Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
conscience_n	idol_n	knowledge_n	weak_a	1,298	5	9.3976	5	true

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A00249	A consolatory letter to all the afflicted Catholikes in England	H. B., fl. 1588.	1588 (1588)	STC 1032; ESTC S116626	41,844	112

of felony Agaynst the terror of both these lawes I intend to geue such comfort as it shall please god by my poore pen to aforde And first I will assay to geue a cordiall agaynst the thirten monthes mulct as that which may extend it selfe more generally and is more like to be put in execution then that other lawe which draweth blood at the first encouÌ„ter the world being more earnestly set in these dayes to thirst after money theÌ„ to desire the shedding of mens blood And like as pesecution beginneth commonlye with lesser penalties before it proceed to greater so shall it not be a misse to keepe the same order in applying remedye to these afflictions The loue of worldly goods being not so naturall as the care of keeping of a mans life therfore ordinarily the lose more easlly digested Although many will say that they would rather dye speedely then liue a long time in miserie The reson of this their iudgement may be geuen for that they haue already some feeling of want in this life but of deathe they haue not yet tasted neyther doe they feele it so much being in their opinion farther from them but if death were imineÌ„t I thinke ther are very few that would not saue their liues if they could although with very hard conditions for their maner of liuing so that comonly that is found true although it were vttered by the Father Author of lyes pellem pro pelle et cuncta que habet homo dabit pro anima sua Skyne for skyne and all that a man hath he will geue for his soule that is to say for the redemption of his naturall lyfe Yet neuerthelesse ther is good hope that if we maye perswade men to endure patiently the with-drawing of goods liuings they will more boldly aduenture if it shal-be needfull the losse of liues the departing from these temporall possessions being one especiall payne that meÌ„ hauing substance doe find at the time of their death being also a greate cause why they feare to dye and therfore many times a great impedimeÌ„t to the happy atchiuing of glorious martirdom ACording to this order therfore let vs first consider this penalty of tweÌ„ty pownd by the month for what cause it is layde vpon you what incoÌ„ueniences it bringeth and what recompence you maye expect in time to come for this vrgent detriment So that waying the goodnes of your cause and ioyning therto hope of future reward you may rather reioyce in the gayne that is to come then sorow for the present losse or feare the distresse or incommoditye that may ensue And first touching the cause wherfore your purses be thus punished You suffer because you ar Catholickes or as the world termeth you recusants Let vs see therfore what you refuse to doe and vpon what ground although you haue the same declared more at large in sundry learned treatyses it shall not be amisse perhaps to call some few poynts amongst the rest to remembraunce YOu refuse to doe directly agaynst your conscience to descend quick vnto hell and to be swallowed vp a liue by your enemies for Saint Augustine sayeth when thou knowest it to be euill which thou doest and yet doest the same thou doest downe quicke vnto hell And in a nother place those are they sayeth he that are swallowed vp alyue who know a thing to be euill and doe geue consent with their tongues And great reason haue you to shun this manifest and wilfull perdition of your owne soules knowinge that as Saint Paule sayeth he that discerneth that is to saye he that iudgeth a thing to be euill although it were otherwise indifferent if he doe it is damned because not of fayth but because he doeth not according to his conscience and knowledg for all that is not of fayth all that is done agynst a man his conscience is sinne albeit the thinge were of it selfe lawfull much rather if it be vtterly vnlawfull as the going to church with heretikes is holdeÌ„ in euery discreete mans conscience and iudgement And Saint Iames sayeth to one knowinge to doe good not doing it to him it is sinne much rather if a man know a thinge to be euill do it his offence must needs be great Blessed ar you therfore in refusing to condemne your selues by doing contrary to that which you best alow ALso you refuse to dishonor god by fleeing from his banner and furnishing his enimies campe with your visible presence Where as it is written in the Prouerbs That in the multitude of his people is the kings dignity in the smale nuÌ„ber of his folke the ignominy of a Prince And ther-fore of such as shrinke awaye in time of aduersity our Sauiour complayneth in one of the psalmes in behalfe of him selfe and of his spouse the Catholike Church in lamentable manner sayinge Aboue all myne enimies I haue byn made a reproch to my neighbours and a feare to mine acquaintance excedingly they that did see me haue fled forth from me vpon which place Saint Augustine sayth that the departure of those that had seene known the Church is more greeuous altogether intollerable theÌ„ the obstinate resistinge of those that haue byn nouseled brought vp in error from their infancy And therfore it followeth after a few words in the aforesayde psalme I haue heard the disprayse of manye dwelling round about me As vndoubtedly yf you should forsake god for feare of teÌ„porall losse you should geue occasion to many to blasphem god as if he were not able to deliuer you or as if you had no trust in his power and goodnes saying Non est salus ipsis in deo eorum They haue no saluatioÌ„ in their god they haue no hope or assurance in their religion which they haue hyther to professed You shall also geue them occasion to thinke very euill of the Catholike religion by seeming to make lesse accompt of the defence professioÌ„ of the same then of a litle money yea then of all your worldlye goods and possessions They that trouble you shall reioyse yf you be moued but doe you hope still in our Lord his mercy YOu refuse likewise not only to geue this cause of reioysing to your aduersaries but also to make a shew of euill that by doing that which is euill of it selfe to induce many weakelings depending on your example as your children your seruaunts friends neyghbours others partly hauing iudgement and knowledge to follow you to church agaynst their consciences and partly being ignoraÌ„t to allow the schismaticall seruice now vsed and finally to like of heresy wherby so much as lieth in you you should be homicides and destroyers of their soules for as Saint Paule sayeth If a man se him that hath knowledge sitt at a table in the Idols temple shall not his conscience being weake be edified to eate things sacrificed to Idols vpon which place

