derive their Mission from the Apostles by ordinary calling personal succession In the first sense the true Church is clearly distinguished from all sects and false Churches because they were not founded by the Apostles but by some new pretended Reformers who arose after the Apostles in their several generations and therefore these new Churches founded and erected by them are not called Apostolique but have their denomination from their founders such as the Arians Pelagians Lutherans Calvinists In the second sense she is also clearly distinguished from false Churches because they have not lawful Pastors deriving their vocation from the Apostles by a continued and vninterrupted succession but intrude themselvs into the office of Pastors without any lawfull calling Of the first sense of the word Apostolique we have spoken sufficiently above when we proved the true Church by her perpetuity and continued succession and disproved all false Churches for want of it which proofes need not to be here repeated Of the second sense of the word Apostolique we shall here briefly speak Besids the authority of the Creed it is evident by the Scriptures that there must be alwayes Pastors in the Church lawfully called to that charge God saith by the Prophet Esay vpon thy walls Esay 62.6 ô Ierusalem I have appointed watchmen all the day and all the night They shall not hold their peace for ever Ephes 4.11 The Apostle S. Paul sheweth how our Saviour performed this promise by appoynting Pastors and Teachers To the consummation of the Saints for the work of the Ministerie for the edifying of the body of Christ till we all meet in the Vnity of faith Our Saviour also has promised his continual assistance vnto the Pastors of his Church Behold Math. vlt. I am with you always even vnto the consummation of the world As there must be always Pastors in the Church so they must be lawfully called to that charge or else they are not Pastors but Theeves and Robbers S. Paul saith Heb. 5.4 Rom. 10 15. no man takes vpon him that honour but he who is called of God as Aaron And again how shall they preach vnlesse they be sent◠God in the old Testament reproved
fruitfull in produceing Saints But the Protestant Church teacheth doctrines which tend to prophanesse to the neglect of piety of all good works and she is so barren in produceing Saints that she professeth to bring forth none but those who continually or dayly break mortally Gods Commandments The true Church according to the Scriptures must be Catholique or Vniversal and must convert all Nations from infidelity to Christianity But the Protestant Church is only in parts pettie corners of the earth and has never as yet converted any Nation of Infidels but according to the nature of heresy has only perverted some ill Catholiques The true Church must ever have true Pastors lawfully called and ordained deriving their Succession by an vninterrupted line from the holy Apostles But the Protestant Churches first Pastors succeeded to none and without any lawfull Vocation ordination did intrude themselves by Vsurpation into the Pastoral office as all their successors have done The true Church adheres so closly to the truth that she is called in the Scriptures The pillar ground of truth 1. Timoth 3.15 But the Protestant Church is so inconstant passing from one falshood into another that she may be called the Pillar ground of Error The true Church according to Christs promise is ever directed by the Spirit of truth into all truth But the Protestant Church is misgoverned by the Spirit of giddinesse as is known by fresh experience These considerations besides others make me see the great darknesse wherein I lay and have made me to admire of my former blindnesse that I reading so frequently the Scriptures did not see the monstrous difference which is between the Church of Christ there so clearly described and the Protestant Church to which not one propertie of the true Church contain'd in the Scriptures doth agree This shew me how necessary it is to read the Scriptures with attention and to implore the Divine Maiesty for spirituall illumination without which darknesse will seem light and light darknesse But in the holy Catholique Church I found not only promise but also perforformance of truth I found her faith to be more pretious then gold which is tried by the fire as S. Peter speaks 1. Pet. 1.7 which after greatest opposition and triall doth ever shine more brightly I found in this Church clearly fulfilled all the Prophesies and that to her do agree all the properties of the true Church described in the Scriptures For this is the Church which alone has endured since the time of the Apostles This is the Church which as a Citie seated on a hill could never be hid but as a Candle set vpon a Candlestick hath enlightned the whole world This is the Church which has been admirable for its Vnity and eminent for its sanctity replenishing the heaven with innumerable Saints who have all lived and died in the bosome of her Communion This is the Church which is Vniversal for time place which has had her gates continually open night and day to receive the strength of the Gentils which she alone has converted from infidelity to Christianity This is the Church which has had a continued succession of Pastors descending without interruption from the holy Apostles This is the Church which adheres so closely to the faith she once received that she would never part from it nor yield in one syllabe or letter neither to Heathnish cruelty nor to heretical impiety and which neither force nor flatterie could ever shake so that she may be iustly called the Pillar ground of Veritie This Church is the chast Virgin Spouse of Christ which has been ever falsly accused as an Adulteresse by all Heretical Strumpets and has been even overloaden with their Calumnies but she has alwayes adhered vnto her heavenly spouse who in his own time has manifested her innocencie and brought confusion on her Enemies And in a word this is the Church which is admirable for its order and government for its supreme authority and invincible strength for its heavenly doctrin and great holynesse and lastly for her power of working miracles What then can I do more fitly then after so great darknesse to embrace so clear a light after so many dangerous errors and wandrings to put my self in the direct way of Salvation and incorporat my self without delay into this one holy Catholique Apostolique Church wherein all the holy Fathers all the Saints have liv'd and dyed What can I vse more properly then the words of S. Augustin who saith to this purpose since we see so great help of God Aug. dt vâ—il credendi c. 17. so great profit and fruite shall we make any doubt at all to retire vnto the bosome of that Church which from the Apostolique Sea by succession of Bishops has obtaind the Soveraign authority heretiques in vain barking round about it c. To which not to yield the Primacy is either a matter of greatest impiety or of precipitat arrogancy The same Motives which held S. Augustin within the Catholique Church have drawn me vnto it To witt Idem cont epist fund c. 4. the Consent of People and Nations Authority begun by Miracles nourished by Hope enlarged by Charity and Confirmed by Antiquity The Succession of Priests from the Seat of Peter vnto the present Bishoprick And last of all the very name Catholique which not without cause this Church has only obtaind among so many Heresies Iohn 1.41 Iohn 4.29 As then S. Andrew and the Woman of Samaria were glad when they found the Messias foretould by the Prophets because they were sure to find with him all truth So am I no lesse overioyed to have found the true Church foretould and clearly described by the Messias for with her I am sure to find all truth since she is the Pillar and ground of Truth and Christ has promised to her the Spirit of truth to remain with her for ever to lead her into all truth As the Apostles believed Christ for the voice of God the Father who said Mark 9.7 Luke 10.16 This is my beloved Son heare him so I believe the Church for the voice of God the Son who said Who heares you heares me and who despiseth yow despiseth me Math. 18.19 and who will not hear the Church let him be to thee as a Heathen a Publican And as the holy Apostles did believe Christ in all things because he received all from his father so I believe the Catholique Church in all points because she has received all her doctrines from Christ his Apostles and has faithfully retaind them This Catholique Church is she alone which Lactan. lib. 4. divinar Instit c. vlt. as an auncient Father writeth retaines the true worship This is the fountain of truth and House of Faith This is the Temple of God into which if one do not enter or from which if one go astray he is a stranger from the hope of life
