Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	faith_n	good_a	timothy_n	1,872	5	11.8568	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A68023	A briefe examination for the tyme, of a certaine declaration, lately put in print in the name and defence of certaine ministers in London, refusyng to weare the apparell prescribed by the lawes and orders of the realme In the ende is reported, the iudgement of two notable learned fathers, M. doctour Bucer, and M. doctour Martir ... translated out of the originals, written by theyr owne handes, purposely debatyng this controuersie.	Parker, Matthew, 1504-1575.; Bucer, Martin, 1491-1551.; Vermigli, Pietro Martire, 1499-1562.; Hooper, John, d. 1555.	1566 (1566)	STC 10387; ESTC S101661	56,521	86

called Dalmatica and so stode in lynnen Chrysostome maketh mention of the whyte vesture of the ministers of the Church Moreouer the auncient wryters declare vnto vs that Christians when they came first vnto Christes religion chaunged their apparell and for a gowne they dyd put on a cloke for the which cause when they were mocked of the Gentyles Tertullian wrote a very learned treatise De Pallio that is to say of a Cloke Neyther as I take it you be ignoraunt that a whyte vesture was wont to be geuen to them that were baptized Wherfore it appeareth that before the Popes tiranny ouerwhelmed the Church there was some maner of diuersitie of apparell in the Church But be it so let them be the inuention of the Pope as you woulde haue it yet notwithstanding for the respecte of the papisticall inuention in them I can not be perswaded so muche impietie to be therin that whatsoeuer it toucheth it doth by and by so infecte and corrupt that it cannot be lawfull for good and godly men to vse it Godly I suppose ye vnderstande what my iudgement is eyther in reseruyng or bringing in agayne the Moisaicall or papisticall rites Nowe that I haue briefelye gone ouer these two chiefe poyntes of your reasons I come vnto that whiche ye also graunt That all thynges inuented by man be not forthwith to be reiected and condemned For what is it els but mans inuention that we communicate at the Lordes table rather in the mornyng then when we haue dyned It was also deuysed by man that the value of such thynges as was to be deuyded in the primatiue Churche were layde at the feete of the Apostles I graunt with you that these choyses of apparell do not of it selfe edifie And yet for all that other men wyll iudge it expedient that they be tollerated for a tyme as though peraduenture by that meanes these contentions wyll be auoyded by which it is in hazarde lest greater benefites and more ample commodities be hyndered and as we see it falleth out lest mennes myndes be withdrawen from the Gospell I wyll not here saye that they whiche stande to the defence of this matter may pretende some honest and iust signification of the apparell and that not dissentyng from the worde of God which is this The Ministers of the Church as the prophete Malachy witnesseth be Angels and Gods messengers but Angels for the most part appeared being clothed in whyte garmentes I pray you howe shall we debarre the Church of this libertie that it can not signifie some good thyng in settyng foorth theyr rites and ceremonies especially beyng so done that no maner of Gods honour is attributed vnto them and that they be in sight comely and in number few and that Christian people be not with them ouerburdened matters of greater importaunce be omitted Peraduenture you wyll say to me Let Ministers of the Churche declare themselues to be Angels not represent Angels by signification But Paule the Apostle might so haue ben aunswered when he taught the Corinthians that it was meete that a woman shoulde haue her head couered and a man his head vncouered vrgyng it only in respecte of signification For some man of the Church myght haue aunswered hym saying Let a man declare hym selfe to be head of his wyfe and let a wyfe declare her selfe to be subiect vnto her husbande not in signes but in deedes and conuersation But yet Paule iudged it a meete and a profitable thyng that both of them aswell the man as the woman should be monished of theyr duetie by such a signe or action For by such signes and meanes we be stirred vp to do our office and duetie for they bryng into our myndes that whiche is decent for vs to do And yf hereby the weakelynges take an occasion of errour let them be monyshed that they be but indifferent thynges and let them be taught that no part of Gods honor and religion is placed in them Nowe whether the eyes of them that be present be turned cleane away from thynkyng of serious matters because of the diuersitie of apparell peraduenture euery man wyll not graunt it Fyrst