and as sin althogh inherent into vs and only imput vnto Christ Iesus who had no inherent sin in him made him die the death wherefore may not Christs righteousnesse inherent in him and imput vnto vs bee accepted of God for our iustification to life and that so much the more because Christ Iesus is our head and cautioner which the Saints are not For he hath made him to be sin for vs which 2 Cor. cap 5. vers 21 knew no sin c. CHAP. 13. Of taking away the Cup. TOuching their minching of the holy Sacrament of the Lords Table and depriuing rhe People of the one halfe thereof contrare to Christs institution who commanded them all to drinke of it is a grievous defrauding of the people of their due comfort and that by Iohn 6 which they will haue spoken of the Sacrament except yee eate the flesh of the sonne of man and Iohn 6. drink of his blood yee haue no life in you So to depriue them of the blood is to depriue them of eternall life And in the primitiue times when persecution raged in the Church the godly Fathers neuer omitted the holy cup to the people that not only because of Christs divine institution but also that they might encourage people to shed their blood chearfully for him who had shed his blood for them did so friely communicate with them in the holy cup. Further Christ sayeth it is the cup of the new Testament in his blood which he shed for the remission of sins Then it appeareth that to depriue the people of the cup is asmuch as to depriue them of the blood of Christ for the remission of their sins for in the hostie there is no shedding of blood as they themselues confes As for the custom of the primitiue Church it is clear in this poynt neither can they or do they deny it yet when either the command of Christ or practise of the primitiue Church seemeth to crosse their businesse they dissalow both him and the ancients and in open counsell giue a decreet to their contrare The councill of Constance holden anno 406 which was the first councill that discharged the cup as an heresie towardes the middest of the Canon Concilium Constantinense 13. sess hath these wordes Although Iesus Christ did institute and administer to his Disciples this venerable Sacramēt vnder the formes of bread and wine and likewise although in the primitiue Church this Sacrament was receaued by the faithfull vnder both kinds neuerthelesse this custome hath with reason beene induced that it should bee receaued by those who consecrate vnder both kynds and by the layity vnder forme of bread only c. And concluds that these that would maintaine the contrare were heretiques where by consequence they make Christ and the primitiue Church heretiques at least in practise which if J had not red and considered in their councils J could not haue beleeued that men could be so impudent and absurd as to affirme CHAP. 14. Of Images HEre J can not passe by their adoration of Jmages 2 book of the images of Saints chap. 21. but must giue a taste thereof Their doctrine is of Images that they are not only relativè as they respect the thing represented but properly and perse by themselfe and terminatiuely without respect to the thing represented as Bellarmine hath expresly yea not only with the worship of dulia or seruice as they call it by the which distinctiō they blind the eys of the ignorant since all religious worship in whatsoueer degrie belongs properly to God but also they teach and affirme that the Images of God and the crosse ought to bee worshipped with the selfesame supreme worship that is due to God himselfe which they call Latria as hath expresly their 25. ques 3. arti in the concl 4. article Angelick doctour in his third part Sic ergo dicendum est c. and fourth article in the conclusion Crux Christi c. which conclusion the foresaid doctour prooues by this that wee giue the supreme worship to him in whom we put the hope of our safetie but in the crosse of Christ This is the crosse of wood whereon hee was nailed we put our hope of safetie So the Papists obiect of faith according to his doctrine is an Image of stocke and stone And therefore Suarez sayes in expresse tearmes Per hanc 45. disp 4. sect adorationem c. I shall faithfully translate the words By this adoration a man not only professeth that which hee adoreth to represent God but also to bee God and his supreme Lord and Redeemer otherwise it would not be a true and supreme worship The common people their case in this Idolatrie is deplorable but somewhat more excusable albeit they be involued in that same guiltinesse who must beleeue by an implicite faith whatsoeuer their Church beleeues for their great doctours doe expresly admonish their Readers that their Preachers let not the people vnderstād in their sermons that this Soueraigne worship of God should bee giuen to Images by the principles of the Roman catholicke faith for it might readily skarre them of catholick Romans make them become Calvinist hereticks See Bellarmine of the Jmages of Saints at these words Quantum ad c 22. chap. giues the same watchword