get no more rest Next as you falsly pretended your faith to be contain'd in the word of God so now as groundlesly you pretend the Catholique faith to be condemned by the same word which as yet you could never make good in any one point It is true indeed that the Catholique Church is condemned by the Church of Scotland But it is as true that the Church of Scotland is condemned by the Catholique Church which is of far greater authority and which has iudged condemned all former Heresies and Triumphed over them Now followes your dismall song with your abiurations detestations of the Faith Order Disciplin of the Catholique Church and first you strick at the Visible head and Governour of it vnder Christ whom you call Anti-Christ detesting his Authority which you call vsurped The principal reason for which you beleeve this strange article of your faith to witt that the Pope is Anti-Christ is because he claimes Primacy over other Bishops and extends his care over the whole Church which he affirmes to be committed to his charge as vnto S. Peters Successor If your reason were good then S. Peter himself had been the first Anti-Christ For both the Scriptures and Fathers show that he received from Christ the primacy over the other Apostles and that the care of the whole Church was entrusted to him S. Mathew shewes that Peter was the first of the Apostles The names saith he Math. 10 2. of the Apostles are these the first Sâ—mon who is called Peter Now Peter was not first in calling but in preeminence For as S. Ambrose saith in 2. Cor. 12. Andrew first followed our Saviour before Peter and yet the Primacy Andrew received not but Peter The same is showed by the change of his name which Christ promised in the 1. of S. Iohn and thereafter performed Math. 16. in S Mathew where he said Thou art Peter or a Rock and vpon this Rock will I build my Church c. And I will give vnto thee the keyes of the Kingdome of heaven c. This change of the name of Simon into Peter foretold by Christ and thereafter performed by him is not without great mystery and these excellent privileges which our Saviour promised to him of the keyes of the Kingdome of heaven of binding and loosing do show that he was particularly to grace and advance him above others which he performed after his resurrection when he said to him Feed my sheep feed my Lambs giving him thereby the charge of his whole flock 5. Iohn 21.16 The same Supremacy of S. Peter may be showed by many other preeminences recorded in Scripture as how Christ prayed particularly for him that his faith might not faile and payed Tribut for him but for brevities sake they are omitted Now we shall briefly see how the holy Fathers vnderstood these Scriptures S. Gregory the great saith Greg. lib â— â—pâ—st 7 â— It is manifest to all persons who know the Gospell that from our Lords own mouth the â—â—re of the whole Church was 〈◊〉 to S. Peter the Prince of the Apostles for to For what end saith he did Christ shed his blood Chrysost lib. 2. de Sacerdotio Aug. epist 86. but that he might purchase these sheep the care of which he committed to S. Peter and his successors S. Augustin calls S. Peter the Head of the Apostles the Gate-keeper of heaven and the Foundation of the Church S. Cyprian saith Cypr. epist ad Iulian. We hold Peter the Head and Roote of the Church And in a word all the holy Fathers affirm the same They do likwise acknowledge that the Bishops of Rome are S. Peter successors in that supreame Authority S. Athanasius writing to Pope Liberius saith Athanas epist ad liber Ep. ad Felicem For this cause the Vniversal Church is committed to you by our Lord Iesus that you should labour for all men And again writing to Pope Felix he saith Thou art Peter and vpon thy foundation the Pillars of the Church that is the Bishops are fortified S. Augustin saith Aug. ep 165. in the Romaâ— Church the Principality of the Apostolique Chair did ever flourish And elswhere Number the Priests from the Sea of Peter Aug. in psal cont part Donati and in that order of Fathers see who succeeded to another This is the Rock which the proud gates of hell do not overcome To which we shall only add the testimony of S. Bernard who writes thus to Eugenius Thou art he to whom the keies of heaven are delivered â—ern l. 2. de consid c. 8. and to whom the sheep are committed there be other Porters of heaven other Pastor of flocks but thou â—â—st â—â—â—erited in more glorious and different sort For they have every 〈◊〉 their particular sâ—ock but to thee all Vniver-â—â—◠〈…〉 of all the Pastors themselvs But thou wilt ask me how I prove that even by our Lords word For to whom of all I say not only Bishops but Apostles were the sheep so absolutely and without limitation committed If thou lovest me Peter feed my sheep He saith not the people of this kingdome or that Citie but my sheep without all distinction So S. Bernard By which Authorities Testimonies both of the Scriptures and Fathers you see what solid ground the Popes authority hath that it was confer'd by Christ on S. Peter and that it has been acknowledged by the holy Fathers Christian world in the Bishops of Rome his Successors Therefore you very rashly have reiected this authority which has been established confirmed by Christs special providence vnto this day but more wickedly do you call it an vsurped Tyranny and beleeve the Pope for vindicating and exercising the same authority to be the great Anti-Christ whereas you ought to acknowledge him to be the Vicar of Christ These who honour reverence the Authority of the Bishops of Rome of the Apostolique Sea follow the example of all the holy Fathers and auncient good Christians but these who now a dayes endeavour to dishonour and revile them have the Heretiques for their Predecessors who never caried good-will to them S. Augustin shewes that the Donatists called the Apostolique Sea the Chair of Pestilence but that is nothing to the Epithets of the Covenanting Ministers Who exâ—eed in railings and blasphemies all that ever spoke when they fall vpon this point making thereby the simple people beleeve that Anti-Christian article of their faith that the Pope is Anti-Christ But the holy Fathers tooke it for an vndoubted mark that these who did not acknowledge the Popes authority and were not of his Communion belonged not to Christ but to Anti-Christ S. Hierom writing to S Damasus saith who gathereth not with thee scattereth that is who it not Christs is Anti-Christs Having now seen that the Pope whom the Covenanters call malitiously Anti-Christ is the Vicar of Christ it remaines evident that his Authority is lawfull
not vsurped For he who is a iust Possessor is no Vsurper Yea he has been so far from vsurping over the Scriptures the Church c. that he has chiefly preserved them from the Vsurpations and corruptions of Heretiques And first it is shewed that he doth not vsurp over the Scriptures as the Covenanters do calumniate For he neither Vsurps over the letter nor the sense of them Not the first For both the Pope whole Catholique Church professe that they only declare that to be Scripture which they received for such from the holy Apostles and it 's by their care diligence that the letter of the Scripture has descended pure free from corruptions vnto our hands whereas it might have been altogether corrupted or totally perished for Protestants Neither do the Pope or Catholique Church vsurp over the sense of the Scriptures but they preserve that sense which is conforme to the Vanimous consent of the auncient fathers of the Primitive Church Secondly the Pope doth not vsurp over the Church because the care and charge of it was committed by Christ to S. Peter and to his Successors as we have seen and he preserves the Church from the Vsurpation of Heretiques Thirdly He doth not vsurp over the Civil Magistrate The experience of many ages in all Christians Kingdomes Common-wealths is more then sufficient to make this good to manifest the impudent falshood of the Presbyterian calumnie to the contrary Fourthly The Pope doth not vsurp over the Consciences of men but as chief Governor of the Church has lawfull authority to make Ecclesiastical Lawes which bind in Conscience as also all the iust Lawes of Kings other Civil Magistrats do bind in Conscience to which their subiects ought to obey according to that of S. Paul Be subiect not only for wrath but also for Conscience sake Rom. 13.5 And the contrary doctrin of Protestants which affirmeth that neither the Lawes of Church Kings or other Magistrates do bind in conscience is much detested by the Catholique Church and opens a broad way to all disobedience But now it will not be amisse to show how yow are destitute of all lawfull authority and deeply guilty of the same Vsurpations which yow falsly impose on others First all heretiques who go out of the Church and having no lawfull calling or authority take vpon them to be Pastors and impose their new doctrines Lawes vpon the Church are truly Vsurpers and are called Theeves by our Saviour who enter not by the doore but climb vp another way So S. Optatus speaks to the Donatists How comes it to passe Opt. lib. 2. cont Parmen saith he that you who are fighting against the Chair of Peter by your presumptions and Sacrilegious boldnesse contend to Vsurp the keies of the Kingdome to your selves Thus Luther Calvin the two chief Apostles of Protestants were Vsurpers who being private men without any lawfull calling or authority would bring in new doctrines and prescribe lawes to the whole Catholique Church And in this the Covenanting Ministers do imitate them Secondly they vsurped in particular over both the letter and sense of the Scriptures For Luther added the word Only to them in the matter of Iustification and tooke the whole Epistle of S. Iames and the Apocalypse from them Calvin also by his private Spirit made vp a new Canon not known before his time expunging many bookes avnciently received out of the Scriptures which new Rule the Covenanters follow Then for the sense they transgressed the bounds set by the Fathers reiecting the auncient sense