he nameth some as Repentance Faith towards God the explication of what is signified in baptism called the Doctrine of Baptisms of laying on of Hands of Resurrection and of Eternal Judgment And such Articles as are taught in Catechisms The Apostle doth not Institute many baptisms for there is but One that of John Baptist and of Christ being the same but the Doctrines of Baptism are several as of Repentance [k] Mark 1 4. of the Remission of sins of Regeneration c. Now though there be but one Sacrament of baptism there are two parts of it the Earthly or the sign and the Heavenly or thing signified which both are called baptism and in this place St. Paul meaning both calleth them baptisms In the Primive Church several good Rites were observed by those who being of competent Age were to be baptised as the giving in of their Name amongst those who professed themselves Christians the Examination they submitted to and gave an account of the Progress they had made in the Christian Doctrine then the Confession of Faith and the Apostle's Creed amongst the rest was a renunciation to the Devil and to his Works all which may well be continued in relation to those new Converts who are come to Years of Discretion before they be baptised And herein we shall not disagree with Anabaptists or others but as to Questions put to a Child newly born when he is baptised about that Renunciation Whether he will forsake the World c. and the Answer of the God-father and God-mother in his Name is Ridiculous and as it were a jest not to say worse in so holy and Serious a business to ask questions of a Child who can neither Hear Understand nor Speak and take the Answer of a stander-by who cannot well answer for himself without a special Proviso as if God thorough Free-grace will be pleased to enable him and though one could answer for himself it doth not follow he may answer for others All that Fathers God-fathers and the like can do upon such an occasion is to Promise when the Child is come to an Age capable of being taught they will take care to see he be Instructed in the Knowledge and Fear of God according to the Rules of Christian Religion FINIS A LETTER to a LADY who hath forsaken the Protestant Religion for the Romish MADAM SOME few opportunities which tho' in a kind of a broken manner I had to discourse with you about Religion afforded me matter of sad yet charitable thoughts for your Spiritual condition 'T is usual and not without some grounds to say there is in us a prejudice of Education which sometimes hinders from hearkning to things but reasonable enough in themselves But it seems that hath had no influence upon your Ladyship in the change you made of a Religion wherein you were born and bred you over-looked all considerations of that nature and I am afraid upon no serious thoughts or solid grounds What Worldly prospect you might at that time happen to have and in that conjuncture God knows and I leave it to your own examination but sure I am there could be none to balance the value of a Soul which thereby you ventured the loss of to all Eternity All the Temptation of the World and frailty of Human Nature which is the best and most that may be said on your behalf can never excuse you in the sight of God nor hardly in that of Men who have seen no just or reasonable cause for it But Madam what is past and done cannot be help'd yet out of a real desire for your good and to look to that which is to come this I may boldly say you can never answer it to God or men if hereafter you be not acted by an earnest care and diligence to settle your greatest concern in the World the Salvation or utter ruin of your Soul be very serious about it and avoid not coming to a discussion of the matter as some in your state are apt to do The Devil is the Prince of Darkness and he hates the light because his works are evil your Priests who under the notion of a Confession and by means of an Absolution do Blasphemously pretend to forgive your Sins and a power to open for or to shut upon you the Door of Heaven do thereby Tyrannise over your Conscience and will disswade you from coming to any Dispute because if the Word of God be the Rule their cause cannot abide it But as now they have you in their Snares so for their own ends they will omit nothing to keep you therein the Light of the Gospel might discover their Cheats and Tricks upon the Souls of Men and so make you to give them the slip they will endeavour to keep you to this jugling of theirs namely the blind Obedience and to Believe what the Church believes tho' you cannot tell what that is to do what she Commands and trouble your self no farther But Madam such Advisers and Ghostly Fathers or Spiritual Guides as you call them should by you be brought upon the Stage and put to this Tryal Come I will hear what you can say for the Religion that I now profess and against that which I left a friendly