Selected quad for the lemma: doctrine_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
doctrine_n	article_n	church_n	creed_n	2,425	5	10.1630	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39119	A vindication of the letter out of the north concerning Bishop Lake's declaration of his dying in the belief of the doctrine of passive obedience, &c. : in answer to a late pamphlet, called, The defence of the profession, &c. of the said Bishop : as far as it concerns the person of quality.	Eyre, William, 1612 or 13-1670.	1690 (1690)	Wing E3946; ESTC R6258	27,474	36

preach to all the World were so afraid of Distinction and Divisions in their Churches that before they parted it is generally supposed they agreed of a common form of Words which they all delivered to their Converts and was not to be the distinguishing Doctrine of any particular Church but the common Badg of their Christianity and is I suppose that to which St. Paul refers when he charges his Son Timothy to hold fast the form of sound Words which thou hast heard of me 2 Tim. 1. 13. and he also tells us that the Design of his leaving him at Ephesus was that thou mightest charge some that they teach no other Doctrine 1 Tim. 1. 3. And the first Request that St. Paul makes to his Corinthians is That you all speak the same things and there be no Divisions among you but that you be perfectly joyn'd together in the same Mind and in the same Judgment 1 Cor. 1. 10. And this being a thing of such extraordinary Concern he does not only make use of his own Authority but as it was the Custom of the Jews to adjure by the Name of God when they would oblige any Person to answer truly as the High Priest did to our Saviour Mat. 22. 63. So how the Apostle ushers in his Request with the same Solemnity Now I beseech you Brethren by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ thereby to oblige them the more carefully to observe what he says from which you may guess how far he was from thinking distinguishing Doctrines necessary that he would not tolerate them And if Unity were so necessary among Christians then is it less so now Or what Necessity is there of being so uncharitable as to suppose all the Churches erroneous in their Creeds but our selves That 't is now convenient for particular Churches to make new Articles of Faith and have their distinguishing Doctrines unless they will be obliged to err for Company I thought it had been all along one of the great Charges against the Church of Rome their making such large Addenda's to our Creed and making the Belief of some Points necessary to Salvation which neither our Saviour nor his Apostles taught and that Churches abounding so with distinguishing Doctrines and imposing them upon others for Catholick Truths has formerly been look'd upon as one of their great Errors but I perceive Sir that was a great Mistake for this Learned Author tells me That although the avoiding Distinction does not very well agree with the Practice of the Primitive Christians yet it agrees admirably with the Principles of Popery thus to avoid Distinction which has its Numbers to boast on when nothing else can be said But if their Unity and Number is the only thing that the Author has to object against the Papists I could as soon be reconciled to their Uncharitableness as his for Heaven I perceive is to be the Enclosure of his distinguishing Doctrines or at least no body is to be thought a Member of the true Church unless they hold that and this strange Uncharitableness is that which does convince me of the great Inconvenience of distinguishing Doctrines for generally speaking all sides are so apt to value themselves upon them that they are ready with the Men in the Prophet Isaiah 65. 5. to cry Stand by thy self come not near me for I am holier than thou And did we press our selves only for doing our Duty and adhering to our Common Creed it might be the more pardonable But alas 'T is not the Faith that was once delivered to the Saints Jude 3. that we thus earnestly contend for for a Man may hold all that and yet be pronounced a Heretick unless he chance to agree with them in all their Opinions which are now to be the Standard of our Faith But whether the breach of Charity and Unity among our selves is the readiest way to build us up in our most holy Faith our sad Experience will I doubt too soon shew But however sure I am it does not agree very well with Saint Jude's Method ver 21. who bids us keep our selves in the Love of God and then we may look for the Mercy of Christ unto Eternal Life But because it is so possible to deceive our selves Saint John has given us an infallible Criterion whereby we may know whether we love God or no for he tells us 1 Epist 4. 20. If a Man say he loveth God and hateth his Brother he is a Liar for he that loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen Therefore this Commandment have we from him that he that loveth God loveth his Brother also Therefore since God has made our Brother as it were his Proxy to receive the Proofs of our Love to him and our Saviour has made it the Badg of our Discipleship By this shall all Men know that you are my Disciples if ye love one another It is very unhappy that those that pretend to be so should set up another Touch-stone for the Trial of their Sincerity and think to approve their Love to God by their Zeal against their Brethren if they chance to dissent from them in a bare Opinion Although our Saviour did not say by their Faith and distinguishing Doctrines but by their Love to one another Men shall know whether you are my Disciples or no. Therefore I think it is not strange if no Church be fond of those Opinions that will engage them to deposit their Charity and if they are 't is certainly their Failing not their Excellence But now it seems I am to beg the Author's Pardon for thinking that the distinguishing Doctrine of such a Church had been that which was peculiar to it for it seems a distinguishing Doctrine is that which they held in common with other Churches which truly I did not understand before And if this Doctrine be so yet the appropriating of it to one looks as if they had a mind to have the Enclosure of it But I skipped one short Paragraph wherein our Author according to his fair way of treating the Person of Quality has jumbled two Texts together which were cited on different Accounts as will be apparent to any body that consults the Paper For when from our having but one Lord one Faith one Baptism I was willing to infer the reasonableness of being or at least endeavouring to be all of one Mind I did not think that had been such an Error as stood in need of a Confutation But now he asks And must not then those that held one Lord one Faith one Baptism necessarily distinguish themselves from all that held more than one But I think there is distinction enough made to our Hands for those Hereticks that first set up those Errors and separated from the Church on their account I hope were distinguishable enough from the true Church and if others hold two Gods or first Principles with the Manichees must I therefore have a