preserved by the Catholique Church and invented new senses of their own imaginations which they enforced vpon others as divine Truths In this also you Covenanting Ministers have followed closely their footsteps For you have been no lesse fertile in inventing such new senses then active in enforceing them vpon others Thirdly your pretended Reformers were Vsurpers over the Church who having no lawfull calling nor authority tooke vpon them to be Reformers of the Church who would impose their own fancies as lawes divine Oracles on the Church who insolently would take vpon them to iudge and condemn the whole Catholique Church and who vnder pretext of Reformation have destroyed almost all that is sacred in the Church barbarously destroying many excellent Churches and Sacrilegiously vsurping and plundering the riches Ornaments of them This Luther and Calvin did at the beginning and this you have compleated in a great measure above all their progenie Fourthly you are also very guilty of Vsurpation over the Civil Magistrate The late riseing of your religion cannot furnish vs old histories but for your short time you have been prettie bussie and afford vs a good store For in our Countrey there have been only 3. or 4. Princes since your religion Began and none of them has been exempt from your Vsurpation First The Queen Regent was deposed by you from her Regency and died shortly thereafter for grief Secondly How you vsed her daughter Queen Mary Stewart it is notoriously known to the world For after you had imprisonned her enforced her to renounce her Crowne you never desisted till by persecuting of her vnto death you made her purchase a more glorious Crown and yet by your calumnies after her death augment her glory in heaven Thirdly Basili con Doron How you Vsurped over King Iames her Son he himself hath registred to your no small infamy And albeit you did not prevaile against him yet you have payed home that deficiency with Vsury to his Son the late King Charles By this may be seen whither the Pope or yow do Vsurp more over the Civil Magistrate Lastly you have been great Vsurpers over mens Consciences as may be known to passe by all other instances by your furious vrgeing this same Covenant vpon many Protestants against their Consciences for which they give you the Title of Soule-Tyrants By all which may be seen that you are very guilty of the same Vsurpations which you falsly obiect to others SECTION V. That the Lawes of the Catholique Church are not Tyrannous nor her doctrin concerning the Scriptures and office of Christ erroneous AFTER you have renounced the Popes authority as vnlawfull then yow renounce his Lawes as Tyrannous and the doctrin of the Catholique Church concerning the Scriptures the office of Christ as Erroneous For thus you speak in your Covenant We detest all his Tyrannous Lawes made vpon indifferent things against our Christian libertie His Erroneous doctrin against the sufficiency of the written word the perfection of the Law the office of Christ and his blessed Evangel If you renounce all lawes made vpon indifferent things pretending that they are against your Christian libertie then you renounce the most part of all Lawes both Civil and Ecclesiastical which are ordinarly vpon such matters and in a certain manner restrain libertie Then you may renounce also the Lawes of the Apostles Acts 15. for
to the young man in the Gospel If thou wilt enter into life Math. 19 18.21 1 Cor. 7.38 keep the Commandments and receiving answer that he had kept them all adioynd if thou wilt be perfect sell that thou hast and give it to the poore S. Paul also saith Who maries doth well but who maries not doth better S. Augustin vpon our Saviours former words saith Our good Master distinguished the Commandments of the Law Aug. epist 89. ad Hila. from this more excellent perfection For there he said If thou wilt enter into life keep the Commandments and here if thou wilt be perfect sell all By which it may appeare that the doctrin of the Catholique Church in this matter being the same that Christ his blessed Apostle the holy Fathers taught is not against the perfection of the Law And the same may be made good also by the light of reason For every thing is perfect when it has perfection in its own degre and so the Catholique Church teacheth that the Law of Christ is most perfect in the nature of a Law that no Law can be more perfect and that perfection consists essentially in keeping it Which nowayes hinders but that there may be some works not commanded but Counseled which may be prefer'd in perfection to some works commanded and so some Counsels may be called more perfect then the Commandments which are about the same matter As for example it is more perfect to sell all for the Love of God which is only a Counsel then not to steal which is a precept As it is also more perfect to keep chastity then to marie and not commit adulterie Again there are some Counsels more perfect then any of the Commandments not in regard of the external work but of the internal charity which they presuppose and to which they lead For it presupposeth a greater degree of perfection charity to renounce all riches pleasures which are otherwise lawfull for the Love of God then to equal and prefer nothing to God which is commanded Therefore as the Catholique Church is free of Erroneous doctrin against the perfection of the Law so we may iustly inferre that your doctrin which teacheth the Law is impossible to be kept is most erroneous against the very end and perfection of the Law since it was made for that end to be kept and it robs men also of all perfection which cannot be had without keeping the Law Then for your other accusations about the office of Christ the Evangel albeit you strive by such words to affright the people making them beleeve that the Pope the Catholique Church are sworn Enemies to Christ his Gospel yet it is well enough known that Christ and his Gospel are more honoured in the Catholique Church then among all the sects of the world For it is by her means the Gospel has been preserved and Christs name has been honoured among all Nations all which she alone has converted to the faith But you are enemies to all Christs offices For you would destroy his Kirgly office by making him a king many hundred years without a kingdome and by destroying the spirituel governement thereof bringing in place of it the Anarchy confusion of your Pressbytery You are Enemies also to his Priestly office by abolishing the dayly Sacrifice for the continuance of which he is called a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedech You are Enemies likwise to his Prophetical office For whereas he had Prophesied so clearly of the perpetuity of his Church that it cannot be hid that it should be ever governed by the Spirit of truth into all truth You would make him a false Prophet by teaching that the Church had failed had been many hundred years invisible and was fallen into Anti-Christian Errors Lastly albeit you pretend to honour the Gospel and make it the only rule of your faith yet you do iust the contrary because you deny what it affirmes and beleeve the contrary to what it teacheth in expresse tearmes and you make it such a Rule that you frequently oppose your Iudgments to it as has been more then once shown SECTION VI. That the Doctrine of the Catholique Church concerning Original Sin Iustification and sanctification is not corrupted But that the Prebyterian Doctrine is corrupted in all these points Covenant WE detest his corrupted doctrine concerning Original sin our natural inhability and rebellion to Gods Law our Iustification by faith only our imperfect Sanctification obedience to the Law As it is ordinary for all those who are tainted with corrupt Errors to call these Catholiques doctrines corrupted which oppose their corruptions So the Covenanters here call the Catholique doctrine concerning Original sin corrupted which indeed is most pure and opâ—oseth the most poysoned source of almost all their corruptions The Catholique Church teacheth principally three things in this matter against the Errors of the Calvinists First that all Children as well of faithfull as of infidel parents descending from Adam by natural generation do contract Original sin and are borne in it which is against a corrupt doctrin of Calvin who affirmeth that the Children of the faithfull are borne Saints Secondly the Catholiques teach that Original sin is quite taken away and purged in the Sacrament of Baptisme which is against an other corruption of Calvin and his followers who affirme that Original sin still remaineth in vs even after Baptisme Thirdly the Catholique Doctors ordinarly teach that Original sin is nothing else but a privation of original iustice or iustifying grace which was in the Superior part of the soule which is restored to vs by the merits of Christ in the Sacrament of Baptisme which is against a most corrupt Error of all Calvinists who affirme that Original sin is nothing else but concupiscence or a pravitie of Nature by which the Image of God is vtterly defaced in man and by which Adam his posterity became Enemies to God slaves to Sathan servants to sin So do our Scottish Ministers speak in their first Confession article 3. Of the first two points something hath been said above and they are both evidently true by the Scriptures Fathers For the Apostle S. Paul saith that all sin â—â—d in Adam and were borne the children of wrath Ephes 2.3 Aug. lib. 2. de peccator remiss c. 40. Hier. ep 7. ad Latam S. Augustin affirmeth that holy Parents do not beget regenerated Children which is seconded by S. Hierom who saith Christiani non nascuntur sed fiunt We are not borne but made Christians And that Baptism taketh away Original sin has been so clearly above shewed that nothing shall be here repeated except only what S. Augustin said None except an Infidel can deny it The third point also was fully cleared to me by the Catholique who shew that as all sin is evil evil is nothing else but the privation of good so original sin being evil can be nothing