the aduersaries maye aunswere that this shall not folow yf such apparell be appoynted that hath no gorgeousnesse but is playne and vsed before in the Church For no man maruelles at those thynges that be dayly vsed and of small value Nay it is more like that men beyng stirred with the reuerence of them shall haue theyr cogitacions more attentiuely vpon serious thynges for the externall partes of the sacramentes seeme to be instituted to this ende that we euen of the very fyght and of our externe sensis shoulde be inwardely moued to haue contemplation of diuine thynges Neyther suppose I by and by a tiranny to be brought in yf any thyng that is indifferent should be receyued into the Church to be done and that many should constantly obserue the same Nowe a dayes we do minister the Lordes supper in the mornyng so that we wyll not receyue at al after dyner in the publique congregation But who wyll say that this sauoureth of any tiranny which we all do with one wyll and consent Truely it woulde please me rather as I haue oftentymes rehearsed that we shoulde only do those thynges that Chryste dyd and Paule delyuered but yf there be some indifferent thynges added I woulde not nowe therefore greatly contende especially forsomuch we see that they by whom the lyght of the Gospell is much aduaunced in England and dayly may be more aduaunced do take part agaynst vs. I graunt with you that all which is not of fayth is synne Neuerthelesse that which is written of Saint Paule to Titus seemeth greatly to serue for to ease and quiet the conscience that is All thynges are cleane to the cleane And to Timothy Euery creature is good For it is not necessaryly required that we shoulde proue euery particuler thyng which we vse to be expressely mentioned in the Scriptures It is enough generally to knowe this fayth That indifferent thynges can not corrupt those that be of a pure mynde and sincere conscience in theyr doynges These thynges haue I briefely gathered together as touchyng the controuersie whiche ye proposed vnto me out of the which I beseche God with all my hart that ye maye shyft your handes well of And I desyre you to take in good part that I haue written for yf I coulde haue aunswered eyther more substancially or more playnely I woulde haue satisfied your request to my power But forbecause it is not graunted to euery man to wryte handsomely and redyly of these matters you must needes pardon me And assure your selfe further of this one poynt that I am redy nowe and at all tymes to beleue the trueth when I shall be otherwayes instructed In the meane season thynke ye not that this iudgement whiche here I haue declared vnto you was but nowe fyrste perswaded vnto me For euen

auctoritie in respect of the abuse of the abuse I saye which he sawe had so great strength then in many places of Englande But you peraduenture fearyng leste this his saying were not so strong vpon your part as you wyshed you farther say that he wylleth in suche case as yeare nowe in no wyse to receyue them Wherevnto you cite his exposition vpon the. xviii Chapter of Saint Mathew This place yf you would haue indifferently rehearsed you should haue opened to the worlde that his mynde was that some ceremonies abused might be styl retained His wordes are these in the begynning almost of that his exposition Fateor equidem ●●●t ab Antichristis inuectum sit c. Though whatsoeuer thing is decreed contrary to the libertie of externe matters it hath ben brought in by Antichristes as the difference of persons meates dayes places and very many moe yet because commonly men were perswaded that all those thynges were the commaundementes of the Churche directed by the spirite of God so receyued all those thynges as comming from the wyll of God I acknowledge in deede that reason it is we vse circumspectly euen now the libertie obtayned by Christ and with Paule sometyme circumcise Timothy that is that we vse well some ceremonies whiche others abused takyng occasion thereby to teach Christ purely although by no meanes these inuentions of man can be compared with circumcision or the lyke ordinaunces of God Thus farre Doctour Bucer In this sentence though many thinges may be noted as that the false opinion of men dyd not perswade hym to caste all these thinges away as that these thinges were not to be refused because they were the deuises of man as that occasion myght hereby be taken to preache Chryst purely and suche other yet it shall suffise to put you in mynde that he thynketh godly men may well vse some rites whiche were abused before tyme. So that if you take one peece of his exposition with another you shal not neede to terme your betters and felowe seruauntes in Christ that receiue this apparell to be