Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	scripture_n	tradition_n	unwritten_a	5,821	5	12.7929	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A75961	Against the observation of a day in memory of Christs birth written in 1659. and now tendred to the consideration of all sober and serious persons, this present Decemb. 1660. by a reverend divine.		1660 (1660)	Wing A755A; ESTC R225968	3,440	8

Against the Observation of a Day in memory of Christs birth written in 1659. and now tendred to the consideration of all sober and serious Persons this present Decemb. 1660. by a reverend Divine 1 HAve we any command or example in holy Scripture for the observation of this day or of any other in memory of our Lords birth Scripture is perfect Psal 19. if there be no command or example it is no duty 2 Did the Apostles after our Saviours ascension keep this day or any other in memory of Christs birth doe you pretend to more holinesse then they 3 Would they have omitted it if it ought to have bin observed 4 Was it observed in the primitive Church for the first hundred yeares 5 How came it to be Christs day tell us the original hereof that we may know whether it be of God or man Is it like to be of God and no footstep at all left hereof in his word Neither precept nor example looking that way Hence we may safely conclude that it was set up by man And what man setteth up man may pluck down 6 Whether may not the Papists say as much for their heaps of Traditions as is ordinarily said for the observation of this day He that would read more on this subject may see in Master D. Cawdry his Book against Doctor Hammond of superstitious worship and holy dayes also in Mr. Baxter If it could be proved to be the mind of God that we should observe a day in memory of Christs birth I doubt not but that there are many yet left among us who would make conscience hereof although it be now forbidden by the Magistrate But it is so far from being a duty that it is no hard matter to prove it to be a sin For first it cannot be denyed but that there is such a sin as wil-worship which is a breach of the second Commandment 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Therefore secondly see if this be not that sin Paraeus defines it thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 est species subtilior Idololatriae quum Deus colitur commentis humanis Col. 2.8 Hominum traditiones Jdem vers 16.18 23. A shew of wisdom cultu voluntario c. Def. Wil-worship is a more refined kind of Idolatry when God is worshiped with wayes of Mans devising Again thus Superstitio est Peccatum precepto secundo prohibitum quo vero Deo cultus adhibetur indebitus quoad actus media religionis externa If then the observation of a day in memory of our Saviours birth be an invention of man If it be cultus indebitus especially being counted a matter of conscience by some It cannot escape the just censure of wil-worship superstition and a breach of the second Commandment Objection Doe not men apoint dayes of thanksgiving for mercyes received and it is esteemed a duty yea some men keep yearly their birth-day or wedding-day and on that day feast and give to the poor How much more may we apoint a day to keep in memory the greatest mercy that ever mankind enjoyed Is this great memoriall of our Saviour esteemed wil-worship and superstition and therefore sinfull And are our ordinary dayes of thanksgiving for providential transient mercyes esteemed dutyes Answ If man apoint dayes of memorials and commemoration of mercies received it is lawfull for the same power that apointed them or any succeeding powers to alter them or take them clean away Here is no superstition we enjoy our Christian liberty no obligation lyes on the conscience but for this memorial of Christs nativity we contend for it as necessary and find fault with them that omit it which proves that we affect this time superstitiously 2d Answ If God had not already laid down and apointed what memorials of his Son Jesus Christ he would have to be observed in his Church we then might have done it and the objection might have the more strength But where God hath deelared what memorials of Christ he will have For man to come in and super-ad is a breach of the second Commandment and a sin frequently condemned in Scripture This is to worship God with mens inventions to find fault with his wisedom as if he did not enough and therefore we will doe more This is to set our post by his Posts and our threshold by his threshold as Ezek. 43.8 which the holy Ghost cals abomination The memorials which God hath appointed are in every week the first day and this meerly in thankfulness for Jesus Christ for before the coming of Christ there was another day set apart for the service of God And 2dly The two Sacraments are commemorations of the Lord Jesus among other uses of them The Lords Supper we are commanded to celebrate often that so we may keep a frequent remembrance of our Saviour Christ And observe that it is a constant begining of departure from God to worship him in wayes of our own devising and consequently with times of our own devising when as we have times prescribed by himself In this we follow the Papists who in all parts of Gods worship have some addition of their own aliquid amplius God hath given two Sacraments they add five more God hath given one way to expiate sin they find out more as Masses Pilgrimages c. So here to the memorials of Christ which God hath commanded we will add aliquid amplius Hose 8.14 Israel hath forgotten his Maker and buildeth Temples It is strange he should be found fault with for building Temples yes if God will have but one Temple and they build more it is called a forgetting his Maker so for building Altars vers 11. Gualter If the written word of God be not a rule to direct us how far shall we run and where shall we stop If it cannot be manifested by scripture or by arguments derived from Scripture we may as well observe all the Papists unwritten Traditions Specious pretences of love to religion first brought in Images into Churches and then a reverent esteem of the Persons they represented brought in worship of Images And an ill-guided love to Christ brought in the adoration of his Mother and so Idolatry came in with a side-wind the same which hath ushered in this Christmas day Give way to this and I pray tell me where we shall stop Jeremi 10.3 The customes of the people are vain We may invent a thousand several sorts of services to almighty God and urge our zeale to his service and our good meanings and as much as is said in defence of this solemnity and yet all will in the end meet with that objurgation Quis haec a manu vestra postulavit If we have not Scripture for our rule there will be no bounds to our services I will add a word more though no Argument It is a solemnity which God did never blesse it hath been kept like the heathen Bacchanalia diceing and drinking fooling and lewdnesse as if the Christians God were a master of Revels the Divell hath had for the most part more service in the twelve dayes then God in the twelve moneths Master Mocket hath also written a Book on this subject And read Master Baxter's Arguments Whatever concerned our Saviour Christ which the holy Ghost thought fit to make known is exactly laid down in Scripture As 1. The Town where he was born 2. What House An Inn. 3. The place in the Inn a stable where he was laid in the manger 4. Yea a further particular is mentioned the very cloaths he was wrapt in Luk. 2. But for the time 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as foreseeing our distemper Yet is there a great aversness in people from letting goe this solemnity 1 One reason may be because of our naturall inclination especially in youth to merriments gaming 's and such kind of gambols as are ordinarily the chief keeping of Christmas 2. Another reason may be because it was forbidden by that Authority who were guilty of introduceing so great evils among us as in the state arbitrary government and in the Church contempt of Gods Ordinances c. Now when the people saw this solemnity checkt by such men Quis tulerit Gracchos They thought sure it was done on as litle grounds as some other things then removed But if they had done no worse things then taking away this festivall we should not have had so much cause to mourn under their misgovernment as we had Object Oh but the Angels in heaven rejoyced at his birth and shall not we Answ This is arguing a baculo ad Angulum Rejoyce in your Saviour What is this to keeping holy dayes for his birth Just thus the Papists for the Virgin Mary what can you doe too much in honour of Christs blessed Mother Resp Yes if we give her such honour as God doth not approve of even so in this case Besides consider the many inconveniences attending hereupon Men must neglect their callings divers dayes together to spend their time in fooling and break the command which saith 6. days shalt thou labour Object A time of relaxation from labour is but convenient once in the year Semel in Anno ridet Apollo Answ If this be granted it must be upon a civil not on a religious account If we act without ground from the written word of God if it be in spiritual things it soon becomes wil-worship if in temporals we are out of Gods way and so out of his protection Object Why was not this lookt into before have we not had truth among us till now Resp Doe not corruptions grow in any Church and then there must be a time to remove them blessed be God we keep fundamentals It was alway the will of God that Adultery should be punished with death yet hath it not been so by the law of the Land till of late FINIS