and peaceable Conference I desire about these things between you and some Ministers of the Church of England or other Protestant ones This Madam is the ready way not to be imposed upon and you nor no body else ought ever to refuse being farther or better Instructed and Informed and 't is high time for you to begin in earnest to go about it for indeed I may say you have been lull'd asleep tho' you wanted no warning from above And because for the good of your Soul I wish I might be instrumental in so Christian a Work I shall here upon this Paper set down some few thoughts of mine as are Conducing towards so great a Work And because the Romanists find themselves not very able out of Scripture the only competent Judge in these things to defend their Errors in Doctrine they for themselves have made what they call their Strong Hold under the Name of the Church For as Anciently the prevaricating Jews cry'd out the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord so Roman Catholicks thunder out the Church the Church in hopes to shelter themselves under so specious a Name But Madam pray be not mistaken that glorious Name out of some peoples mouth is but a Scare-crow and misapply'd That which at this time I intend by the Grace of God to offer to your serious consideration is chiefly this against the Primacy and Infallibility of the Romish Church which indeed are the two Pillars it stands upon for if you question any thing then to stop your Mouth she saith of her self she is Infallible and to get your Obedience she will say she is Head Mother and Catholick Church but then you must take their bare Word for 't if
Sess 13. But to come close the Romish Society we charge it with Idolatry and Superstition 't is a Religion Bloody Damnable Trayterous Blind and Blasphemous and Madam I go upon sure grounds for I well know their Doctrines having Read them in their chief Authors and by way of Discourse and Disputes with their Priests c. and as for their Practices I have been long enough at Rome among them and in other Places to observe them I come to prove the Charge first their Religion is Idolatrous because it gives the Creature the Dead and Images the Honour due to God alone the Images and Wafer-God of Papists are Dumb Idols as well as those of the Heathens Their distinction of Latreia and Douleia is idle and frivolous for in (n) Rev. 22. Scripture the Servants of God which adore him are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so Paul calls himself (o) Rom. 1.1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Servant of Jesus Christ and in Rev. 19.10 the word there to adore is not derived from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but these things I must not trouble you with Now to Pray to Saints to the Dead to Adore the Wafer to Worship Images is not all this to give the Creature the Worship due to God alone and is it not to pay Relicks Divine Worship as to fall down kneel before and kiss them to go in Pilgrimage to their Shrines and Sepulchres and to expect help from them Secondly 'T is a Superstitious Religion upon the account of innumerable vain Fopperies in their Devotions wherein they place Religion as the Virgins Milk Peter's Beard Christopher's Tooth the Head Rib Arm Finger c. of such a Saint such things Rome is full of and hardly any of their Churches but hath some such things to shew What are their Holy-Water Salt Spittle Holy-Oil Beads Whippings Fish-days Nunneries Pilgrimages Baptising of Bells Fonts Crossing themselves c. Now let us look into their Rituals and by their Practices judge of their Belief and we shall find whole Almanacks full of Saints of their own making I dare say of some who never were in the World and of others who perhaps are now Tormented in Hell they have many more Saints than there are Days in the Year To these they pay the same Ceremonies in the self-same words attended with the same bowings and kneelings as they do to God himself Farthermore they directly to them offer their Prayers Consecrate Churches appoint Holy-days and make Vows to them which are but Creatures now Dead and lying in their Dust and Ashes if this be not Superstition and Idolatry I cannot tell what is so Thirdly 'T is a Bloody Religion witness their many Massacres of the Waldenses Albigenses and others their Bartholomew-Eves in France Cruelties in Ireland and in so many other parts of Europe their Principles and Canons of some of their Councils their Inquisitions and Congregations de Propaganda fide are well known Fourthly That Religion is Damnable for it overthrows the very Foundation of Christianity for their Transubstantiation destroys the Truth of Christ's Human Nature their Expiatory Sacrifice or the Mass his only Sacrifice for Sin offered once for all their Doctrine of Merits his Merits the multitude of Mediators among them makes void the only Mediator between God and Men the Man Jesus