in the place forsaid And this 25. ques 54. dis 4. article because as they both acknowledge in the forsaid places the common people can not be capable of these sublime distinctions wherby the foresaid doctrine must be maintained yea skarsly saith Bellarmine our great doctoures themselues Some of them for eschueing the inconvenience of this foresaid doctrine do use these tearmes directly and indirectly but any that pleaseth to examine at more length this defence they shal find it indirect enugh to giue to the creature any way a worship due to the Creator Further for backing of this doctrine their best reason that I could perceiue they euer broght was their blotting out of the second command of the Lords Law for giuing and not graunting that the second command were one with the first yet wherfore do they scrape out so great a part of that command if their best defence stood not in cancelling the Law of God which is opposite to their adoration of Jmages CHAP. 15. Of their new beliefe satisfaction purgatorie IN this place their large addition to their beliefe represents it selfe to my mind as may be seen in the bull of Pope Pitis the 4. concerning the oath taken of their Church-men containing their Trent creed wherein beside the Articles of the Apostles creed they haue ingrossed many other Articles of their most grosse and absurde heresies I can not also omitte heere their idle repetition of Prayers ascrybing merite and satisfaction to the number of them for I my self haue been enioyned to say such a number of Aues Pater nosters by waye of pennance or for the reliefe of Soules and
which means they not only bring peoples mindes in a seruile subjection to themselues for none can haue more Commandement ouer one than their Father confessour but also by their intelligencing this way make the Pope their Monarch dreadfull to all Kings of the Earth for he will doe more by a syde Cloake and a sharp knife in one houre than the mightiest Prince in the Earth will doe by fourtie thousand armed men in a long time yet hee should doe lesse harme if hee were lesse dred for when men are more feared to grieue the Pope than God what wonder the Lord let him bee a scourge to them This their strong sort of Gouernement more wittilie deuised than euer the old Senate disposed the ruling of the conquered Prouinces or conquering of new they second with the extreame show and externall luster of holinesse and Religion For the multitude of Religious Orders with houses and Closters and persons in them with the pretense of their single and chast life the multitude of Religious exercises Canonicke houres fastes Feastes holy dayes the multitude of Altars Jmages and rich Ornaments of their Churches the multitude of all sort of Ceremonies that may carry appearance of Diuinitie The multitude of poore people enduring pennance going in Pilgrimage the wonderfull mercilesnesse of poore tormented consciences scourging themselues openlie in their streetes with their faces couered at the direction sometimes of their confessour sometimes voluntarlie supposing this way to doe away their sinnes and pacifie Gods wrath and their owne perplexed conscience together with the profession of the common grounds of Christianitie which Papists makes show of so astonishes the mindes of the simple people so rauishes and amazes ignorant on-lookers so inchants and so bewitches the multitude that they cannot thinke but God will be as well pleased with such follies as they are themselves not knowing what is pleasant to him by his own Word or that will-worship though neuer so specious is abominable to him Then to back and beamfill all comes in their seminarie Priests and preaching Friers and the late ordour of the Jesuits by all their powerfull persuasion to presse the receauing of the grounds of Roman Religion vpon men and by a shew of Philosophy and the Wisedome of this Worlde that comes to nought and the opposition of science falsly so called the instruments whereby Sathan opposed the Apostles of old they striue to make all seeme good that the Roman Church doeth and that all is euill that they doe not But where shall all the riches bee gotten to vphold such a statelie Monarchie as this and so many seruants of that state for answere they haue so many points of gain full doctrine as first of the merit of good works supererogation of the merites of Saints which furnisheth the treasure of the Church of Rome among which goode workes especiallie Almes this must be held for a principle that those who haue wealth cannot doe a more meritorious worke to purchase heauen by than by largelie bestowing vpon religious men and their maintainance Secondly the Doctrine of pennance and of indulgence and satisfaction which sometime rendred the Sea of Rome a great deale more than now it doeth and yet brings hudge moneyes to that Sea Thirdly the doctrine of purgatorie nothing inferiour to any of the former for these who could not be enduced to giue thē any thing largely in the time of their life at the time of