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A43559 The way and manner of the Reformation of the Church of England declared and justified against the clamors and objections of the opposite parties / by Peter Heylyn ... Heylyn, Peter, 1600-1662. 1657 (1657) Wing H1746; ESTC R202431 75,559 100

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still ●steemed a cause sufficient ●or a General Councel And then besides it would be known by whom this General Councel was to be assembl●d if by the Pope as generally the Papists say he and his Court were looked on as the greatest grievance of the Christian Church and 't was not probable that he would call a Councell against himself unlesse he might have leave to pack it to govern it by his own Legats fill it with Titular Bishops of his own creating and send the Holy Ghost to them in a Clok●bag as he did to Trent If joyntly by all Christian Princes which is the common Tenet of the Protestant Schools what hopes could any man conceive as the times then were that they should lay aside their particul●r interesses to center all together upon one design or if they had agreed about it what power had they to call the Prelates of the East to att●nd the business or to protect them for so doing at their going home So that I look upon the hopes of a General Councel I mean a General Councel rightly called and constit●ted as an empty 〈◊〉 The m●st that was to be expected was but a meeting of some Bishops of the West of Europe and those but of 〈◊〉 party only such as were excommunicated and th●● might be as many as the Pope should please being to be excluded by the Cardinals Rule Which how it may be call●●●n Oecumenial or General Councell unlesse it be a Topical Oecumenical a Particular-general as great an absurdity in Grammar as a Roman Catholick I can hardly see Which being so and so no question but it was either the Church must continue withou●●eformati●n or el●e it must be lawfull for National pa●ticular Churches to reform themselves In such a case the Church ●ay be reformed per partes Part after part Province after Province as is said by Gerson But I do not me●● 〈◊〉 trouble you with this Dis●●●● 〈…〉 may reform themselves by National or Provincial Coun●●ls 〈…〉 Church generall will not do it or that it cannot be effected by a General Councel hath been so fully proved by my Lord of Canterbury in his learned and elaborate discourse against Fisher the Iesuite tha● nothing can be added unto so great diligence But if it be objected as you say it is that National Councels have a power of Promulgation only not of 〈◊〉 also I answer first that this runs crosse to all the current of Antiquity in which not only National but Provincial Councels did usually determine in the poin●● of Faith and these too of the greatest moment as did that of Anti●ch which if it were somewhat more then a National was notwithstanding never reckoned for a General Councel I answer secondly as before that for one Heresie suppress●d in a General Councel there have been ten at least suppressed in National and Provincial Synods wich could not be in case they had no power of Determination And thirdly That the Articles or Confession of the Church of England are only Declaratory of such Catholick Doctrines as were received of old in the Church of CHRIST not Introductory of new ones of their own devising as might be evidenced in particular were this place fit for it But what needs any proof at all when we have Confession For the Archbishop of Spalato a man as well studied in the Fathers as the best amongst them ingenuously acknowledged at the High Commission that the Articles of this Church were profitable none of them Heretical and that he would defend the honour of the Church of England against all the world And this he said at the very time of his departure when his soul was gone before to Rome and nothing but his carkasse left behinde in England The like avowed by Davenport or Franciscus a Sancta Clara call him which you will who makes the Articles of this Church rightly understood according to the literal meaning and not perverted to the ends of particular Factions to be capable of a Catholick and Orthodox sense which is as much as could be looked for from the mouth of an Adversary So much as cost one of them his life though perhaps it will be said that he died in prison and the burning of his body after his death though he endevoured to save both by a Retractation So that in thi● case 〈◊〉 we have omni● bene 〈◊〉 amisse in the proceedings of this Church with reference to the Pope or a General Councel But you will say that though we could not stay the calling of a General Councel which would have justified ●ur proceedings in the eyes of our Adversaries it had been requisite even in the way of civil Prudence to have taken the advice of the Sister-Churches especially of those which were ●ngaged at the same time in the same designs which would have add●d r●putation to us in the eyes of our Friends As for the taking counsel of the Sister-Churches it hath been t●uch●d upon ●lready and there●ore we shall say no more as t● that particular unlesse the Sister-Churches of these later tim●● had b●en like the Believers in the infancy of the Ch●istian Faith when they were all of one heart and one soul as the Scripture hath it Act. 4. their couns●ls had been 〈◊〉 if not destructive 'T is true inde●d united Councel● are the stronger and of greater weight and not to be neglected wh●re they may be had but where they are not to be had we ●ust act without them And if we look into the time of our Reformation we shall finde those that were engaged in the same design divided into obstinate parties and holding the names of Luther and Zuinglius in an higher estimate then either the truth of the Opinion in which they differed or the common happinesse of the Church so disturbed between them The breath not lessened but made wider by the rise of Calvin succeeding not long after in the fame of Zuinglius besides that living under the command of several Princes and those Prince● driving on to their several ends it had been very difficult if not impossible to draw them unto such an Harmony of affections and consent in judgement as so g●eat a businesse did require So that the Church of England was necessitated in that conjuncture of affairs to proceed as it did and to act that single by it self which could not be effected by the common Councels and joynt concurrence of the others 'T is true Melanchthon was once coming over in King Henries daies but st●id his journey on the death of Q●een Anne Bullen and that he was after sent f●r by King Edward the sixth Regis Literi● in Angliam vocor as he affirms in an Epistle unto Camerarius anno 1553. But he was staid at that time also on some other occasion though had he come at that time he had come too late to have had any hand in the Reformation the Articles of the Church being passed the Liturgie reviewed and setled in