these words of the Covenant We detest his corrupted doctrine concerning the nature number and vse of the holy Sacraments His five bastard Sacraments with all his Rites Ceremonies and false doctrines added to the Ministration of the true Sacraments without the word of God His cruel Iudgment against Infants departing without the Sacraments His absolute necessitie of Baptisme His blasphemous opinion of Transubstantiation or real presence of Christs body in the Elements and receiving of the same by the wicked or bodies of men His dispensations of Solemn Oaths periuries and degrees of Mariage forbidden by the word His cruelty against the Innocent divorced As an impudent strumpet said my Catholique friend is accustomed when she contends with a Chast Matrone to obiect such crimes to her whereof herself is notoriously guilty So here the Covenanters do accuse the holy Catholique Church the Immaculate Spouse of Iesus-Christ of Errors corruptions in the nature number vse of the holy Sacraments whereas themselves are miserably corrupted in all these points Which shall be briefly shown First you accuse the Catholique Church of corrupted doctrin concerning the Nature of the Sacraments which must be because she teacheth that the Sacraments of the new law do conferre grace But we have seen above that this is most true doctrin conforme to the Scriptures and holy Fathers and that this is a perfection most suitable to the excellency of the Christian Sacraments Whereas your doctrine which robs the Sacraments of all power to conferre Grace and makes them only simple tokens signs and seals without all efficacie and which equals the Sacraments of the old Law in excellency vnto them corrupts indeed the nature of the Christian Sacraments and abaseth the power of them which cannot be done without perverting and corrupting the Scriptures and holy Fathers which are so clear for the Catholique doctrine that they have moved many famous Protestants to abandon your Calvinistical opinion All which may be seen in the 18. Chapter of the former Treatise Next you accuse the Catholique doctrine of corruption concerning the Number of the Christian Sacraments whereas indeed your doctrine if we will iudge of it by your first Reformers is not only full of corruption but also of confusion in this matter The Catholiques do constantly teach that there be 7. Sacraments of the Law of grace instituted by Iesus-Christ to witt Baptisme Confirmation Eucharist Penance Order Extream-Vnction and Matrimony Which precise number hath from the ancient Fathers Primitive Church by continual practice been delivered and received in both Churches Greek and Latin as may appeare by the Councel of Florence For all which Sacraments the Catholiques do bring expresse Scriptures Testimonies of the holy Fathers some of which we shal briefly touch To speak then nothing of Baptisme and the Eucharist which are out of question Confirmation is shewed 2. Cor. 1. and 1â— verse where it is said He that Coâ—firmeth vs with you in Christ and hath anointed vs God who also hath fealed vs and given the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts And Acts 8. verse 14. when Philip the Deacon had converted Samaria Peter and Iohn were sent to confirme them who when they were come saith the Scripture prayed for them that they might receive the holy Ghost c. Then did they impose their hands vpon them and they received the Holy Ghost Of which S. Augustin saith August lib. 2 cont lit Petil. c. 104. The Sacrament of Chrisme in the kind of Visible seales is sacred and holy even as Baptisme it self Penance is shewed Iohn 20. verse 2. where our Saviour said to his Apostles Receive you the Holy Ghost whose sins you forgive they are forgiven and whose sins you retain they are retain'd Of this power which Christ has given to Priests followeth the necessity of Confession For if the sins retaynd on earth be retayn'd and not remitted in heaven and on the other part the Priest cannot remit the sin vnlesse he know it as it is manifest he cannot nor can he know it vnlesse it be told him it followeth necessarly that he who will have his sins remitted must by his own Confession open them to whom God hath given power to remit them Confession was also vsed in the Apostles times Acts 19. v. 18. as appeareth in the Acts where it is said Many of them that beleeved came Confessing and declareing their deeds Of this Sacrament S. Ambrose giveth testimonie Amb. lib. de poenit c. 7. who refelleth thus the Novatians Why do ye baptize if sins cannot be remitted by a Man For in Baptism is the remission of all sins nor is it material whether Priests challenge to themselvs this power by Penance or by Baptisme S. Chrysostom saith Chrys lib. 3. de Sacerdotio That Christ has given that power to Priests which he would not to be given neither to Angels nor Archangels The earthly Princes have also power to bind but the bodies only but the bond of Priests toucheth the very soule it self and reacheth even to the heavens c. what power I beseech you Aug. lib. 50. homiliar can be greater then this S. Augustin also speaketh to the same purpose in his 49. homily and in the second book of Visitation of the sick Of holy Orders the Scripture beareth testimonie S. Paul writing to Timothee saith Impose hands on no man lightly 1. Tim. 5.22 And again Neglect not the grace that is in thee which is given thee by Prophesie with the imposition of the hands of Priesthood Our Saviour said to his Apostles Receive the Holy Ghost c. Iohn 20. S. Augustin calleth Holy Order a Sacrament compareing it with Baptisme Aug lib. 2. cont Parmen c. 13. Let them explicate saith he how the Sacrament of the Baptized cannot be lost and the Sacrament of one Ordained can Extream Vnction is clearly in Scripture Is any man sick among you saith S. Iames Iames 5.13 c. let him bring in the Priests of the Church and let them pray over him anointing him with oyle in the name of our Lord and the prayer of faith shall save the sick man and our Lord will lift him vp and if he be in sins his sins shall be forgiven him Vpon which S. Chrysostom saith Chrys lib. 3. de Sacerdotio The Priests have authority to forgive sins not only when they regenerate vs but afterwards also For is any sick among you saith the Apostle let him bring in the Priests c. Of Matrimony it is said They shall be two in one flesh this is a great Sacrament but I say in Christ and the Church Ephes 5.31.32 Vpon which S. Augustin saith That Aug. tract 9. in Ioan. which in Christ and the Church is a great Sacrament this in all men and wives whatsoever is the least Sacrament but notwithstanding an inseparable Sacrament of coniunction And again lib. de fide operibus c. 7. In the Church not only
the bond but also the Sacrament of Marriage is commended By which few Testimonies these 5. Sacraments which you reiect are as clearly proved out of the Scripture as these two which you admit Yea although they had not been mentioned in the Scripture yet they are all with reverence to be received seing they are demonstrated by divine Tradition which is of no lesse infallible authority then the Scripture it self as has been proved above and this Tradition is evident both by the consent of the holy Fathers and by the constant beleef practice of the whole Church which has vsed these Sacraments in all ages according to the ends for which they were instituted And thefore the Catholique doctrine concerning the number of the Sacraments which flowes from such pure fountains is pure true not corrupted as you do calumniate Whereas indeed your doctrine and that of your first Reformers in this matter is not only full of corruption but also of confusion For Luthers followers admit three Sacraments to witt Ap. Becan in Man lib. 1. c. 8. Baptism Eucharist Penance as may be seen in their Catechismes Zuinglius receives also three but not all the same for in place of Penance he puts Matrimonie And Calvin reckons also three for to Baptism the Supper Cal. lib. 4. Instit c. 19. par 32. he adds Order So full of confusion even at the beginning were these builders of Babylon following neither Scriptures nor Fathers but their own fancies Wherein you are not behind with them swarving from the doctrin of your Master Calvin and according to your own imaginations admitting only 2. Sacraments which two also in effect you destroy by robbing them of all vertue and efficacy as has been shewed above chap. 21. in fine You accuse next the Catholique Church of corruptions concerning the vse of the Sacraments But it is sufficient against your accusations that these vses of the Sacraments which you most blame as private Baptism private Communion c. are known to have been observed by the holy Primitive Church are in themselvs laudable and tend much to the devotion comfort of the faithfull and are also approved