know that this Gospel and these Books are true And all these are not to be confounded by the simple pretence of calling for a fixed medium or principle § 7. VI. Determining signifieth either the private decision or determining of doubts in the minds of particular persons or else the publick decision of doubts as they are managed in the Church by a publick Judge And this either as binding mens Consciences or Minds what to believe or only as ruling their tongues and actions in teaching and conversation § 8. VII By Vnity in faith is meant either unity in a general faith which they call Implicite or in a particular explicite faith And that is either a unity in all the essentials of Christianity or also in all the Integrals or also in all the accidentals which are revealed by God And it is either a secret unity of minds or a publick unity for communion that is meant If he think any of these distinctions needless let him prove it and then cast them by I am sure confusion is fit to deceive but not to edifie CHAP. III. The rude and summary answer to the confused Question § 1. LEst the Querist should pretend that by distinguishing I avoid a plain and direct answer to his Question I will here first suppose him to be as rude and confused as his Question would imply and give him such an answer as it will bear But so as that it cannot be satisfactory to a distinguishing understanding for whom therefore I shall afterward answer more distinctly § 2. I cannot answer with common sense in a narrower compass than by distinguishing these Questions 1. How know I the words and Bible 2. How know I that this Doctrine and Book is the same which was delivered by the Apostles to the Churches 3. How know I the meaning of the words 4. How know I that this Doctrine and these words are of God or a Divine Revelation 5. How know I that they are true § 3. I. To the first Question I answer that I know that I hear and read the words and that this Bible containeth in it all its visible contents by my sense my sight and hearing and my intellective perception of things sensible And though this be a principle in which the Papists agree not with us I am never the more in doubt whether I see and hear the words § 4. II. To the second I know that this Doctrine and Book is the same which by the Apostles were delivered to the Churches by Infallible History not such as dependeth on the honesty of the speakers only and so begetteth but a humane faith much less such as depends on the bare Authority of the King of Rome and his narrow selfish sect or party and Kingdom but by such History as hath a certainty in it from natural principles by which we prove it impossible that there should be deceit there being so full a concurrence of all sorts of Christians and enemies also and infallible circumstantial evidence Even as I know that there was such a man at Rome as Gregory 1. and Gregory 7. and such persons in England as Henry 8. King Edward 6. Queen Mary Queen Elizabeth c. And as I know that our Statute Books are not counterfeit And as your Doctors know that the Acts and Decrees of Councils the Works of Bellarmine Baronius c. are not counterfeit which is not because the Pope or a General Council saith so but by rational evidence of certain History which leaveth not mens minds in doubt § 5. But I am not equally certain of some questioned Books or Readings no nor of the sense of some difficult words as I am of all the rest which being more evident are more past controversie § 6. III. I know the meaning of the words spoken or written as you know the meaning of a man that talketh with you or of any other writings as of your Councils Decretals Mass-book Bellarmine c. that is by the significance of such words by humane usage from those daies till now which Lexicons Books and successive practice fully prove § 7. But there are plain passages in Scripture which I understand certainly not because the Pope saith This is the meaning Such are all the essentials of Christianity and abundance more And there are difficult passages which I am not certain of the sense of § 8. IV. I know that this Doctrine and the Bible containing it as such are of God or are his word by the spirit attesting and fealing it not in the fanatick sense as they think they have an inward impulse perswading them that so it is as some Papists think the Pope and Councils know that to be of God which they decree by Prophetical Inspiration But 1. As to the Gospel the spirit attested it by antecedent Prophesie 2. The image of Gods Power Wisdom and Goodness imprinted on the Scripture is its essential constitutive evidence being unimitable by meer man and that which is its intrinsick self evidencing light so that a spiritual well disposed soul may from a sensibleness tast that it is Gods word if a Bible had come to them by chance and they had never heard of it before I say that they may do so if you can suppose them spiritually disposed before But if not yet they may strongly suspect that it is Gods word when they read that it affirmeth it self to be so and that the image of God upon it is so clear 3. But the Concomitant Evidence of the spirit maketh up the proof in the miracles of Christs Life Resurrection and ascension and