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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	aaron_n	great_a	year_n	19	3	4.0201	3	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43647	An apologetical vindication of the Church of England in answer to those who reproach her with the English heresies and schisms, or suspect her not to be a catholick-church, upon their account.	Hickes, George, 1642-1715.	1687 (1687)	Wing H1840; ESTC R20398	73,683	104

Vtreplerentur humano sanguine orationum loca Ruffinus and the Greek Historians out of whom I might have described it it caused a great deal of Bloudshed in Churches so dangerous that the Souls of many on the one side or other must needs have miscarried in it and so scandalous that it gave occasion to a † M. Marcellinus in loco supra citat Pagan Historian to make such Reflections as I wish for the honour of the Roman See and the holy Episcopal Office had never been made It happened in the year 366 and after the death of Pope Zosimus there happened another scandalous and horrible Schism between Boniface and Eulalius in the year 419 which caused such great and dangerous Tumults in the City that Honorius the Emperor who was then at Milan was not without apprehensions what might be the consequence of it and therefore to prevent and all present danger commanded both of them to be put out of Rome To pass over many intermediate Schisms in after Ages there happened many more of a very scandalous nature between contradictory Popes assisted by contradictory Parties and Councils who could not agree about the rightful Pope Thus in the year 891 the Church of Rome was miserably divided between Formosus and Sergius who were both chosen in Rome by different Parties and tho' Formosus prevailed yet Stephen the 6th his next Successor but one abrogated and nulled all his Orders and degraded all whom he had ordained and gave them new Orders In the year 965. there happened a great Schism after the death of John the 12th betwixt Benedict the 5th and Leo the 8th Platina could not determine which was the right Pope but puts them both in his Lives but Onuphrius in his Annotations upon the Life of Benedict and in his Ecclesiastical Chronology faith expresly that Benedict was the Schismatick and Leo the lawful Pope * In anno 965. Tom. 10. Baronius is of the contrary opinion he makes Leo the Antipope and Benedict the Pope and † In Chron. p. 827. Genebrard confesses that their Historians are not agreed which of the two was the rightful Successor to St. Peter's Chair In the year 1080 the whole Peace of Christendom was disturbed by the Schism which happened betwixt Clement the 3d. and Gregory the 7th 8th and Gelasius the 2d and Gelasius dying it continued between Clement and Calixtus the 2d who was chosen in the room of Gelasius The Emperor was for Clement but the Kings of England and France were for Calixtus tho' the English Clergy and People were much divided in their opinions some maintaining the one and some the other and some again that neither Party was duly elected but Calixtus having taken his Rival prisoner by the help of a good Army put an end to that Schism After the death of Adrian the 4th in the year 1159 happended a grievous Schism betwixt * Maximum Ecclesiae Schisma oriri coepit quod xix annls miserabiliter duravis Orton Frising Chron. Lib. 7. Cap. ult Victor the 4th and Alexander the 3d. which for 19. years mightily disturbed the Christian World some of the † Cardinales in seditionem conversi geminâ electione scindunt Vnitatem Radevic Frisingensis L. 2. C. 43. Cardinals chose the one and some the other and after their respective elections both were ordained and sent out ‖ Id. I. 2. C. 50. 51. Circular Letters with contradictory protestations and remonstrances attesting God to the truth of what they said Alexander called God to witness in his Letters that he was chosen by all the Cardinals but three and yet the Cardinals of Victor's Party in a * Radevic Frising L. 2. Cap. 51. publick declaration protest that he was chosen by nine Cardinals The Emperour to put an end to this Schism calls a Council at Pavia and to that end wrote to Alexander and the Cardinals and also to the Tramontan Bishops to meet there The † Id. l. 2. c. 64 65 66 67. Council being met the Emperour made a speech to them to exhort them with Fasting and Prayers to commend the Cause of the Church to God and after seven days discussion of the Controversy between the two Popes they gave sentence in behalf of Victor and the Canons of St. Peter at Rome in a Letter to the Emperor and the Council did assure them that the uncorrupt and better part of the Cardinals were for him whereupon the Emperor ratified and confirmed his Election and by his Edict commanded he should be received as Pope He died after he had sate four years and was succeeded by Paschal the 3d. Callistus the 3d. and Innocent the 3d. all opposite Popes to Alexander the 3d. whom the Roman Writers affirm to have been the true Pope But the most grievous Schism of all the rest was that which began in the year 1378. between Vrban the 6th and Clement the 7th Vrban kept his Seat at Rome but Clement at Avignion and the Germans Hungarians English and part of Italy stood for the former and the French and Spaniards for the latter Vrban created 54 Cardinals and Clement 36. The Schism between these two Popes and their Successors lasted about 50 years or according to * History of Popish c. Mr. Foulis who accounts the Schism of Felix against Eugenius as a part of it because it sprung from it above 70 years during all which time excepting the interval between Clement and Felix the 4th there were two opposite Lines of Succession to St. Peter's Chair till Felix whom the Council of Basil set up against Clement upon the earnest entreaty of the Emperor resigned up all his Interest to the Popedom and left Nicolas the 5th Successor in the Line of Vrban sole soveraign Pontif in the Roman Throne Nay during the time of this Schism there were sometimes three Popes for the Cardinals thinking to end the Schism called a Council at Pisa where they deposed Gregory the 12th one of Vrban's Successors and Benedict the 11th one of Clement's Successors and chose Alexander the 5th who died before he had sate a year Alexander was succeeded by John the 23d who created 16 Cardinals and sate seven months till the Council of Constance perswaded him to recede and become a private man again A man would think that of all Christians in the World a Roman Catholick should be most backward to upbraid the Church of England with Schism considering what frequent and violent Schisms his own Church hath laboured under in former Ages Schisms that have rent the Union and split if not interrupted the Line of Succession in the one Catholick Church and brought it to such a sad condition that the secular Authority has been fain to determine of two or three Popes which was rightfully elected and which not Thus in the Reign of † 2 3 Rich. 2. c. 6. A.D. 1378. Rich. the 2d the Parliament of England did declare in an Act for that purpose that Vrban the

