Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A97182
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Anti-Fimbria, or, An answer to the animadversions upon the last speeches of the [f]ive Jesuits executed at Tyburne June 20. 30. 1679. / By A.C.E.G.
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Warner, John, 1628-1692.
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1679
(1679)
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Wing W904A; ESTC R186273
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19,942
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28
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ANTI-FIMBRIA OR AN ANSWER To the ANIMADVERSIONS Uppon the Last SPEECHES OF THE â—IUE JESUITS Executed at TYBURNE IUNE 20. 30. 1679. Ut Seductores Veraces As Seducers yet we are sincere 1. Cor. 6.8 By A. C. E. G. Permissu Superiorum M.DC.LXXIX PREFACE FImbria an impudent Ruffian hauing attempted the death of a good peaceable and honest citizen of Rome and wounded him greiuously though not mortally the poore man by turning a side his body auoided that indighted him afterwards publickly for not standing fayre to receaue his dart and not permitting himselfe to be killed out right Quod non totum corpore telum excepisset says Cicero It was his death that Fimbria designed and he thought himself wronged because his attempt proued ineffectuall A few factious Ministers haue designed the naturall and civill death of the Papists to kill their Persons and their Reputation which appeares by their Actings They haue beene successeful uppon uery many as to the first part their naturall death which might satisfy their hatred but that is only half their designe their reputation remaining intire and in deed uery considerably encreased by their Christian Patience in suffring and their constant asserting of their Innocency to their last breath accompanyed with so many circumstances euidently confirming their assertions that the greatest and wisest part of the world doe them justice wherefore these Ministers arraigne the reputation of the suffring Papists by dayly shells The greatest and most considerable of them which hath come to my knowledge is that printed by Authority which I here undertake to answer without doubt the Authour of these Animadversions is the same who advanced an antidote against the spreading uenome of clandestine transcripts for the reasons there only hinted at are here enlarged and in this Pamphlet there is little new besides citations and words Soe the french answer to that Antidote if turned into inglish might serue for these Animadversions Yet j haue beene aduised to spend some few spare houres uppon these at least for the Authors sake who is said to be in the highest Ecclesiastical dignity the L. B. of L. Jndeed that Character should ether suppose or giue a spirit of meeknesse and Peace at least free the Person who is honoured with it from such an implacable endlesse malice which is not satiated with the blood of those he counts his enemyes but passes the Graue yet his past life spent for the greatest and best part in factious times in which to speake no worse he went with the seditious throng and some late Pamphlets which beare his name and are of the same straine make the conjecture very probable Yet j call him whoeuer he be Fimbria because of some greate resemblance in their Proceedings equally unjust and groundlesse in their Beginning violent and cruell in theire progresse and implacable and impudent in theire End Yet j say this Copy of these Ministers out does that Originall for had that Innocent Roman presented himself to Fimbria and quietly permitted himself to be butchered this Ruffian's malice would haue beene satisfyed Of these Innocent Romanists many voluntarily put themselues in to their enemyes hands all offred readily their neckes to the Halters and their Bodyes to the executioners kniues they are Hanged and Quartred yet these meeke and Mercifull Ministers are not satisfyed The stiffe neckt jews killed the Prophets and stoned those who were sent unto them Mat. 23.37 But when that was done they built their sepulchers adorned their Monuments Mat. 23.29 Canonized their writings and honoured their memory And it is unheard of that they Arraigned their Innocency after their Death That degree of malice is not to be found as far as j remember amongst the Ancients it was reserued for this worst of times in which ordinary wickednesse will not satisfy those who resolue and glory in that Resolution to out doe what soeuer hath beene done by any before them That monster Bradshaw sayd Jf past ages afford no Precedent to follow we will giue Precedents for others to follow hereafter This sentiment how barbarous and