their death for feare of Purgatory to the end that they may win out of Purgatorie fire soone by the vertue of Soul masses religious mens devotiō will be willing to mortify or leaue in Legacie what their Fatherconfessor thinks expedient and that of the readiest Fourthlie the straite vrging the thre-fold vow of single life povertie Canonicall obedience vpon all them whom they can persuade to rander themselfe religious For by this meanes the seuerall Religious ordours but especially the Jesuites if they can by any meanes persuade a man of wealth or a rich burges heire a Noble mans son or an heritour of Lands as they persuade too too many to bee of their ordours then hee renounces all his means to bee disposed vpon by the superiour of the ordour and hee himselfe with the rest professes pouertie and liues vpon the common Purse or his purchase if hee be sent out or imployed in seruice These and many moe means vnsearchable they haue of drawing in Rents moyons to themself beside offrings to Altars extraordinary masse Casualitie at burials and such lik In al which things and sindrie other poynts both of practise and doctrine they will bee sparing in any part where they are seeking to make conquest as in Scotland or England or Ireland for feare to lose their prey but when and where they are settled any man that trauells if he please may try the trueth whether it bee not as J say and more for I will bee sparing to speake all lest I should see me to taxe particular persons rather than to seeke the furtherance of the true and disgrace of counterfeit Religion CHAP. 8. That the Scriptures imperfection and obscuritie is wrongfully alledged by Papists THus hauing at length discouered the main pillar of Popedome with some of their humane policies for vpholding the same I wil speake shortly a worde or two against the imperfection obscuritie which they alledge of the Scripture This saying is so blasphen ous against God the author of the Scripture Let the Lord 2 Tim. 3. 15. 16. 17. Ioh 5. 39. answere for himself By his Apostle All Scripture is giuen by diuine inspiration c. That the man of God may be made perfect throughly furnished vnto all good works And by his sonne who hath giuen Commandement to those who thinks to haue eternall life to search the Scriptures Jf thou will obey this command constantly praying to God for knowledge dayly the Lord shall show thee in reading of it that they are his enemies who haue so disgraced his writings wherefore I would persuade young Schollers and others of young yeeres to drink in the knowledge of the Scriptures and neuer to quite the light thereof which the Lord hath appointed to direct vs. Wee haue also a more sure Word of Prophesie whereunto yee doe 2 Pet. 1. 19. well that yee take heede as vnto a light that shineth in a dark place c. Next when doubts of Religion are casten in their minde the not running to God by Prayer as the fountaine of Religion and to such Godly and truelie learned men who are content that all they say bee examined according to the Scripture is a speciall cause of provocation of God to giue them ouer to belieue lyes who thus despysing the right meanes and loue of the trueth will not goe to law and testimonies Isaiah 8. 20 1. Tim. 4. 1. Rom. 1. 21. as God directeth them But giues eare to seducing Spirites and doctrine of Deuills as the Apostle calles them
the head and quickned by one Spirite for which cause of Christ it is said that he dwels in vs and wee in him he is the head and wee Ephes 3. 17 4. 16 are the members of his mysticall bodie By this threefold certaintie they teach and belieue that they are made sure of Christ in the Sacrament for performance wherof they show that there is no necessitie of corporall presence First because these meanes of certaintie were appoynted of Christ to supplee his corporall absence till his second comming againe Secondly because the Sonne of God is more able after this manner from Heauen to communicate himselfe to vs on Earth then the Sun that shines dayly is able from Heauen to giue light and heate to vs on Earth without descending corporally to vs. Then for the exposition of the wordes of the Sacrament This is my body they professe to expone them as Saint Paul expones them who sayes that the bread which we break is the communion of the body of 1 Cor. 10 16. 