of Saint Paule the famous doctor saint Augustine inferreth that we ar forbidden to vse or to doe that wher-by we maye be thought to doe any thinge in the honour of strauÌ„ge gods receiuing it in such sort that although in harte we despise such things yet we edifie or induce those that know not our harts in deed to honour the same In lke maÌ„ner to compare the case of goinge to church in these our dayes vnto meates offered to Idols If men shall see you in churches in time of sacriligious seruice should not their consciences be edified eyther to thinke yt the seruice of God or at the lest with out feare to frequeÌ„t the same and so in tract of time to like and allow of heresy and so sinning agaynst your brethren stryking their weake consciences you shall sinne agaynst Christ Therfore sayeth the Apostle if meate scandalize my brother I will neuer eate flesh Of the same mynd was that notable Eleazaurus who chose rather to dye then to make so much as a shew of eating meates forbidden by the lawe saying that he would first be sent vnto hell for sayeth he it is not seemly for our age to fayne that many young men thinking Eleazaurus now of ninty yeares age to haue passed to the lyfe of the gentills may also them selues thorough my dissimulation and for a litle time of this corruptible lyfe be deceyued therby I may procure a blemish malediction to myne olde age for although I be deliuered at this preseÌ„t time from the tormeÌ„ts of men yet shall I not escape the hand of the almighty neyther aliue nor dead And shoulde not men haue greate cause to thinke that you were passed to the lyfe conuersation of heretikes seeing you to differ nothing from them in principall signes tokens of religion should you not cause many to saye ther is no differeÌ„ce men conteÌ„ding among them selues haue made these controuersies god is to be honoured euery wher yf the very silence of a man in matter of fayth by Saint Augustins Iudgement should cause many to thinke all religioÌ„ indifferent And therfore thryse well aduised ar you in refusing to doe such an acte wherby your catholike brethreÌ„ might be offeÌ„ded scandalized or weakened MOreouer you refuse by conforming your selues as men terme it to the proceedings of a nother religion to denye that fayth which you vndoubtedly knowe to be most true sincere vniuersall auncient as that wherin you haue byn borne and baptised wherin al your worthy auncetors haue liued and dyed which alwayes onlye hath floryshed in this Realme of Englande till within these late yeares yeelding in euerye age most plentiful fruite of deuotion towards God of obedience towardes Princes and other superiors of mercy towards the poore of charity of trueth fidelity and plaine dealing of all sortes of men towards their neighbours And that you shold so denye your faith by going to church with the protestantes yet is it moste playn by the nature of the thing it selfe being an acte properlye belonging to Religion by the intente of the lawe being made to no other ende but to exacte of you some signe of yeelding in matters of conscience by your longe refusal and suffering for the same cause heretofore by the iudgment of the aduersaries holding them-selues satisfied if you relent but in this one poynte of or externall behauior and finally by the confession of all men of any meane vnderstanding if they wil vtter plainly what they thinke if it were thought heretofore in times