by diverse learned moderate Protestants Whereas your doctrines practises make your Sacraments altogether gracelesse and almost Vselesse and Comfortlesse for which you are blamed by diverse Protestants Moreover you are enemies also to the very Ceremonies with which the Sacraments are administrated in the Catholique Church It is not sufficient for you to have taken away the fruite of Grace from these heavenly Trees planted by God in the Garden of his Church as in a heavenly Paradise vnlesse you pull away also the Ceremonies which serve as leaves and Ornaments to them You detest all Ceremonies not contain'd in the word of God By which you lay down a most false deceitfull principle as if no Ceremonies were to be vsed which were not expresly there For first the Scriptures containes not expresly all doctrines but referres vs to the Church and to Traditions as we have seen above How much lesse then doth it contain all Ceremonies Secondly As our Saviour when he did institute the Sacraments did not prescribe the particular forme by which they should be celebrated but left that to the wisdome of his Apostles so his Apostles did not set down that manner in writing S. Augustin expresly affirmes the first part Aug. ep 118. ad Ianuar. saying Christ did not command in what order thereafter the Sacrament should be taken that he might leave that place to the Apostles by whom hs was to order his Church The second part is also evident For we never read where S. Paul who writing to the Corinthians concerning the holy Eucharist said 1. Cor. 11. ver vlt. The rest I will dispose when I come did expresse that manner or order in the Scripture And the same may be said of the other Apostles Thirdly Some Rites and Ceremonies vsed by Christ himself recorded in Scripture were changed by the holy Apostles according to the instinct of the holy Ghost for the greater honour of the blessed Sacrament and have been from the Apostles times observed throughout the whole Church without Scripture Aug. ep 118. c. 6. This S. Augustin doth testify Neither saith he because Christ gave the Sacrament after meat ought we having dyn'd or sup't assemble to receive that Sacrament or as these whom the Apostle reproves and corrects mingle it with their Tables c. For it seem'd good to the holy Ghost that for the honour of so great a Sacrament our Lords body before all other meat should first enter into the mouth of a Christian and therefore this custom is observed throughout the whole world Fourthly the Church can institute ceremonies for greater decency and Order and for the more honour of God For if Iacob a private man vsed a new Ceremonie by erecting a stone by powring oyle vpon it and giving it the title of Bethel Genes 28. If the Synagogue of the Iewes made a new feast by the advice of Mardocheus Ester 9. why not also shall the Church of Christ have the same authority If such was the power of a private man and of the Handmaid How much more ought the power be of the Free-woman the holy Church the immaculate Spouse of Iesus-Christ Or what can be more ridiculous and profane then to grant that power to these and deny it to this Or to think that the Catholique Church which is governed by the Holy Ghost in all truth according to Christs promise should not have so much wisdom as to ordain aright some few Ceremonies Therefore your former principle is very false for many reasons yea it is so false that yourselves doe not observe it For where have you Scripture for the Godfathers God-Mothers which you require at Baptism Where have you scripture for taking your Communion fasting from the hands of one another not from the hands of your Minister and for many such rites customes besides your stoole of Repentance When did your Ministers observe that ceremony of washing the feet of others which was vsed by Christ Iohn 13.5 before the celebration of the Eucharist When did either they or their Elders anoint the sick according to S. Iames precept Whereby it is evident that you observe some Rites which are not contain'd in the scriptures and others you neglect which are there particularly recommended As then it is clear that the Church of Christ may vse ceremonies which are not expressed in Scripture so these Ceremonies which she observeth are most commendable because they are most auncient and were vsed in the primitive times as Coccius shewes by the testimonies of the holy Fathers they are most observeable because they were instituted by the holy Apostles and Pastors of the Church who had both authority and wisdom to institute those which are most convenient And lastly they have been confirmed by the long
Aug. lib. 50. hom liar hom 49. and elswhere he saith It 's lawfull for the cause of fornication to put away an adulteresse wife but dure ng her life it is not lawfull to marie another c. These are Adulteries not Mariages Is Augustin contemned let Christ be feared Two Ancient Councels do also confirme the same doctrine Therefore Concil Elibert c. 9. Milerit c. 17. the Catholique Church in denying Mariage to the innocent partie divorced is not cruel as you calumniate but observes the iust Law of Christ the commandment of the Apostle and the practice of the holy ancient Church And if any think it hard they have a remedie prescribed by the Apostle to reconcile themselves to the guilty partie But indeed you are cruel who vnder pretext of mercy do allow men to Violate the iust Law of God and vnder the name of Mariages authorize people to commit Adulteries to the destruction of their soules So that it is truly verifyed of you that your mercies are cruel But let vs proceed now to your other abiurations SECTION VIII Of the Christian Sacrifice and of Priesthood AFTER you had robbed Christians of almost all the Sacraments and of our Saviours legacie to witt his precious body now you would rob the Church of the Christian Sacrifice and would spoyle God of the greatest external honour that can be rendred to him is due to him alone And with the Sacrifice you would also destroy the sacred Order of Priesthood by which it is offered For you renounce them in these most virulent tearmes of your Covenant We detest his Devilish Masse His blasphemous Priesthood His profane Sacrifice for the sins of the dead and the quick As never any Religion neither vnder the Law of Nature nor vnder the Law of Moyses wanted Sacrifice which is a Supâ—â—m worship due to God alone so the Chrisâ—â—â—n Religion which excells all Religions tha◠〈◊〉 have been is not destitute of that perfecâ—â—â—n but hath a most excellent Sacrifice far exceeding all the ancient Sacrifices The Prophets did foretell of it Christ did institute it the holy Apostles their Successors did offer it and the whole Christian world hath in all ages frequented it which points we shall briefly touch The Prophet David speaking of Christ saith The Lord has sworne Psal 109.4 Thou art a Priest for ever according to the Order of Melchisedech Which words have relation to these of Moyses Genes 14.18 Melchisedech King of Salem brought forth bread and wine for he was Priest of the most high God The holy Fathers vnderstand that Prophesie of the Christian Sacrifice of Christs body blood vnder the formes of bread wine So S. Cyprian who is more Priest Cypr. epist 63. ad Cecil saith he of the most high God then our Lord Iesus-Christ who offered a Sacrifice to God his father and offered the same which Melchisedech had offered that is bread wine to witt his own body blood S. Augustin also to the same purpose saith Aug. de Civit. Dei lib. 17. c. 17. No where now is the Priesthood Sacrifice according to the order of Aaron and every where vnder Christ the Priest is offered vp that which Melchisedech brought forth when he blessed Abraham And again speaking of Melchisedechs Sacrifice he saith There did first appeare the Sacrifice which is now offered vp to God by Christians in the whole world The second Prophesie is in Malachie where God saith to the Iewes Malachie ch 1. v. 10. I have no pleasure in you neither will I accept any offering at your hands For from the riseing of the Sun to the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentils and there is offered Sacrificed to my name in every place a pure oblation The holy Fathers vnderstood this as a most clear Prophesie of the Christian Sacrifice So S. Ireneus Among the 12. Prophets saith he Malachie did so fâ—retell of it Ireneus lib. 4 c. 33. I have no pleasure in â—u c. most clearly signifying by these words that the first people should leave off to offer vnto God and in every place a Sacrifice and that pure shouâ—d be offered vnto him So also S. Augustin did vnderstand it Aug de 〈◊〉 it l. 18. c. 26. Malachie saith he prophesying of the Chvrch which we see now propagated saith most â—learly vnto the Iewes in the person of God I have no pleasure in you c. since then we see the sacrifice by the Priesthood of Christ according to the Order of Melchisedech offered vp in every place c and they cannot deny but the sacrifice of the Iewes is ceased why do they yet look for another Christ seing that which they read Prophesied and see fulfilled could not be accomplished but by him If this Prophesie be so strong against the Iewes it is no lesse forcible against the Covenanters As the Prophets foretould so Christ fulfilled by instituting this Sacrifice by offering it vp himself and by ordaining it to be offered vp vnto the end of the world This he performed when taking bread he blessed it saying