Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	bind_v	earth_n	loose_v	5,255	5	10.5190	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A58740	The Sincere popish convert, or, A Brief account of the reasons which induced a person who was some years since seduced to the Romish Church to relinquish her communion, and return into the bosom of the Church of England wherein the Holy Scriptures are clearly proved to contain all things which are necessary to be believed and practiced by Christians in order to their salvation, and are justly vindicated from those odious imputations, which the papists profanely cast upon them : with an epistle to the reverend and learned Dr. Stillingfleet, dean of St. Paul's.	T. S.	1681 (1681)	Wing S184; ESTC R33969	49,068	54

when he recommends Unity by reason of one Body one Spirit one Hope one Faith one Baptism one Lord there is no mention at all of any Pontifical Monarch In all the New Testament there is not any one called the Head of the Church but only our Blessed Saviour Eph. 1.22 God hath put all things under his feet and given him to be Head over all things to his Church And chap. 4. 15. Grow up to him in all things who is the Head even Christ Colos 1.18 He is the Head of the Body the Church Wherefore they are highly injurious to our Saviour who set up any other Nor do Protestant Princes take themselves to be Heads of their own particular Churches in any other sence than the good Kings of Israel and Juda were to defend the Orthodox Religion and maintain good Order and Discipline in the Church and take cognizance of abuses crept in among any persons Ecclesiastical or Civil and reform what they find amiss according to the Canon of the Scripture by the advice of their Chief Clergy And not as the Papists impertinently object concerning Q. Elizabeth that she had assumed power to preach administer the Sacraments c. And all this as I said before is the undoubted Right of Soveraigh Princes in their own Territories and was practised by the Good Princes under the Old Law with great Commendation and Reward It was likewise promised to the New That Kings should be Nursing Father's and Queens Nursing Mothers to the Church In fine that Paternal Wisdom and Providence of God which so plentifully revealed to us All matters of importance for our own private Good for the Being or Well being of his Church and certainly this great pretended Jurisdiction must be of that Nature that the most Curious Inquirer can desire nothing more and which did under the Mosaical Dispensation so exactly describe the Condition and Power of the High Priest even to the minute Circumstances of his Garments so that none could be so stupid among the Jews but if he read the Books of Mises he might sufficiently understand that there was a High Priest constituted and what Authority he had would certainly have left us some intimation of the like Regiment under the Gospel had there been any such matter to be expected Whereas on the contrary we cannot there find so much as the Name or Title of any such Dignity nor of any Seat appointed for his Residence no singular Office is assigned to him above others no Ensigns of Soveraignty are recorded whereby He might be distinguished from others no manner of Succession is provided for nor is there the least practice or exercise of such a singular Absolute Power so much as hinted at in the whole New Testament And therefore we may justly conclude it to be an upstart Usurpation and no Authority of Divine Institution There are but two passages in Scripture that with any tollerable shew can be made use of to countenance this Supremacy that is so much urged to be conferred on S. Peter and intayled on his Successors The one wherein it seems to be promised the other wherein they say it was actually bestowed The first is that famous place the Achilles of the Roman Cause Matth. 16.17 18. Thou art Peter and upon this Rock will I build my Church and the Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it And I will give unto thee the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven and whatsoever thou shalt bind on Earth shall be bound in Heaven and whatsoever thou shalt loose on Earth shall be loosed in Heaven These words which they think so plain and obvious do yet contain two Metaphors of a Rock and the Keys and I cannot find in any other part of Scripture that they are explained in the Romanists sence Simply and without a Metaphor I am sure they were not so easie to the Apostles themselves nor did they understand thereby any principality intended for S. Peter as appears by sundry contentions among them after these words were spoken who should be the Chiefest Nor can the Antient Fathers Good men