Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	bishop_n	council_n	nicene_n	3,055	5	12.2441	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A06431	Granados deuotion Exactly teaching how a man may truely dedicate and deuote himselfe vnto God: and so become his acceptable votary. Written in Spanish, by the learned and reuerend diuine F. Lewes of Granada. Since translated into Latine, Italian and French. And now perused, and englished, by Francis Meres, Master of Artes, & student in diuinity.; Libro de la oración y meditación. Part 2. English	Luis, de Granada, 1504-1588.; Meres, Francis, 1565-1647.	1598 (1598)	STC 16902; ESTC S108896	180,503	650

Friend sit vp higher for whosoeuer humbleth himselfe shall be exalted and 〈◊〉 that exalteth himself shal be broug●… low And if this guest be so acceptable in the eyes of men ho●… much more acceptable shal he b●… in the eyes of God whose natu●… is to resist the prowde and to gi●… grace vnto the humble lowly THE FOVRTEENTH admonition that sometimes we must pray longer then at other some CHAP. LVI VVE sayd before that the seruant of God ought to set downe vnto himselfe certaine times to pray in as we reade that Daniell did in times past who thrice a day prayed vpon his knees That Dauid did the like it is manifest by that which hee sayeth In the euening and morning and at noone day will I pray and that instantly and he shal heare my voyce Now let vs adde besides the ordinary time of euery day that a man ought at certaine howres all other busines set apart although it be spirituall wholy to giue himselfe vnto prayer and meditation and that more plentifull foode bee bestowed vpon the soule to repayre that which was consumed by dayly defects and that strength may be gotten to proceede further For as the children of this world besides their dayly repast haue their extraordinary feastes and bankets in which they are wont to exceede the manner of other refections so it is also behoouefull that the righteous besides theyr dayly prayer haue their feasts and spirituall bankets in which theyr soules may feede not measurably as at other times but may be filled and stuffed with the diuine sweetenes and with the plenty of Gods house We see that nature is not content with the deaw that in the night time falleth vpō the earth but also now and then it rayneth and that plentifully not for a weeke but oftentimes longer for so it is necessary that the heauens should be now and then more liberall towardes the earth and should so glut it that neither the sunne nor the winde may make it dry So also our soule besides the common and dayly deaw ought to haue certayne peculiar tymes in which our eyes may do none other thing then showre downe most plentifull teares of deuotion by which our soule may be so filled with the vertues and iuyce of the holy Ghost that all the tribulations and all the windes of this world may not dry it Albeit this course is lawdable at any time yet especially at the chiefe solemnities and feasts of the yeare neyther is it lesse necessarye in the time of trouble or after deliuerance from some offence or after disturbance in some ouerth wart busines then the recreation and refection of the body is necessary after long infirmitie For otherwise a man cannot turne vnto himselfe nor be renewed vnlesse he bestow as much time vpon his returne into the way as he spent when he went out of the way especially seeing that wee knowe that Deuotion is of the nature of those things which are easily lost but being lost are hardly recouered Of what weight this busines is no man can easily declare for it may be that at one of these times greater giftes and graces may be receiued then at any other time And according to the iudgement of the diuines any one act done with feruour and earnest zeale doth more increase charity then many done with numnes and feeblenes If this haue place in other actes of vertue certainely it shall also haue place in prayer which doth more traffick with God by the way of mercy then by the way of iustice and therefore it may be so feruent and so zealous that it may obtaine more in one day then that which is feeble and dull can obtaine in many Such was the prayer of Sara the wife of Tobias who for three dayes and three nights did neither eate nor drinke but continuing in prayer intreated the Lord with teares The third day when she perceiued that her prayer was heard she gaue thanks vnto God for her deliuerance Yet it is credible that shee prayed oftentimes before and requested the same things at the hands of God for it is a most vsuall custome among the righteous to runne vnto God in all their tribulations but then especially her prayers entred into the presence of the glory of the great God For long instance and harty perseuerance in prayer doth adde force and heate vnto it by which it is lifted vp into heauen Anna also the mother of Samuel for the recure of a defect that was in her prayed with such earnestnes and feruencie that Ely the Priest seeing her gesture the moouing of her lips and the disposition of her countenance supposed her drunke and commaunded her to goe out of the Temple When her prayer was most hot then it was most forcible to obtaine that she desired ●…hen she rose vp and went away ●…erry neyther afterwards looked she sad because she lost not ●…he hope which she had conceiued vntill she saw that accomplished which she desired The Ecclesiasticall histories do speake of Alexander the Bishop of Constantinople that when as Arrius came to Constantinople and by the commaundement of Constantine was now ●…o be receiued into the fellowship of the Church the holy Bishop being not ignorant of ●…he fraudulent dealing that Ar●…ius vsed in his subscribing to ●…he Nicene Councell fell into a dangerous gaynesaying of his admittance and into a troublesome purpose of disputation with him for he wanted no threatnings from Eusebius the Bishop of Nicomedia who did patronize the cause of the Arrians Alexander being in this streight before hee would receiue Arrius into the Communion of the Church and before he entred disputation with him he went apart into the Temple of Peace shutting himselfe there alone and prostrating himselfe vpon the earth many dayes and nights together with teares h●… prayed vnto GOD after thi●… manner O God sayd he graunt fo●… thy mercy and truth sake that 〈◊〉 the opinion of Arrius be tru●… that I may neuer liue to see th●… day appointed for this disputation but if the faith that I hold be true graunt that Arrius the Authour of all these mischiefes may suffer condigne punishment for his impiety At the length the day appointed came Arrius commeth forth guarded and attended vpon with the followers and fauourers of Eusebius all the world looking on and expecting what end ei●…her the constancie of Alexander ●…r the pride of Eusebius Arrius ●…hould haue But presently God ●…hewed his reuenging power vpō 〈◊〉 wicked damnable endeuours ●…f Arrius for his wicked consci●…nce stroke feare into him feare ●…ade his body soluble and laxa●…ue and going to the draught ●…eere vnto the common place ●…here Constantine kept his courts ●…ogether with his excrements he ●…owred forth his guts and so exhaled forth his soule a punishment meete for such a blasphemous wretch I haue bene more prolixe in this that those great fruites might more appeare