This is my body which is given for you and after the same manner of the Chalice He ordaind the same oblation to be continued when he said to his Apostles Do this in remembrance of me So the holy Fathers expresly teach S. Ireneus who lived in the second age speaking of Christs words of Institution saith Christ taught the new oblation of the new Testament Iren. lib 4 c. 33. which the Church receiving from the Apostles offereth vp to God throughout the whole world S. Cyprian affirmeth clearly the same truth saying Our Lord God Iesus-Christ Cypr lib 2. epist 3. is the high Priest of God the Father He offered vp himself a Sacrifice to his Father and the same he commanded to be done in his remembrance To which two we shall only adioyn S. Augustin who saith Aug. in psal 33. serm 2. Christ did Institute the Sacrifice of his body blood according to the Order of Melchisedech And last of all may be added the practice of the whole Christian world which in all ages from the death of Christ did render vnto God supreme honour worship testifying his Soveraignity power of life death by this most excellent Sacrifice of Christs body blood which the holy Fathers called the Sacrifice of the Masse The Vertue also of which God has manifested by many Miracles one of which I will recount out of S. Augustin to our purpose Aug. lib. 22 de Civit. c. 8. Which is briefly thus The house of a certain Tribune in the Countrey near to Hippo the City of S. Augustins residence being vexed with evil Spirits to the great losse of his cattel and affliction of his Servants he came and desired that one of our Priests saith the holy Father I being then absent would goe and pray that the Devil
that could not stand with the goodnesse of God happinesse of their Estate Yea does not S. Iohn expresly deliver that the Saints in heaven do not only know our prayers Apocal. 5.8 but also offer them vp to God when he saith that the foure beasts and the foure and twentie Elders fel before the Lambe having every one harpes and golden Vials full of odours which are the prayers of the Saints Lastly what was the doctrin practice of the Primitive Church may be known briefly by the testimonies of the two great lights S. Ambrose S. Augustin The first saith We must pray to the Angels Ambros lib. de viduis who are given to be our defenders we must pray to the Martyrs c. For they are able to pray for our sins who have washed away their own The other having invocated the blessed Virgin and many Angels Saints by name concludes saying Aug. Medit. c. 40. I beseech you interceed for me a sinner vnto God that I may be delivered from the iawes of the Devil and everlasting death So you may see how vnreasonably you detest so holy a doctrine so profitable a practice which has been vsed by the greatest Saints Now we are come to that point to witt the worshiping of Images wherein you pretend great advantage For first you give out that the Catholique doctrin practice in this matter is directly against the Scriptures and particularly against the second Commandment Secondly you affirm with great clamours that the Catholiques prevarication is so evident here that to conceale the matter from the people they have taken away the second commandment And for this cause especially you accuse the Catholiques and condemn them for Sacrilegious Idolaters But all these were shown me to be vain pretences For first it is clear in the old Testament that the ancient Synagogue of the Iewes had their holy Images and that by Gods own appointment Secondly that they did also reverence and honour them with competent worship The first part is evident Exodus 25. where God said to Moyses Two Cherubins of beaton gold shalt thou make on both sides of the Oracle Moyses did obey this command chap. 37. Moreover King Salomon did adorne the famous Temple of Ierusalem with diverse pictures 3. Kings c. 6. v. 28. To speak nothing of the brasen serpent which God gave order to make Behold here the commandment of God for making placeing of holy Images in the Tabernacle vpon the Ark notwithstanding the Iewes were most prone to Idolatrie And that these Images were also honoured by the auncient people of the Iewes is evident For the Cherubins were the chief part and Ornament of the Ark and the whole Ark was honoured as may appeare first because it was put in the Holy of Holys as in a most honorable place Heb. 9.4 Secondly it was translated with great honour to the house of Obededom Thirdly it was only lawfull to the Priests Levits to carie it 3. Kings 5.6 Fourthly the Philistims were punished with diverse plagues because they kept it beside themselvs without due honour and vpon the contrary Obededom was blissed for keeping it honorably in his house 1. Kings 5.6 and 6.11 Yea God himself commāded by the mouth of David Psal 99. saying Adorato scabellum pedum eius Adore his footstoole This is vnderstood of the Ark as appeares by Davids words 1. Chron. 28. v. 2. And what ever it be it is not God and yet the Iewes were commanded to adore it Now can any man of solid iugment and consideration think that God did prohibite all Images and veneration of them by that which the Protestants call the second commandment to witt Thou shalt not make any graven Idol and yet immediatly thereafter should command Moyses to make Images and to hold them in such Veneration Or rather is it not evident that the Protestants do apply very falsly what is spoken in Scripture against Idols to the holy Images of Christ his Saints Therefore it is evident that the Iewes had not only holy Images by Gods appointment which were set in their Tabernacle Temple and most holy places but also that they did lawfully and religiously worship and honour them albeit with an honour infinitly inferiour to that which is due to God And as the Iewes had their holy Images so with as good if not more reason had the auncient Christians theirs which they placed in their Oratories and reverenced with due honour S. Chrysostom saith in his Liturgy the Priest bowes his head vnto the Image of Christ Bas lib. de Sp. S. c. 18. Basil affirmeth that the honour of the Image is referred to the Exemplar Many more testimonies were shown me from the Fathers and Ecclesiastical Histories but for brevities sake I forbear to cite thē as also it was shewed Concil 2. Nicen that these who were enemies to the holy Images of Christ his Saints were condemned by the auncient Church as most furious Heretiques called the Iconaclasts who concur'd in this impiety against Christ his Saints with the profest Enemies of Christ as Iulian the Apostat the perfidious Iewes Mahumetans destroying where euer they could the Images of Christ his Saints against whom God by many miracles has manifested the truth as he did once against the Iewes by making aboundance of blood to flow from our Saviours Image which they had pierced crucifyed in the Citie of Berytum in Syria By which miracle by the miraculous cure of the sick who were anointed with that blood the whole multitude of Iewes in that place was converted Athan. lib. de P ssione Imag. Christi c. 4. as S. Athanasius testifyeth By which it is evident to passe by diverse other Miracles recorded in Ecclesiastical Histories that holy Pictures are capable of dishonour and therefore also of competent honour that Catholiques by keeping them giving due reverence vnto them follow the practice of the ancient Christians and Tradition of the Apostles as S. Basil testifyeth Basil ap Con. Nicen. 2. act 2. saying I honour the histories of the Saints Images and I openly adore them For this being delivered by the holy Apostles is not to be forbidden but in all our Churches we erect their histories And it is no lesse evident that you Covenanting Ministers who furiously break deface all holy Pictures Crosses do thereby dishonour Christ his Saints go against the practice of the ancient Christians follow the example of furious heretiques of other profest Enemies of Christ You without all reason detest the Catholiques worshiping of Images but you ought rather to detest your own profaneing of them which indeed many Protestants do detest Hence may be easily discovered the Vanity of all your former pretensions as first when you say that Images are forbidden to be made worshiped by that which you call the second Commandment For there are only forbidden Idols and all divine