infamous soeuer seemes to haue past into the Breast and possesse the soul of those of whome j speake Did they regard ether God or Men and consult ether Justice or Honour they would proceed otherwise They think it odious te execute Men only for their Religion or because they are Preists but is that Odium diminisht by adding to it as odious Calumnyes by framing rediculous Plots by seeking out men of desperate fortunes and wicked flagitious liues to confirme those fables by false Oaths by rewarding those Knyghts of the Post for their Perjuryes and by thinking the world soe simple as to be imposed uppon by soe ill-contriued-a-tricke What is this but to double nay treble the jniustice to wash a spot out of white linnen with juk and to iustify one fault by others as greate Doe not these men put an affront uppon mankind acting as if they thought it had lost the use of its reason at the same time as they by their malice seeme depriued of the use of theirs J know scarce any out of England soe weake as to beleiue there is or was any such thing as a Plot of Papists not only Papists but Protestants them selues openly acknowledge they think it all fabulous A uery wise man and a great freind to the jnglish told me ingeniously he had lost much of the opinion he had of our nation seing it capable of being deceiued by such fables A commendatory Abbot a great Preacher preaching in Paris before her most Christian Maiesty of the labours and suffrings of Jesuits for the Propagation of the Faith said Witnesse the Blood of those Martyrs still reaking in our neyghbouring kingdome Cardinal de Retz sayd Had j now that Authority which j had heretofore in Paris he had beene Arch Bishop of it j would build a chappel in its Cathedral Church to the honour of these fiue Martyrs J know of many others some great Princes who haue declared publickly the like opinion which shal be produced as occasion shal require For the present this may suffice to shew that althô these men of whome j speake haue had power enough to worke uppon their simple auditory in England yet out of it they must seeke out some unknowne Land if they intend to find credit for such old wiues-storyes as these are which they charge uppon Papists And j haue a better opinion of our nation then that any considerable part of it should really beleive such incredible incoherent Fables howeuer some Polititians promote uery hotly the persecution raysed on that account and many others are content to be idle spectators of a Tragedy in which they think none suffer but such as they would willingly see ruined Each sort of these haue their seuerall Ends yet howeuer they labour to attaine them they neuer will be able to compasse more then God will permit to whome they wil at last be accountable for all their actions and
all that j and others haue suffred on that score j desire the murtherers no other harme then what through sense of their detestable crime they shal inflict uppon themselues to appease the wrath of Gôd and preuent the heauy stroke of Diuine Justice Fimbria p. 14.15 and 16. You start againe Equiuocations and follow the game hotly and soe you may for me who know no Papist a liue that will defend or practice them since they are condemned by the sea Apostolick Fimbria p. 16. and 17. The Jesuits had great motiues to use Equiuocations the Plot could not be more effectually promoted It makes Protestants stagger in the beleife of it it Weakns the credit of the Witnesses it allays the spirit of the Nation it incenses foraigne Princes against Protestants and in fine it entitles the sufferers to Martyrdome When on the contrary by acknowledging their conspiracy they had broken the necke of the Plot endangered the Lords in the Towre silenced those who question the King's euidence made Popery odious and spoyled their expectation of Martyrdome Answer In all this discourse you discouer a mind filled with thoughts more becoming a Pagan or Atheist then a Christian. A Pagan or Atheist beleiuing nothing of the life eternall to come settles all his hopes all his feares all his thoughts and all his affections on things of this life and is ambitious euen at his last breath of the Plaudite which attends the exit of a good Actor on the stage of this world A Christian on the contrary knows this life to be but a moment if compared with that to come that all earthly glory is vanity pleasures deceitfull health unconstant and life it selfe uncertaine so embracing the aduice of our Blessed Redeemer Mat. 6.19.20 Regards not any treasure on earth where it is subject to soe many casualtyes but prepares one in Heauen where he is certaine he shal neuer be defrauded of it He is certaine it will auayle him nothing to gaine all the world with the losse of his soul