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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	call_v	great_a	province_n	5,554	4	7.9737	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B11184	A sermon preached before the Kings Maiestie, at Hampton Court, concerning the right and power of calling assemblies On Sunday the 28. of September, anno 1606. By the Bishop of Chichester.	Andrewes, Lancelot, 1555-1626.	1606 (1606)	STC 615; ESTC S121037	24,722	58

of the Temple a matter meerely Ecclesiasticall Iosias Iosias 2. Chron. 34.29 30. vvhen the Temple to be purified and a masse of superstitions to be remoued In all these cases did all these Kings call all these Conuentions of Priestes and Leuites for matters of Religion Ezekias 2. Chro. 29.15 I insist onely on the fact of Ezekias Hee was a King hee gaue forth his precept for the Priestes and all their brethren to assemble wherefore Adres Iehouae for the affaires of the seruice of God yea God himselfe There are 14. chiefe men of the Priestes set downe there by name that by vertue of that precept of the Kings came together themselues they and their brethren all ex praecepto Regis ad res Iehouae by the Kings authoritie for matters meerely of the Church I knowe not what can bee more playne The matters spirituall the persons assembled spirituall and yet called by the Kings Trumpet Thus till the Captiuity In the Captiuity there haue vve Mardochee when hee came in place of authoritie appoynting the dayes of Purim Mardocheus Hester 9.17 and calling all the Ievves in the prouince together to the celebrating of them After the Captiuitie Nehemias Nehe. 7.64 Nehemias kept the Trumpet still and by it first called the Priests to shew their right to their places by their genealogies Nehem. 13.11 after reduced them also to their places againe when they were all shrunke away in time of his absence These leade the practise til you come to the Maccabees The Maccabees and there it is but too euident they professe there expresly to Simeon made then their Ruler That it should not be lawfull for any 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1. Mac. 14.44 to call any assembly in the land 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 without him A plaine euidence that so had euer gone the course of their gouernment Else how should it come to passe that the altering of Religion is still termed the deed of the King that his disposition godly or otherwise did alwayes accordingly change the publike face of Religion which thing the Priests by themselues neuer did neither could at any time hinder from being done Had the Priests vvithout him bene possessed of this povver of Assembling how had any Acte concerning Religion passed without them In them it had bene to stop it at any time if they had of themselues had this power of Assembling themselues to set order in matters of Religion Thus from Moses to the Maccabees vvee see in vvhose hands this povver vvas And what should I say more There was in all Gods people no one religious King but this Povver hee practised And there was of all Gods Prophets no one that euer interposed any prohibition against it Would Esay shal we once imagine haue endured Ezekias him to call or the Priests to come together onely by his precept ad res Iehouae Esa 58.1 and not lift vp his voice like a trumpet against it if it had not bin in his knowledge the Kings right to command and their dutie to obey Neuer certainly What shall wee say then were all these wrong shall we condemne them all Take heed In all that gouernment God hath no other children Psal 73.15 but these if we condemne these we condemne the whole generation of his children Yet to this we are come now that either we must condemne them all one after another the Kings as vsurpers for taking on them to vse more Power then euer orderly they receiued and the Prophets for soothers of them in that their vniust claime or els confesse they did no more then they might and exceeded not therein the bounds of their calling And indeed that wee must confesse for that is the truth This then may serue for the custome of Gods ovvne elect people But they vvere Ievves and vve vvould be loth to Iudaize and it may be this vvas one of the clauses of the Lawe of commandements Ephes 2.15 consisting of Ordinances which Christ came to abrogate I demand therefore The practise or vse of this Power among Christians When Christ came how was it then will the like appeare in the assemblies since Christ The very like euery way as consonant to that of the olde Testament as may be For Christ Matth. 18. giueth a promise of his assistance to such meetings but sets no nevv order for calling of them other then had bene taken in the old Therefore the same order to be kept still A time there was you know after Christ vvhen they vvere Infidels Kings and Kingdomes both A time there follovved vvhen Kings receiued Religion and no sooner receiued they it but they receiued this Power of the Trumpets with it This to be made manifest 1. By Generall Councels 2. By National and Prouincial Councels that haue bene assembled 3. vnder Emperors 4. and vnder Kings by the space of many hundred yeeres 1. And for Generall Councels this first In generall Councels to beginne with that if those Assemblies be not rightly called that by this Power are called we haue lost all our Generall Councels at one blow The Church of Christ hath to this day neuer a Generall Councel Vnâ Liturâ with one vvipe vve dash them out all we leaue neuer a one no not one For all that euer haue beene haue beene thus called and kept Yea those foure first which all Christians haue euer had in so great reuerence and high estimation not one of them a lawfull Councel if this new assertion take place This is a perilous inconuenience yet this we must yeeld to and more then this if we seeke to disable Assemblies so holden For sure it is all the Generall Councels were thus Assembled all all seuen for more are not to bee reckoned the eight was only for a priuate busines The rest were only of the West Church alone and so not generall The East and West together make a generall The East and Westtogether neuer met but in one of those seuen for publike affaires vnlesse it were once after in that of Ferrara And it is well knowen that vvas in hope of helpe on the East Churches part vvhich they neuer had and so the Councell neuer kept but broken euen as soone as it vvas broken vp Briefly then to suruey those seuen And I will not therein alledge the reports of Stories they write things they savv not many times and so frame matters to their ovvne conceits and many times are taynted with a partiall humour but only out of authenticall Records in them and out of the very actes of the Councels themselues best able to testifie and tel by whose authoritie they came together And it is happy for the Church of Christ there are so many of them extant as there are to guide vs to the trueth in this poynt that so the right may appeare First then for the great Nicene Councel the first Generall Congregation of all that were called in the