the punishment of fire that being purged by fire he may be saved and not tormented for ever as the Infidels are with everlasting fire The second place is in S. Mathew ch 12. v. 32. where our Saviour saith He that shall speak against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven him neither in this world nor in the world to come Vpon which S. Augustin saith Aug lib. 21. de Civit. c. 24. Neither could it be truly said of some That they are neither forgiven in this life nor in the life to come vnlesse there were some who though they are not forgiven in this life yet should be Ber. ser 66. sup Cantic in the life to come S. Bernard brings this same testimony by which alone he thinks to have sufficiently confuted the Petro-brusian heretiques who denyed Purgatory in his time The third place is Math. 5.26.27 where our Saviour saith Amen I say to thee thou shalt not goe out from thence till thou pay the last farthing Vpon which S. Hierom. This is that which he saith Hieron in c. 5. Math. thou shalt not go out of prison till thou shalt pay even thy little sins By all which it is evident that Purgatory was beleeved by the holy Fathers by the Primitive Church and that it has good ground in the Scriptures Yea the same was also beleeved by the ancient Iewes as it is clear out of the 2. book of the Machabees 12. ch and it is also known that the Iewes to this day pray for the dead to speak nothing that the very Heathens of old held and the Mahumetans hold the same Bellar. l. 1. de purg c. 11. as Bellarmin sheweth Therefore it is not only a false but also a shamelesse calumnie which you Covenanting Ministers do make when you say that Purgatory is a late invention of the Popes and they are miserably deceived who give credit to you But indeed you ought not to be so great enemies to Purgatory seing you must either grant a certain Purgatory after this life or else none of you can go to Heaven as has been shewed above out of your own principles For seing according to your doctrine Supra p. 188. the filthinesse of your sins alwayes remaines in you dureing this life it must either be taken away purged after this life and so consequently you must grant a Purgatory or else you will not be admitted into that heavenly City where no vnclean thing can enter Purgatory then being so firmly established by the the Scriptures Fathers Tradition of the whole Church the question of Prayer for the dead which has such affinity with it is soone determined S. Augustins testimony alone shall be sufficient because it shewes the practice of the whole ancient Church Aug. de Verbis Apost ser 34. It is not to be doubted saith he but the dead are eased by the prayers of the holy Church by the wholsome Sacrifice and the almes which are given for the soules departed so that they are more mercyfully dealt with by our Lord then their sins do deserve For this being delivered by the Fathers the whole Church observeth And that this was not a new doctrine or practice Calvin himself confesseth granting that it was a custome to pray for the dead 13. hundred years before his time Cal. l. 3. inst c. 5. par 10. You detest next the custome of the Catholique Church in offering vp her publique prayers in a language not vulgaire But you do this without solid reason For first the Church has introduced no Novelty in that matter but has still retain'd her Liturgies in the same Tongues which she had vsed from the first time of her founding by the holy Apostles Secondly The Church has thought more fitting to retain her Liturgies in these ancient sacred and vnchangeable languages though not commonly now known then to subiect her Liturgies to all the inconveniences that are occasioned by the changes of vulgaire tongues which are in a continual ebbing flowing This custome may be confirmed by the practice of the ancient Iewes who having corrupted their language by the long continuance of the Babylonicall captivity speaking commonly Syraick did not leave of for that to continew their office in the Hebrew tongue for which our Saviour did not reprehend them which certainly he had done if it had been an vnlawfull thing Thirdly The command and practice of the Church ought to be obeyed and followed in matters of disciplin where God has commanded nothing as he has done nothing here concerning the language of the publique Liturgie Lastly there is no necessitie of vseing a vulgaire tongue in the publique prayers of the Church seing they are directed to God who vnderstands all languages for the good of the people who are sufficiently instructed in these matters by continual Catechizing preaching and interpretation in their vulgaire languages And hence it comes to passe that the service of the Church is more venerable being in an ancient vnchangeable language not known to all and by that means also the Communion of the Churches service is more spread it being in a Common language Therefore we may iustly conclude that you vniustly blame the Catholique Church for vseing this ancient venerable custome But you may be iustly blamed who although you pray not in a strange language yet you oftentimes pray ex tempore in a strange sense yea you have committed a greater absurditie For you have put Latin which you call a strange language in your Confession of faith this same very Covenant when you abiure opus operatum as we shall see presently and which is more you do not interpret and explain it which experience sheweth none or few of you can doe If it be amisse as you alleadge to pray vnto God in a strange language albeit he vnderstands all languages it is much more faulty in you to put Latine in your Confession of faith which the people does not vnderstand and yet not only require them to say but also enforce them to swear Amen to it as you have done with your Covenant Vnlesse perhaps you think it a sin to pray vnto God in a strange language but not to swear or curse something in it You are Enemies also to the most laudable Ceremonies and devotions of the Catholique Church as vnto Processions Litanies by which Gods glory is manifested and his Iudgments have been often prevented First concerning Processions we read in the Scripture how acceptable to Christ was the procession of the children people of Ierusalem Math. 21. when he entred into that Citie vpon Palmes-Sunday throwing down their garments before him carrying braunches of Palmes and singing Hosanna in imitation of which the Catholique Church vpon that day makes solemn processions by carrying the holy Sacrament strawing of flowers and bearing of Palmes All which is done to the honour of Christ In the old Testament also we read of the solemn Processions that
reckons in the first place Basil l. de Sp. S. c. 27. Aug. tract 118 in Euang. Ioan Chrys iul quod Christus sit Deus Nazian orat 1. in Iulian amongst the Apostolical Traditions and which S. Augustin call the sign of Christ without which no benediction is rightly perfected It was so much honoured in the primitive times that it was erected as S. Chrysostome testifyes vpon the topes of Kings Crownes Scepters and imprinted vpon the front or head of man the most noble member of his body as vpon a living pillar and it is most efficacious against temptations and the affrightfull apparitions of Devils whereof Iulian the Apostata found experience as S. Gregory Nazianzen relates with many circumstances Therefore you are very rashly Enemies to this glorious sign of the Son of man and some of you very wickedly do call it the sign of the beast and it may be iustly said the Catholiques Crossings are much better then your cursings By detesting the anoynting of the Catholique Church you detest S. Iames Iames 5 Mark 6.13 who prescribed it and the holy Apostles who practiced it as S. Mark testifies saying They anointed with oile many sick the Primitive Church which vsed it Aug. in Pref. psal 26. enarr 2 whereby S. Augustin shewes the excellency of Christians to whom all now Vnction belongs which was only proper before to Priests Kings By detesting the hallowing of Gods good Creatures you detest your own practice in blissing your meat with long graces and the elements of your Sacrament with long prayers S. Paul shewes that Every Creature may be sanctifyed 1. Timoth 4.4.5 by the word of God and prayer The hallowing of Gods Creatures to pious vses is not superstition but the contrary practice is profanation The Popes worldly Monarchie as you call it has agreed better with all the Monarchs of the world and that for many ages then your worldly Democracy has consisted with one or two Monarchs in one corner of the world for the few years you have lasted And the Sacred Hierarchie of the Church which you without all modestie call wicked has not produced such wicked effects for the space of 16. hundred yeares and above as the Anarchy of your Presbytery has done in lesse then the space of twentie You abiure also the three solemn Vowes of voluntary chastity poverty obediēce which have been shown above to be works of greater perfection This shewes that the Prophet Esay did not mean of you but of the members of the true Church when he prophesied of them Esay 19 21. saying They shall Vow Vowes vnto our Lord pay them But your first chief Reformers Vowed these solemn Vowes and brake them And it may be iustly said that these 3. Solemn Vowes are much better works then your solemn League Covenant You renounce also the Clerical Tonsure which you call shavelings of diverse sorts But that this was a most ancient Ceremony Dionys lib. de Eccles Hierarchia c. 6 Athan. lib. de Virginitate Hier. epist ad Savinianum Beda hist. Anglor lib. 5. c. 22. S. Denis Athanasius Hierom and others do testifie◠and Venerable Bede affirmes that S. Peter did first of all carrie a Crown of haires the rest of his head being poll'd The mysterious significations of this ceremony may be seen in Bellarmin lib. 2. de Monachis cap. 40. And albeit no other reason be brought the very venerable antiquity of it alone is sufficient to shew that these shavelings of sundry sorts are better then your new Round-heads of sundry sects Then you detest according to your phrase the Popes corrupted bloodie decrees made at Trenf But that is ordinary for all Novelists to carrie hatred to and calumniate these Sacred General Councels by whose authority their corrupted errors are condemned so did the Arians to the great Councel of Nice That which you speak of a cruel bloody Band subscrybed there is a meer calumnie for no such thing was done there But indeed it is no calumnie to call your Covenant which was approved and subscrybed at your