Christ their Sacrificing Priest overthrows Christ's Priestly Office as their Traditions do his Prophetical so is the great Article of the Forgiveness of sins and free Justification through Gods Grace in Jesus Christ by their Doctrines of Merits Pardons Indulgences Treasures of the Church and Works of Will-Worship Fifthly 'T is Blind which is plainly made out by their Doctrines of blind Obedience and implicit Faith according to them 't is enough for one to be a good Christian to believe what the Church believes tho' he knows not what the Church doth believe Sixthly 'T is a Treacherous Religion for they teach That the Pope may Depose Kings and lawfully Absolve Subjects from their Oath of Allegiance Lastly we charge it to be Blasphemous because the peculiar Excellencies of Divine Majesty and the Prerogatives of our Lord Jesus Christ it ascribes to the Virgin Mary whose Psalter by Bonaventura doth contain abundance of Blasphemies for all the Glorious things in the Book of Psalms spoken of the Son of God they blasphemously apply it to the Blessed Virgin who is but a Creature and that which is proper to him they give not only to the Virgin but also to multiply their Idolatry to other Creatures both dead and alive as to their Popes to whom and to their Priests they attribute a power to forgive Sins which is a downright Blasphemy for who can forgive sins but God alone Mark 2.7 Now I come to the second part of the Non-succession and shew that Peter was no Bishop of Rome or else he had been a Non-Resident and he never was at Rome herein to be ingenuous we shall say we have no positive proofs but next to that we have that which is as good neither can they with true and good Authority shew that ever he was there though they make use of Legends and spurious things and those who hold the Affirmative ought to prove it though they which are for the Negative should not yet we hope to demonstrate he never was Bishop in Rome After our Saviours Ascension Peter for several Years together continued in the Land of Judea and thereabouts for in the Book of the Acts we read of him in Chapters 1 2 3 4 5 6. tho' in this not particularly named but contained under the Name of the twelve 8 9 10 11 12. when having by the Angel been miraculously delivered out of Prison he left Jerusalem where we find him again in chap. 15. for he was present at the Synod or Council where Luke who followed Paul and in the rest of his Book gives an account of Pauls progress in Preaching the Gospel leaues him Now the Council was held in the 15th year after Christ's Resurrection and the 48th after his Birth till which time we cannot find he at all stirred out of Judea except when he was in Antioch where when for fear of the Jews he withdrew himself from the Gentiles Gal. 2.12 Now let us compare times Paul was Converted in the year of our Lord 35. and two years after his Ascension when going to Damascus out of which City he was by night let down by a Wall in a Basket Acts 9.25 thence he went to Jerusalem v. 26 27. and was by Barnabas brought to the Apostles he speaks of another Journey which (a) Gal. 1.18 three years after he took to Jerusalem to see Peter and abode with him fifteen days and in the 2 Chap. v. 1. he saith how fourteen years after he went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas at which time he also met there with Peter v. 9. and not long after at Antioch v. 11. It were
Right to it hath not Instituted or to bring in a Superiority when he hath appointed and settled an Equality so that if Peter had no such a Superiority as Popes his imaginary Successors pretend he had and from him to be derived unto them it follows there is in them no such thing but 't is a meer Imagination and Usurpation of theirs At first Rome being the Seat of the Empire the Christian Church in it was provided with Bishops or Pastors Men of Piety Learning and best qualified as could be found and upon that account Men might set a great value and esteem upon them shew them a greater respect and obedience because they highly deserved it but in after-times those who came being a quite different sort of Men very short of their Piety Vertue and Parts yet out of Pride and Ambition that which had been rendered to the singular and extraordinary Merits of the Persons they looked upon as due to the Place and so pretended to the same Honour which they were not worthy of and as Ambition is never satisfied and Pride never saith 't is enough the Father of Pride infus'd it more and more into their Hearts and suggested ways and means how to attain to and promote their ambitious ends Now I come to my third Point which tends to shew That the Popes are no Successors of Peter The Church of Rome was gathered out of the Gentiles not out of the Jews tho' there might happen to be some few now Paul not Peter was the Apostle of the Gentiles and Peter of the Jews for saith Paul (q) Gal. 2.7 