Christian world The whole Coūcell in their Synodicall Epistle written to the Church of Alexandria witnesse they were assembled 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the holy Emperour Constantine gathering them together out of diuers Cities and Prouinces The whole Letter is extant vpon record in Socr. 1.9 and Theodoret. 1.9 Giue mee leaue to make heere a little stand For heere at this Councell was the pale first broken and the right if any such were here it went first away At Nice there were then together 318. Bishops totius orbis lumina as Victorinus well tearmeth them the lights of the whole world the chiefest and choysest men for holinesse learning vertue and valure that the Christian Religion euer had before or since men that had layd downe their liues for the testimony of the trueth Did any of them refuse to come being called by him as not called aright Or comming was there any one of them that did protest against it or pleaded the Churches interest to meet of themselues Not one What was it then want of skill in so many famous men that knew not their owne rights Or want of valure that knowing it for such would not so much as speake a word for it but sit still and say nothing all the while There were then there present Spyridion Paphnutius Potamon and diuers besides but these I name that had not long before for their constancie had their right eyes bored out their right ham-strings and the strings of their right-armpits cut in sunder Did these want courage thinke wee Were they become so faint hearted that they durst not open their mouth for their owne due Verily that Councell of Nice which is and euer hath bene so much admired by all Christians cannot be excused before God or men if they thus conspired all to betray the Churches right and suffered it contrary to all equitie to bee caried away leauing a dangerous precedent therein for all Councels euer after to the worlds end But no such right there was If there had bene they neither wanted wit to discerne it nor courage to claime it But they knew whose the Trumpets were To whom Erunt tibi was spoken and therefore neuer offered to lay hold on either of them and say This is ours And yet to say the trueth There is no man of reason but will thinke it reasonable if this were the Churches owne peculiar if appropriat vnto it and so knowen to them to be there ought to haue bene plaine dealing now at the very first Councell of all that if Constantine would embrace Religion hee must needs resigne vp one of his Trumpets and forbeare from thence to meddle with their Assemblies Was there so No such thing Why was there not Belike because none were there that had euer been present at any Assembly holden vnder persecution to know the Churches order and maner of meeting then Yes there was Hosius Bishop of Cordoua who had held the Councell of Eluira in Spaine Concil Eliberit Tom. 1.600 euen in the time of persecution Hosius for the West And for the East there was Eustathius Bishop of Antioch had held the like at Ancyra then too Concil Ancyra Tom. 1.446 both the Councels yet extant to be seene and these two Presidents of them Yet were these twaine two that came first and sate formost at the Councell of Nice and neither of them pleaded or knew of any such right but that their Power then ceased and that Constantines Trumpet now tooke place Sure if but this first Councell be well considered it is able to mooue much And the example of this first was of great consequence for all the rest followed it and as this went so went they And this for the first 2. The second Generall Councell at Constantinople Who called that Congregation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Their owne letter to the Emperour is to be seene professing they were thither assembled by his Writ 3. For the third at Ephesus let the Acts of the Councell now set out in Greeke be looked on Foure seuerall times they acknowledge they were thither summoned by the Emperours a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Oracle b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Becke c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Charge and d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Tom. 2.129 Con●e●ent● Concilio secund sacram praeceptionem Commandement 4. For the fourth at Chalcedon looke but vpon the very front of the Councell it proclaimeth it selfe to be there assembled Facta est Synodus ex decreto Pijssimorum fidelissimorum Imperatorum Valentiniani Martiani And it is well knowen it was first called at Nice and then recalled from thence and remoued to Chalcedon all wholly by the disposing of the Emperour 5. So saith the fifth at Constantinople Tom. 2.579.2.666 Imperator Iustian quintam aecumenicam Synodum Episcopis Ecclesiarum euocatis coegit Tom. 3.237.244 Secundū pijssimam iussionem mansuetudinis vestrae Iis quae per mansuetissimae fortitudinis vestrae Sacram dudum praecepta sunt efficaciter promptam obedientiam exlubere Iuxta pium iussum à Christo amati à Deo custoditi Iustiniani Imperatoris They be their owne wordes 6. And so the sixth at Constantinople Secundùm Imperialem sanctionem congregata est And pro obedientia quam debuimus They bee the expresse words of Agatho Bishop of Rome in the same Councell 7. a Tom. 3.453 And euen so the seuenth at Nice Quae per pium Imperatorum decretum congregata est meaning Constantine and Irene And these be all the Generall In all which the force of the trueth presenteth it selfe so clearly that b De Concil lib. 1. cap 13. Bellarmine is euen dazelled with it For as one dazeled he sets downe diuers reasons why the Emperors were to call them in that very place where he taketh vpon him to prooue the Emperours were not to call them 2. But it may be General Councels haue a fashion by themselues Those Congregations may be called In Nationall and Prouinciall from Constantine to Instinian thus But National or Prouincial such as ours How Euen so too and no otherwise Constantine began with them first Euseb 10.5 before he proceeded to the Generall at Nice His Tractoria or Writ is extant to be seene Euseb 10.5 whereby he called the first Prouincial Councell in France For sure by no Canon could the Bishop of Syracuse in Sicile or Restitutus Bishop of London in Britayne be lawfully summoned to a Synode in France which they were but as it was in deed by the Emperors Writ onely But this he did at the beginning of his raigne perhaps while he was yet an vnperfect Christian Nay euen first and last he did the same as at the beginning he called this so in the end of his Reigne the thirtieth yere the yere before his death called he the Councell at Tyre from thence remoued it to Ierusalem and from thence called them to appeare before himselfe in