of persecutioÌ„ that the onlye wearing of a garland in certayne feastes of Idoles were to be holden as a signe that a man had denyed his fayth In so muche that Tertulian saythe although a Christian man hold his peace whiles others doe sacrifice to false goddes yet by wearing that garlande vppon his head he maketh aunswere in fauour of Idolatrye whereas this was a thing by nature indifferent being onlye made a signe of religion by vse and opinion of men what shall wee iudge then of ioyning with protestants in their publike prayers and seruice which is peculier to them as the blessed Sacrifice of the Masse is common to all Catholikes And therfore as wee are knowen by the one so they are knowen and discerned by the other If it were not permitted hereto fore that Christians shold in anye sorte conforme them-selues to the Gentils not euen so-much as to hang a lantern or a branche of Laurell at their dores when greate feastes were celybrated in honour of Idoles How can it be lawfull to keepe feastes with hereticks and to enter into their churches when they are busied in suche actes whereby they are distinguished not onlye from Catholiques but also one secte and sorte of them from a nother If it were thought a great offence to be present at the publike spectackles playes because the beginning and fynall ende of them was the honour of Idoles Is it possible that a catholike maÌ„ shold safly exhibit his presence at such kinde of seruice as had beginning by deuisioÌ„ from the Church and was inueÌ„ted for the setting forth of heresie Let vs here what Tertulian saith of the aforesayde plaies in a peculier treatis of that argument he requireth herein the iudgmeÌ„t of the very Gentils whether Christians might be there present or no. For saith he They most of all vnderstaÌ„d a man to be made a Christian by the refusing of such spectakles Therfore he denieth manifestlye who taketh away the thing wherby he is knowen In like maner may we saye at this present the protestants especially vnderstande that one is become a Catholike by the refusing of their churches Therfore he denyeth himselfe to be a Catholike whosoeuer fayleth in this poynt pf his profession Nether let anye man thinke to escape this dauÌ„ger of deniall by subtile euations For as S. Ciprian saieth whosoeuer seeketh deceytfull sleightes to excuse him-selfe hath denied and he that will seeme to haue satisfied the Edicts or lawes proposed a gainst the Gospel hath obeyed euen in this that he wolde seeme to haue obeyed Now who-soeuer shall thus by his outwarde acte denye himselfe to be a Catholike shall therby denyethe whole Catholike religion euen as he that denyeth him-selfe to be a Christian denyeth Christe And consequently a Christian and Catholique being all one to goe to Churche with heretickes is plainely to denye Christ As contrarie-wise to refuse their conuenticles is a cleere coÌ„fession of Christ And this is a most important reason of your refusall where-vpon I haue stayed the longer because it concerneth you as muche as to be acknowleged or denyed before God the Father and all his Angels when Christe shall come in his maiestie to iudge the worlde HEreof it foloweth also that you refuse by damnable schisme to seuer your selues from the Church your mother where-by you shoulde cease to haue God to your father

Selected quad for the lemma: conscience_n

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