The Gospel of the Vncircumcision was committed unto me as the Gospel of the Circumcision was unto Peter and in his Epistle he calls the Romans Gentiles I speak to you Gentiles inasmuch as I am the Apostle of the Gentiles Rom. 11.13 That is he was chiefly and specially sent to Convert the Gentiles and the other the Jews tho' when occasion was offered they omitted not to Preach it to both if Peter was to Convert the Jews then he was not to go abroad to the Gentiles but to converse with and continue among the Jews as we see his Epistles are written to them Paul on the contrary having upon occasion said to the Jews (r) Acts 13.46 It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken unto you but seeing you put it from you and judge your selves unworthy of everlasting life lo we turn to the Gentiles and in another place (s) Chap. 18.6 He shook his Raiment and said unto them your blood be upon your own head I am clean from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles and so he did going from Town to Town to Preach the Gospel and so we see his Epistles generally written to the Gentiles among others that to the Romans whereby we see how that Church was within his Province not of Peters But let us come to particulars on this account there may be a twofold Succession the first of Doctrine the second of the Chair or See now I say Popes are Peters Successors in neither First not in Doctrine for indeed except the first and second Articles of Christian Religion about the most Holy Trinity and Divinity of Christ wherein they are sound they have corrupted most of the rest of the true Christian Apostolical Doctrine which I am sure St. Peter taught all their corruptive Alterations and humane Superstructures of their own Invention as Invocation of Saints Worshipping of Images Veneration of Relicks Pilgrimages Indulgences Purgatory and many more besides their overthrowing the three Offices of our Lord and Saviour with making other Kings and Heads to Rule over his Church other Prophets who teach for Doctrines the Commandments of Men and bring in their Traditions to the prejudice of his Holy Word and then Instituting other Priests than him and other Sacrifices than his and setting up new Sacraments and other things which are well known and 't would be too long for me to Insert But Madam If you please to be informed about several of the chief as Transubstantiation taking away the Cup against eating of Flesh on certain days the Marrying of Priests these I have spoken of in a Tract of mine called A Seasonable Discourse about Religion in this present Conjuncture Printed in 1688. which I refer you to for here for Brevity sake I will meddle with nothing but what relates to my present purpose However Madam before I proceed farther I take it to be necessary to pull off the Vizard of the Church of Rome's pretended Succession to Peter In order to 't you must give me leave to draw a true and natural Picture of that Society I hope you will own two things first That the true and right Succession is in the Doctrine Secondly That Peter's Doctrine is the same and not at all different from or contrary to that of the other Apostles and Evangelists as set down in the New Testament Now the Romish Church from the first steps doth prevaricate and gainsay Peter's Doctrine for he saith (v) 2 Pet. 1.20 21. That no prophesie of the scripture is of any private interpretation for the prophesie came not in old time by the will of man but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost Here Peter attributes Scripture to the Counsel of God and Inspiration of the Holy Ghost but the Romish Church (x) Bellar. de verbo dei l. 4. c. 4. to the will of men and particular occasions without God's express command Nay they say (y) Bellar. de verbo dei l. 4. c. 3. the word of God contains not all things necessary unto Salvation and so 't is insufficient yet the Apostle saith all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for reproofs for correction for instruction in righteousness and are able to make us wise unto salvation z Perron cont Tilen 2 Tim. 3.15 16. Now that which makes wise and perfect as 't is v. 17. to Salvation doth contain all that is necessary unto Salvation other Texts we have to the same purpose They also (a) Bellar. de verbo dei l. 3. c. 1. affirm Scripture to be dark and obscure against what David saith in so many places as Psal 19.28 And thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path Psal 119.105 They see not that light because they turn their back upon 't Paul declares (b) 2 Cor. 4.3 4. If our Gospel be hid it is hid to them that are lost in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the image of God should shine unto them Tho' God's word be clear Unbelievers cannot see 't no more than the Blind or those who shut their Eyes can see the Sun tho' never so bright Nay they (c) Bellar. de verbo dei l.