enemies or shrinkers This wel learned fathers wordes to his frend beyond the sea well wayed maketh nothyng agaynst the orders nowe practised For we may and do prayse be to God holde faste Puritatem rituum et doctrine the puritie of rytes and doctrine and also flee and detest the leuen of Antichrist with all erroures and superstition though we kepe these fewe ordinaunces accordyng to the rules of Gods booke wherein men had superstition before vs. There is a difference you knowe betwixt the puritie of rites and the cleane takyng away of all But peruse this godly mans Epistle Here you rehearse doctour Peter Martir by peccemeale when as there is no wryter of these dayes more euidently agaynst you But because you woulde haue men to suppose that all the learned ranne vppon your syde you are content also that this man should speake two wordes rather then be thought to kepe silence As touchyng this great Clarkes mynde peruse ouer his Epistle that foloweth and loke on his Commentaries vpon the fyrst to the Corinthians That glorious Martir of Chryst doctour Rydley you report howe he beyng required of papisticall persecutours to do on all their massyng apparell that thereby the papistes myght reioyce and worke theyr spite he you say refused them and spoke then vehemently agaynst them Surely herein he dyd lyke a constant professour of Christes religion perceyuyng the ende and purpose nought and wycked wherfore those thynges were then inforced vppon hym It was meete that he shoulde not then yelde one iote to them that sought to bryng hym into spirituall bondage agayne But euery man that wyll may see a great vnlikelyhood betwixt those tymes and ours betwixt their vse then and nowe betwixt their ende and cōmaundementes those that be now What iniurie you do to that worthy Byshop Master Jewel in framing his sentence to serue your humour al men that know him see and further vnderstand that he is not of your mynde You would fayne belike make a number yf you myght wherfore you wyll haue one way that you want another They that require your conformitie in these thinges hauyng by Gods lawe and mans the ouersight also of Gods people in this lande haue good hope that these thinges wherein they wyshe that you go forwarde with them to the worke of Gods buyldyng wyl do good and not hurt in this Churche at this season accordyng to those wordes whiche you bryng out of that excellent worke of so learned a Byshop They well weye the nature of theyr people the manifolde occasion they may obtayne hereby to spreade abrode the sweete smellyng sauour of the Gospell of Christ with diuers other the lyke considerations You had done wel if you woulde haue made some profe in these matters before you so confidently bare the matter downe with your vndoubted asseueration that they do hurt and want al good properties as yf you saw in one of your paroeces what is conuenient for the whole Realme And here with this stoute denyall wanting his proses you conclude the opinions of men which all both aliue and dead are as doth fully appeare cleane contrary to your iudgement in these matters of garmentes In the fourth and last place you consider what shal happen to yourselues yf you receyue these rites as you maye wel do with the rest of your brethren who fight in the lordes warfare a good fight hauyng fayth and a good conscience You shalbe thought you saye to bryng the people into Egypt agayne The wearyng of this apparell which as you often testifie is in his owne nature indifferent cannot be lykened to the bondage of Egipt whiche is slauerie to sinne errour and superstition The substaunce of popishe religion may well be compared to those cheynes for that many are sure tyed there with ignoraunce and blyndnes frō the which you may still go forwarde to Gods prayse and your owne discharge by discrete and diligent teachyng to loose Gods people sitting in darkenes and in the shadowe of death as many a godly man doth yet still folowyng the worthy examples of wyse preachers aforetyme who in such lyke thinges contented themselues with the maner of the region where they preached and neuer wylled them to lay aside their Heathenishe apparell no more then almightie God commaunded his people to caste away from them the Agiptians clothes when he delyuered them thence and preached vnto them newe lawes and ordinaunces Though Moyses suffered the people so redeemed from captiuitie to vse the Egiptians apparell yet no man thought that he woulde euer bryng them into Egipt agayne Thus then by doctrine yf you labour still to pull some out of captiuitie and darknes and go before your flocke on that maner as S. Paul speaketh you should be a paterne in worde in conuersation in loue in spirite in fayth and purenes you nede not to