First then It is not bare Vnion but the things in which a Church is united that must truly recommend and justifie it to the Christian World and prove it to be the Church of God. This is a self-evident Proposition which all the Churches in the World will admit at first hearing and the very Test by which when Disputes arise they must be content to be tryed For as to this Particular it is just in Ecclesiastical as it is in Civil Law and Government where it is not the Union but the Things or Cause in which men are united that distinguish lawful from unlawful Societies and Meetings otherwise if bare Union and Agreement how strict soever were a Sign of or a good Argument for the true and Catholick Church then Aaron the high Priest at the Head of that Congregation which worshipped the golden Calf was the true Church of the Jews He was their supream and lawful Pastor and they were very unanimous in making the Calf after his direction and in building an Altar before it and in oftering up Burnt-offerings and Peace-offerings to use the new phrase in the presence of it They sate down to eat and drink before it and said with one unanimous Acclamation These be thy Gods O Israel which brought thee out of the Land of Egypt I believe there never was a more perfect Union and Agreement in the Church of Rome then among the Communicants of this sinful Congregation nevertheless it was no Schism to divide from them because they united in a sin Their Union was their Crime because the object of it was highly criminal and God was provoked to consume them because they agreed in a thing that was so abominable in his eyes So the Corahites were as firmly united under Corah as the true Church was under Moses and Aaron Two hundred Princes of the Assembly with a great number of People were firmly united together in a Cause wherein they stuck together to the death even till the Earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up and they went down alive into Hell. So likewise the ten Tribes were as firmly united at Bethel as the two were at Hierusalem they had number as well as union to plead but notwithstanding both their number and union they were but a great Schism because they united in Innovations contrary to the will of God. So to pass from the Jews to the Christians there hath been at several times as strict an Union among Hereticks and Schismaticks as among the Catholicks The Novatians in particular were remarkable for their Concord Unity and Unanimity So were the Arians generally all of one Communion and very unanimous against the Homousian Doctrine and yet they were but a great prevailing Schism when they were at the highest and had almost gained the whole Christian World. From these Examples it is plain that in passing judgement upon Churches we are not to look at the Union so much as the Cause in which they are united We are to consider if their Doctrine and Discipline be Apostolical and their terms of Communion truly Catholick and if they be so then their Union in them is holy and laudable and such as makes them true Churches of God. A concurrence of these things is the genuine badge of a * Ad bane it aque for mam probabuntur ab illis Ecclesiis quae licet nullum ex Apostolis vet Apostolicis Autorem suum proserant ut multò posteriores quae denique quotidie instituuntur tamen in câdem fide conspirantes non minùs Apostolicae deputantur pro consanguinitate doctrinae Tertull. de praescript Haeres truly Catholick and Apostolical Church and if those of the Roman Communion would have us admire their Union and be made Converts by it they must first make it appear to us that they are united in these things Otherwise their Unity instead of being an Argument for their Church is a strong Argument against it to prove that it is but a Conspiracy and an over-grown Schism from the one Catholick and Apostolical Church But secondly Church-unity may be the effect of culpable Causes and by culpable Causes I mean only such as in a great measure make the embracing of any Religion an inspontaneous or unwilling action and these are only two Ignorance and Compulsion when men either are of a Religion which they would not be of if they knew the faults of it or when knowing the faults of it they would certainly forsake it were they not under force but left to their own free choice First then Church-unity may be the effect of Ignorance which was one great cause of the Unity and Agreement of almost all Mankind in Paganism and therefore their ignorance of the Gentiles is called darkness in the New Testament as where our Lord is compared to the Day-spring or Sun-rising which gave light to them that sate in darkness and in the shadow of death So the Apostle of the Gentiles told them It was their duty to shew forth the Praises of him who had called them out of darkness into his marvellous light and truly their spiritual darkness was so great that God did in some measure excuse their gross error in thinking that the Godhead could be like unto Gold or Silver or Stone graven by Art or man's device Tho' men who were worthy and absurd Idaea's of him yet as the Apostle told the Athenians The times of their former ignorance God winked at but then commanded all the Gentiles every where at their utmost peril to repent There never was a more strict and general Union among the Jews or Christians then there was among the Greeks For Paganism was become the Catholick Religion or Superstition as Catholick signifies universal and was spread far and wide upon the Earth and yet as the Apologetical Writers replied to the Greeks when they argued from the extent of their Religion and the consent of Mankind in it their great agreement in Idolatry was the effect of their Ignorance as plainly appeared from the preaching of the Gospel upon which they forsook those dumb Idols unto which they were carried even as they were led and turned from their former Vanities and Superstition unto the living God. They worshipped the Gods and observed their impure Rites because they knew no better but when their Understandings came to be well informed then they made a new and manly choice such as proceeded from all the Principles of humane Actions and plainly shewed that Ignorance had hitherto been the Mother of their Idol-devotion and by consequence that the choice of their former Religion wanted a sufficient measure of knowledge to make it a rational and truly willing choice I wish those who pride themselves so much in the Unity of the Roman Catholicks would consider how far the Sons and Daughters of the Church of England may use this Plea in their own defence against their so much celebrated Union It is certain that upon the Preaching and Writing of the