discover any such Energy or Prerogative in them for S. Peter or the Pope For our Saviour doth not plainly and literally affirm that he will build his Church upon S. Peter but upon the Rock which he confess'd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 upon this Rock not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 upon this Peter Non dictum est illi Tu es Petra sed Tu es Petrus Petra autem erat Christus It was not said to him Thou art the Rock but Thou art Peter for the Rock was Christ says S. Augustin Retract l. c. 21. The same Father in his 124 Tract on S. Joh. Ser. 13. de Ver. Dom. thus paraphrases this Text Vpon this Rock which thou hast confessed upon this Rock which thou hast acknowledg'd saying Thou art Christ the Son of the Living God will I build my Church that is upon my self the Son of the Living God will I build my Church I will build Thee upon Me not Me upon Thee For the Rock was Christ whereon Peter himself was built I am punctual in citing this Great Doctor and Father of the Church because the Romanists give out that they desire to stand to the alone Judgment of this Learned Father The Holy Martyr S. Cyprian could not apprehend any such Intrigue in these words l. de Vnit Eccles The rest of the Apostles saith he were the same that Peter was being endowed with an equal share both of Honour and Power Nor S. Ambrose Serm. 66. S. Peter and Paul were eminent among the Apostles and it is doubtful which is to he preferred before the other S. Hillary l. 6. de Trin. S. Chrysost hom 55. in Matth. Euseb Emissen Greg. the Great V. Beda Haymo the Gloss of Gratian Lyra and a multitude of others understand the Text of S. Matthew as S. Augustin doth Cardinal Cusanus l. 2. c. 13. Concord Cath. is very positive that nothing was here said to S. Peter but what was said to the rest of the Apostles And the words of Sixtus Senensis a very Learned Pontifician Biblioth l. 6. are worth our notice We believe and acknowledge with a sure faith that Christ is the first and Chief Foundation of the Whole Ecclesiastical Edifice But we also affirm that upon this Foundation there are other Rocks lay'd namely Peter and the rest of the Apostles whom John in the Apocalypse names the Twelve Foundations of the Heavenly Jerusalem In sum I find three Interpretations of these words among the Antients viz. That Christ is the Rock That the Confession Faith and Doctrine of Christ is the Rock and that S. Peter himself as an Apostle is Metonymically a partial Rock All which meanings agree very well together but nothing favour the Supremacy that the Romanists desire Nor do the Protestants deny S. Peter a Primacy of Authority and Spiritual Jurisdiction over the Church as an Apostle or in respect of his Fellow

Apostles a Primacy of Order Calling Graces Gifts Courage c. or that he was a Ministerial Rock But since the Rock and the Keys signifie the same thing to wit the power of Binding and Loosing which Matth. 18.18 is expresly promised to all the Apostles and the same words of Binding and Loosing are there used which were before to S. Peter and after the Resurrection John 20.21 the same power was amply bestowed on all the Apostles equally and their Successors He breathed on his Disciples saying As my Father sent me even so send I you Receive you the Holy Ghost Whose sins you retain they are retained and whose sins you remit they are remitted so that no mans Jurisdiction came from Peter to him but every one had it alike and equally from our Saviour who sent him and since S. Paul assures us Ephes 2.20 That we are built upon the Foundation of the Apostles in general and Prophets Jesus Christ himself being the Chief Corner-stone and S. Anselm well comments on S. Matth. 16. This power was not given alone to Peter but as Peter answered one for all so in Peter he gave this Power to all This Text will not evince S. Peter to have been Constituted the Universal Monarch of Christs Church Nor in the whole Series of Divine History do we meet with any Monarch-like Action of his Recorded But on the contrary we read that He was sent as a Messenger by the rest of the Apostles Act. 8.14 That he gave the Right Hand to S. Paul and Barnabas Galat. 2.9 That he was accused to the other Disciples pleaded his cause before them and submitted to their Judgment Acts. 11.1 c. And that S. Paul withstood him to his face finding that he walk'd not uprightly according to the truth of the Gospel Galat. 2.11 14. Thus far they think this Soveraignty was only promised In S. Joh. 21.17 where Christ said to Peter Feed my sheep they teach that this power was absolutely delivered and confirmed But neither was this charge so lay'd on S. Peter that the rest were excluded For they grant that no more was here Given than what was Promised Matth. 