Assembly of Glasgow a cruel and bloudy Band as the effects have proved It is by such cruel and bloudy Bands that false religions must be propagated or rather enforced against mens Consciences But the Catholique Church trusting in the promise of Christs assistance and being armed with the force of truth goes on vpon other principles You are pleased also not only to detest the Decrees of the Councel of Trent but likwise the subscrybers Approvers thereof whom you call Conspirators against the Kirk of God But albeit your passion leads you to detest their doctrines yet civility should oblige you not to detest their persons especially since some Approvers thereof are the most Eminent Princes of the world to whom you ought to carrie respect And whereas you take vpon you the name authority of the Church of God it has been shewed above that your Kirk has lyen too long hid to be the Kirk of God You call your Kirk a Reformed Kirk but it ought rather to be called a new formed Kirk because it is substantially different from the old and it is so far from being truly Reformed that it is deformed in the principal points of the Christian religion as we have seen concerning the Apostles Creed our Lords prayer the Commandments Sacraments besides many other substantial articles above touched That which you say of the Popes Vain Allegories Rites Signs is frivolous It is known that these Allegories which you blame were vsed by the holy Fathers particularly by S. Augustin who excelled in the Allegorical sense of the Scriptures whose Allegories are not vain but most grave and will be preferred by all sound iudgments to your Ministers vain Tropes and figures against the clear Scriptures as we have seen in the matter of the holy Sacrament Of Traditions we have spoke sufficiently above All the rest that followes in your Covenant excepting the two vntruths touched above in the first section and your Oath for maintaining the Kings authority is nothing but a concatenation of most fearfull and horrible Oaths whereby you tye yourselves vnder highest curses and paines to maintaine these your grosse errors and Heresies which ought rather to be deplored then confuted especially since you are begun to find the effects of these enormities Thus I have briefly collected the principall observations which my Catholique Friend and I made vpon the Covenant although I have passed by many things that were in his papers that this book might not exceed the iust bignesse But by what has been said may be in some measure seen what counterfeit mettal the Covenant is and what a masse of Errors and old condemned heresies it containes ioynd with blasphemous Execrations of the principal points of the holy Catholique faith and what an Idol the simple people was made to adore It is truly to be regrated that our Nation which
for the space of 14. hundred years did professe the Catholique faith with so great piety and did propagate it abroad with so great glory zeal of which many Monuments are extant in forreign Nations should be now so blinded with Error and miscarried by passion against the truth that for the most part if it were in their power they are no lesse Zealous to extirpate it Baron tom 5. in supplem ad annum 429. The most famous Cardinal Baronius gives this excellent testimonie of the ancient Scottish Christians These saith he who received the Gospel first from Pope Victor and their first Bishop from Pope Celestin by whom they were all made Christians did profitt so much through the grace of Christ that they became the most excellent of all Christians and practising the Christian faith with great diligence by an Apostolical function did propagate it largely and gloriously among forreign remote Nations as we shall see in due place Thus Baronius It may please God in his own time to dispell the clouds of darknesse and Ministerial calumnies and make the light of truth appeare again vnto this Nation and turn their hearts vnto the right way from which they have gone very far astray And that this may be granted all ought to pray especially these whom God has called lately in this Nation vnto the knowledge of the truth With the concurrence of which desire I would make an end if the Renounciation of the Covenant shown by my Catholique friend to me and some other new Converted Catholiques wherein there is an Antithesis almost in every point between the Catholique and Presbyterian doctrine were not thought fitting to be here subioynd with which we shall conclude A RENOVNCIAtion of the Scottish Presbyterian Covenant or Confession of Faith WEE whom it hath pleased God of late to call mercyfully from the darknesse of Heresy vnto the admirable light of the holy Catholique faith doe professe that after a a The Catholiques long diligeÌ„t search may appeare by the former Trial whereas the Covenanters vsed neither long nor due examination of their consciences as may be seen above pag. 411. LONG and serious search for the Truth we are now b b Catholiques who relie vpon the immoveable Pillar and ground of Truth to Witt the holy Catholique Church which never changes are fully satisfyed and assured of the Truth But Heretiques who quite this solid ground and follow the Private Spirit which is very inconstant let them pretend what they please can never have full assurance which evidently appeares by their continual changes new pretended lights See above pa. 425. FVLLY satisfyed thereof by the c c Christ promised that the Spirit of Truth should remaine in his Church for ever teach her all Truth Iohn 14.16 Iohn 16.13 And yet it is strange that every new heretique without Scripture appropriats this Spirit to himself against Scripture Christs clear promise denys the holy Spirit to the whole Church The same may be said also of their vain pretext of the word of God See above pag. 423. 424. WORD and Spirit of God RESIDING constantly in the holy Catholique Church And therefore we beleeve and professe that this only is the true Religion without which it is impossible to please God which was of d d The true faith was revealed of old and from that time can never be hid But the Presbyterian faith has two contraâ—y qualities to witt it is now revealed and has lyen long hid as may be seen above p. 426. See also Math. 5.16.17 OLD mercyfully revealed by our blissed Saviour Iesus-Christ and by his holy Apostles through the preaching of the blessed Evangel which since that time has never lyeÌ„ HID but has ever shynd like a light set vpon a Candlestick And has been professed through All Ages in e e The true Church must be in all Nations as Esay foretells saying All Nations shall flow vnto it Esay 2.2 and Christ shew that repentance should be preached in his name vnto all Nations beginning at Hierusalem Luke 24.47 For this cause the true Church is called Catholique as being dispersed through All Nations as she is also Catholique for Time endureing in All Ages But Heresys are only in some few Nations or corners of the world and in these also they are not the same but full of diversity and contrariety which is manifestly verifyed of the Presbyterians Protestants See above ch 32. 34. All Christian Nations and particularly in the ancient Kingdome of Scotland as Gods f f As Gods Truth is Eternal so it cannot be hid Esay 62.6 But the Presbyterians pretended Eternal Truth has been too long hid Eternal and MOST KNOWN TRVTH the only ground of our Salvation as may be seen in the Catholique Confession of Faith approved and authorized by the g g The approbations of all General Councels which are governed by the holy Ghost and which do never revoke their determinations by which the Catholique faith is approved and confirmed are a much more solid authority to confirme the Catholique religion then are the earthly courts of changeing Parliaments to establish any sort of the Protestant Religion We know by experience that there are nothing more changeable then Acts of Parliament See pag. 430. Vniversal consent irrevocable Determinations of all the General Councels of the Christian world And has been not for the short space of 20. or hundred but for the h h The Scottish Nation was converted to the faith an Christi 203. Leslaeus de Reb. gestis Scot. l. 1. p. 114. which is above 1400. yeares agoe during which time it remaind coÌ„staÌ„t in the Catholique faith except a little of late This indeed may be called a long time but the Presbyterians long time is only 20 years as may be known by calculation and as yet it is not a hundred LONG time of 14. hundred years and above professed publickly not by one or two but by above i i Since the conversion of King Donald the first Christian King there are reckoned above 80. Catholique Kings of this Nation as may be seen in our Histories whereas the Presbyterians had only one King to witt King Iames the 6. who subscrybed their Covenant in his younger yeares which he also disproved thereafter in the Conference at Hampton-Court 80. KINGS of this Nation diverse of which are k k There were diverse of the Scottish Catholique Kings eminent for holynesse as S. william S. David S. Malcom and many more as may be seen in Camerarius lib. 3. de Scotorum pietate c. 4. where he reckons out also many great Saints of the Royal race as S. Rumoldus S. Fiacre S. Mathildis c. GLORIOVS SAINTS in Heaven and by the whole body of this Kingdome l l For the ancient piety and zeal of the Scottish Nation to propagate the Kingdome of Christ Baronius testimony cited at the latter end of the