Mat. 16.26 And if any be soe unfortunate as to be engaged during his life in some designes worldly and Politick contrary to the Law of God yet these vanish at the gastly sight of approaching Death All hopes and feares of this life then vanishing and those of the life to come taking entire possession of the soul Now consider what thoughts you fancy in these executed Jnnocents of malice in Promoting the Plot spite against the Witnesses reuenge against Protestants in all countryes vanity and folly in purchacing the name of Martyrs in this world with the losse of their souls in the other as if they would fry in Hell fire really for an eternity prouided men uppon earth for a time myght say they were braue boys What ground haue you to surmise such Antichristian Dispositions in their minds At a much easier rate and with lesse sin or rather no sin at all as you say they myght haue purchaced their Pardon and liued contentedly in this world and dyed happily for the next by only owning the crime of which they were really guilty What reason haue they giuen you to judge them soe silly or soe mad rather Did they whilest at liberty discouer any signes of that vanity No. Did they during the time of their imprisonment No. Did any such thing appeare at their Tryall or execution Nor then nether All who conuerst with them when abroad and when Prisoners all the spectators of the last period of their liues agree in a far different character of them from what you soe confidently assert of their inclinations althô possible you neuer saw their faces What ground can you haue then for this hard censure Without your selfe nothing occurres wherefore j am forced to surmise that all the ground you haue is taken from your owne hart which is taken up and possessed with thoughts of this life and worldly designes and that you judged of others by your selfe Fimbria p. 17. Uppon far lesse account Equiuocation in words or Oathes is in the judgment of their best Casuists lawfull at any time the hour of Death not excepted Answer 1. J challenge you to shew one Casuist who since that Decree of Jnnocent XI condemning Equiuocation euer taught it Lawfull at any time Answer 2. These fiue Jesuits declare they use no Equiuocation but take their words in their naturall and obuious sense which must be a Lye and consequently no jnnocent action in the opinion of all Jesuits if their words were not true in their proper signification Fimbria p. 18. The greatest Lye and falsest Oath that euer was heard in the mouth of a Jesuit would become as tru as the Ghospel by a secret cast of his mind Answer What opinion you haue of the truth of the Ghospel j can not tell but this comparison giues ground to suspect more then j will say At least that transforming quality of the Jesuit turning falshood in to Truth is much better then your turning good things into bad and Truth into Falshood changing as the Prophet says judgment into wormewood Amos 5.7 Fimbria p. 18. What the Jesuits were charged with may be reduced to three heades a designe to introduce Popery to massacre or destroy the Protestants of these kingdomes and to kill the King Now in their judgment if we can discerne it by their Doctrine no one of these is a sin And can you wonder they dyed impenitent when the saw nothing to be repented of Answer You would be a formidable aduersary were your Proofes as strong as your Assertions are bold But hitherto we haue found you promise much and performe nothing Let us see whither your attempt be more successefull here Fimbria p. 18. Could they count it a sin to restore the Popish Religion in three kingdomes and establish it by aduancing a Prince to the Throne who would count it his glory utterly to extinguish Heresy Answer There are none but the factious Presbiterians who dislike the uniting all the world into one exterior communion All good Christians as well as Jesuits wish it done and professe their sincere endeauours to promote it by all Lawfull meanes not other wise for as the Apostle sayth we are not to doe euill that good may come of it But you malitiously hint at something which you dare not speake out and j am Dauus not Oedipus soe cannot unriddle your misterious meaning Yet in expectation of your discouery j declare that j know no Papist nor Jesuit aliue who thinks it Lawfull to aduance any Prince to a Throne which is not due to him 〈◊〉 that we doe not think it due to him whilest it is possest by another lawfully When you shal further discouer your meaning it shal â—â—nd a fuller answer Fimbria p. 18. Doe they count it a sin to destroy or roote out all whome they count Hereticks as they count many hundred thousands in these nations and then you cite a decree of the Councel of Latran ordering Princes to roote out