16. where the Keys are mentioned Now we have evidently proved that all the Apostles were equal in the power of the Keys and that those words concern S. Peter no more than the other Disciples In Scripture phrase the word Feed when it is accommodated to Ecclesiastical Functions is the same as to Teach They shall Feed them with knowledge and understanding saies the Prophet Jeremy And then we shall find the same Command and Commission given to all the Apostles Matth. 28.19 Go and Teach all Nations c. Besides since All the Apostles had before been sent as Shepherds to Feed the Flock Matth. 9.36 10.6 and were afterwards furnished with more full Instructions and Abilities to the same end Matth. 28. John 20. which they executed most diligently and Couragiously as appears by their Acts and Epistles no man can reasonably deny but that pasce Oves Feed my sheep belong'd to them as well as to S. Peter and they themselves gave the same Duty in Charge to other Pastors Act. 20.28 Take heed to your selves and to all the Flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you Overseers to Feed the Church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood Neither would S. Peter ingross this privilege to himself but communicated it to others 1 Pet. 5.2 Feed the Flock of God that is among you S. Cyprian de Vnit Eccles speaks home They are all Pastors but the Flock is one which by one consent is fed by all the Apostles And S. Chrysostom l. 2. de Sacerdotio Our Saviour at that time intended to teach both Peter and Vs how dear his Church is to him c. This is a True Short and Plain Account of S. Peter's Authority both what was given him by our Saviour and what was exercised by himself But alas this is too scant for his pretended Successour as we shall now manifest And I shall be a little more exact in this Seasonable Argument because that I know many of our English Roman Catholicks will not believe that this Vast Unlimited Power is owned by their Church but is onely the product of the Flattery of private Doctors and the Pope's particular Parasites I will onely mention how the Usurpings Innovations and Incroachments of the Roman Bishops have been constantly opposed by the Greatest part of Christendom in all Ages In the first General Council of Nice he was confined to his own particular District as the Patriarch of Alexandria and others were to theirs In the first General Councils of Constantinople and Ephesus the Provinces of the World were distinguished and the Patriarchs restrained to their own Circuits and He of Constantinople is by name made Equal to Him of Rome in all Ecclesiastical Matters He of Rome had indeed the Chief Honour but that consisted not in Jurisdiction but in sitting in the first place and such like Titles The Council of Chalcedon confirms the same Decrees and adds withal Our Fathers gave the Privileges to the Seat of Elder Rome because that City had the Empire and the 150 Bishops assembled at the Council of Constantinople moved with the same reason gave the same Privilege to the most Sacred Throne of New Rome thinking it reasonable that the City which is honoured with the Empire and Senate should also have Equal Privileges with Elder Rome and in Ecclesiastical Matters be advanced alike with her Another Council at Constantinople Enacted the same But the Council of Carthage Anno 418. consisting of 217 Bishops is most Worthy of our Remark In this Council when Sozymus Bishop of Rome claimed a Right to receive Appeals from all parts of the World and pretended a Canon of the Nicene Council that should give it him the Bishops strongly debated the Matter and having searched the Original Copies of the Nicene Council whereby the Untruth of his Claim was discovered they wrote sharply to him not to meddle any more with their Provinces nor admit into his Fellowship such as they had Excommunicated Telling him he had nothing to do in their Causes either to bring them to Rome or to send Legats to hear them at home and that this pretence of his was expresly against the Nicene Council The Evidence of this Great Testimony stands to this day unanswerable by the Roman Party It is abundantly known how Pope Stephen was sleighted by S. Cyprian and Victor by the Bishops of the East But this is an Innnite Theme and I must not forget my promised Brevity I shall onely Request the Gentlemen of the Roman-Catholick Persuasion seriously to lay to heart what Trivial Grounds this Grand Article of their Church the Pope's Supremacy even in Ecclesiastical Affairs is founded upon and to consider how many Difficulties must be cleared to make it a probable Tale. 1. That S. Peter was Bishop of Rome 2. That he dyed