seemed best never advising with the Parliament but upon the post-fact and in most cases not at all And first for Doctrinals there was but little done in K. Henries time but that which was acted by the Clergy onely in their Convocation and so commended to the people by the Kings sole Authority the matter being never brought within the cognizance of the two Houses of Parliament For in the year 1536. being the year in which the Popes Authority was for ever banished there were some Articles agreed on in the Convocation and represented to the King under the hands of the Bishops Abbots Priors and inferior Clergy usually called unto those Meetings the Original whereof being in Sr Robert Cotton's Library I have often seen Which being approved of by the King were forthwith published under the Title of Articles devised by the Kings Highness to stable Christian quietness and unity amongst the people In which it is to be observed First that those Articles make mention of Sacraments onely that is to say of Baptisme Penance and the Sacrament of the Altar And secondly That in the Declaration of the Doctrine of Iustification Images honouring of the Saiuts departed as also concerning many of the Ceremonies and the fire of Purgatory they differ'd very much from those Opinions which had been formerly received in the Church of Rome as you may partly see by that Extract of them which occurs in Fox his Acts and Monuments Vol. 2. fol. 1246. For the confirming of which book and recommending it to the use of the people His Majesty was pleased in the Injunctions of the year 1536. to give command to all Deans Parsons Vicars and Curates so to open and declare in their Sermons and other Collacions the said Articles unto them which be under their Cure that they might plainly know and discern which of them be necessary to be believed and observed for their salvation and which d● onely concern the decent and politique Order of the Church And this he did upon this ground that the said Articles had been concluded and condescended upon by the Prelates and Clergy of the Realm in their Convocation as appeareth in the very words of the Injunction For which see Fox his Acts and Monuments fol. 1247. I find not any thing in Parliament which relates to this either to countenance the work or to require obedience and conformity from the hand of the people And to say truth neither the King nor Clergy did account it necessary but thought their own Authority sufficient to go through with it though certainly it was more necessary at that time then in any since The power and reputation of the Clergy being under foot the King scarce setled in the Supremacy so lately recognized unto him and therefore the Authority of the Parliament of more use then afterward in Times well ballanced and established 'T is true that in some other year of that Princes Reign we finde some use and mention of an Act of Parliament in matters which concerned Religion but it was onely in such Times when the hopes of Reformation were in the Wane and the Work went retro●●● For in the year 1539. being the 31. H. 8. When the Lord 〈◊〉 power began to decline and the King was in a necessity of complyance with His Neighbouring Princes there passed an Act of Parliament commonly called the statute of the six Articles or the Whip with six strings In which it was enacted That whosoever by word or writing should preach teach or publish that in the blessed Sacraments of the Altar under form of Bread and Wine there is not really the naturall body and bloud of our Saviour Iesus Christ conceived of the Virgin Mary or affirm otherwise thereof then was maintained and taught in the Church of Rome should be adjudged an Heretick and suffer death by burning and forfeit all his Lands and Goods as in case of High Treason Secondly That whosoever should teach or preach that the Communion of the blessed Sacrament in both kindes is necessary for the health of mans soul and ought to be maintained Thirdly Or that any man after the Order of Priesthood received might marry or contract Matrimony Fourthly Or that any woman which had vowed and professed chastity might contract Marriage Fifthly Or that private Masses were not lawful and laudable or agreeable to the Word of God Or sixthly That curicular Confession was not necessary and expedient to be used in the Church of God should suffer death and forfeit Lands and goods as a Fellon 31 H. 8. c. 14. The rigour of which terrible statute was shortly after mittigated in the said Kings Reign 32 H. 8. c. 10. and 35 H. 8. c. 5. and the whole statute absolutely repealed by Act of Parliament 1 E. 6. c. 12. But then it is to be observed first that this Parliament of K. H. 8. did not determine any thing in those six points of Doctrine which are therein recited but onely took upon them to devise a course for the suppressing of the contrary Opinions by adding by the secular Power the punishment of Death and forfeiture of Lands Goods unto the censures of the Church which were grown weak if not unvalid and consequently by degrees became neglected ever since the said K. Henry took the Headship on Him and exercised the same by a Lay Vicar General And secondly you must observe that it appeareth evidently by the Act it self that at the same time the King had called a Synod and Convocation of all the Archbishops Bishops and other learned men of the Clergy that the Articles were first deliberately and advisedly debated argued and reasoned by the said Archbishops Bishops and other learned men of the Clergy and their opinions in the same declared and made known before the matter came in Parliament And finally That being brought into the Parliament there was not any thing declared and passed as doctrinall but by the assent of the Lords Spiritual and other learned men of the Clergy as by the Act it self doth at large appear Finally Whatsoever may be drawn from thence can be only this That K. H●n did make use of his Court of Parliament for the establishing and confirming of some points of Popery which seemed to be in danger of a Reformation And this compared with the statute of the 34 and 35 prohibiting the reading of the Bible by most sorts of people doth cleerly shew that the Parliaments of those times did rather hinder and retard the work of Reformation in some especial parts thereof than give any furtherance to the same But to proceed There was another point of Reformation begun in the Lord C●●mwels time but not produced nor brought to perfection till after his decease and then too not without the Midwifery of an Act of Parliament For in the year 1537. the Bishops and others of the Clergy of the Convocation had composed a Book entituled The Institution of a Christian Man which being subscribed by all their