1 Cor. 11 25. Iesus the cup which wee blesse is the Communion of the blood of Christ and as Christ speaking of the cup it must be exponed This cup is the new Testament or covenant in my blood and according to the vsuall forme of the Scripture language concerning Sacraments where the name of the gift is giuen to the Seale to assure them who faithully receaue the one that they are made sure of the other or the name of a mercie bestowed is given to the memoriall of it to make the acknowledgment of that mercy more fresh and liuelie Seeing that therefore J could find for the Romish doctrine of transubstantiation no warrand of the Lords worde and by that doctrine no ground of infallible certaintie to free mee from Idolatrie but on the contrare grounds of assurance that it could not bee that God would expose his Sonne any more to personall suffering of such indignities as is done him in the Masse Let any man iudge whether I had reason to sute to bee receaued to the communion with him according to the warrand of his owne worde and bee free for euer from all perill of that grosse Idolatrie CHAP. 10. The Masse drawes away from Christs rule of the Sacrament and defaces his institution THe next reason why J call the Masse an errour is because it doth leade men away from the right rule of the Sacrament to follow mens deuices and forged mysticall rites of mens appoyntments whereof the Lord hath pronounced in generall In vaine doe they worship mee teaching for doctrine the precepts of men Which howsoeuer they bee in estimation among men yet are abominable before God for our Lord Jesus beeing to leaue the World in regarde of his corporall presence thought good to appoynt a holy Supper wherein hee will haue his bodilie sufferings and bloodshed and death represented and brought to fresh remembrance by the breaking of bread and wine powred out in a cup and the Soules of his faithfull ones fed comforted in the assurance that his body was broken for them and his blood shed for the remission of their sinnes by eating of the bread broken and drinking of the wine powred in the cup which eating and drinking should bee to them a pledge and seale of their spirituall coniunction with CHRIST and partaking of his life as certainely wrought by his spirit as if these elements which they did eate and drinke were ioyned with their bodies Then which ordinance of our Lord nothing can bee more sweet to a Soule that considers his purpose therein and therefore he hath commanded not his Ministers only but his whole Church on Earth to doe this in remembrance of him following his example as he hath caused set down by his pen-men in his Testament to bee followed till his second comming againe But the Church of Rome as her defection hath growne peece and peece hath so far departed from the rule that scarsly now in their Masse can the footsteps of Christs ordinance be seene for vnder pretense that they are not tied to follow these circumstances which were proper to the first Supper such as are the time after Supper the place an vpper Chamber the number of persons eleuen or twelue the sexe men only and not women which any man may perceiue to bee proper to that first time and not belonging to the nature of the Sacrament if these circumstances were vrged vniversally they should marre and hinder that action and the comfort of the communicants women beeing secluded the night taking when the day was free a chamber taking wherein all the Church could not assemble and twelue only admitted where fourtie twelues were prepared and waiting on vnder pretense I say of not beeing tied to these foure circumstances when they may be prejudiciall to the action they haue taken libertie to alter the substance and sacramentall rites of this Supper left to be imitate by all Christs Churches till his second cōming again for as thogh Christs ordināce had beene too base and simple they haue deuised to cloath their Priests in brodering of silk and siluer and gold and to make sumptuous Masse cloathes to set out their work with all As if Christ his ceremonies had beene of small signification they haue casten them by and appoynted new ones of their owne making mysticall significations of their owne deuising As if the Apostle Paul had superfluously from Christs mouth giuen commandement to the common people to drink of the cup they haue cutte off the halfe of the peoples comfort and witholden the cup from them As if the Lord had not done wisely in vsing plaine language to his disciples such as they vnderstood they haue rolled vp all in an vncouth language commanding that Masse should only bee said in Latine As if our Lord had not well considered what belongs to the holynesse of such a worke in taking such bread as was vsuall in the Land and as the Master of the house laid downe before him to Supper they haue made a round Masse bread the quantitie of twelvepence or sixpence and as thin as they can cause it sticke together with a stamped crucifixe on the one side of it for the purpose they haue turned the communion of a number to the Priests drinking and eating alone the Lords table to a stone Altar the memoriall of his death to an imaginary corporall presence the seale of Gods giuing of Christ vnto men into mens offering vp of Christ to God Gods Sacrament into mans sacrificing of the sonne of God to the Father in a worde they haue turned Christs holy Supper in the Popes Masse and so what by adding what by pairing what by altering and chopping and changing they haue mutilated deformed and defaced Gods ordinance falsified King Jesus his great seale and corrupted his testament that he who is partaker of the Masse thinking to get Gods blessing by it casts himselfe in danger of Gods curse for beeing