in the miracles of Apostles and primitive Christians abroad the world by which the Gospel was fully sealed 4. And the effected subsequent evidence of the spirit compleateth all the evidence which is the spirit of holiness given by the means of this same word to all true serious Believers in the world in all ages and nations which Holiness is the Image of God himself and is such a gift as none but God can give and as God would not give by a Doctrine which he abhorreth as a lie Therefore 1. It witnesseth objectively as an evidence 2. And it witnesseth effectively by inclining the heart to tast and close with and receive the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the innaturalized word as life and health cause a man to know suitable food by a gust which proceedeth from a suitable nature so is it in the new nature and the sincere milk of the word And indeed though the intellect be the proper apprehender of Truth as such suo modo yet the will is quaedam natura and hath a natural propensity to Good as Good which is natural to it and is the pondus motuum in the rational soul And it is not an universal notion or nothing under the name of good which it thus inclineth to but existent good in some being that is Vnum Verum Bonum as Rada and other Scotists well prove And therefore it hath
necessary volitions as of its own felicity c. which yet are free and not meerly per modum naturae though natural as being ex sua natura And this three or foursold witness or attestation of the spirit sometime Antecedent alwaies Constitutive Concomitant and subsequent though a holy soul that is suited to it and hath the witness in it self may most fully and certainly discern yet another also may discern The Miracles being Intelligible attestations to them and the beauty of Wisdom and Holiness in the Scripture and in the Saints being refulgent and discernable by a stander by though not as by a possessor § 9. But I have not an equal Certainty of all the parts of it that they are the word of God because 1. All the Books Texts and Readings are not brought to me with equal historical Evidence 2. And there are abundance of passages in it which are but Accidental to the Christian Religion which have not the same self-evidencing luster in them as the Essentials have And there is no Necessity of an equal knowledge of the parts § 10. The parts which I am fully Certain of in the Scripture are 1. All the Essentials of the Christian Religion Because 1. They are delivered in Scripture frequently plainly past all Controversie of which I will cite your testimonies anon 2. Because they were as certainly delivered to all Christians and Churches in the whole world distinctly by themselves twelve years before any of the New Testament was written and above threescore and ten years before all of it was written even in the Covenant of Baptism renewed in the Lords Supper and in the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue which are the exposition of the Covenants professed by all Christians in all Christian Churches at every sacred meeting And these two waies of Tradition in Scripture and by themselves are fuller than one 2. And all the rest of the holy Scriptures in which the full concord of Copies and the plainness of the words doth leave no room for rational doubting § 11. V. I know that all this word is True because God is True verax and it is impossible for him to lie For whoever lieth must want either Wisdom to know what to say or Goodness to Love Truth or Power to make good his word and attain his will by better means But God is perfect in all these Which you seem to grant us § 12. That all things necessary to Salvation have been delivered by the Apostles to the Churches two waies as by two hands viz. Distinctly by word of mouth and in the Bible is our Doctrine That more than all in the Bible hath been delivered by word of mouth and this as necessary to the Salvation of some men I know not whom who have no more wit than to create necessity to themselves is your Doctrine But yet your famousest contentious Doctors confess that all things commonly necessary to Salvation are plainly expressed in the holy Scriptures Concil Basil Orat. Ragus Bin. pag. 299. The holy Scripture in the literal sense soundly and well understood is the Infallible and most sufficient Rule of faith Bellarm. de verbo Dei lib. 4. c. 11. In the Christian Doctrine both of faith and manners some things are simply necessary to the salvation of all as the knowledge of the articles of the Apostles Creed of the ten Commandments and of the Sacraments The rest are not so necessary that a man cannot be saved without the explicite knowledge belief and profession of them These things which are simply necessary and profitable to all the Apostles preached to all All things are written by the Apostles which are necessary to all and which they openly preached to all Costerus in Enchirid. cap. 1. p. 49. We do not deny that those chief heads of faith which to all Christians are necessary to be known to Salvation are plainly enough comprehended in the writings of the Apostles § 13. By the way hence judge of the jugling of your praters when they call to us for a Catalogue of Essentials or Fundamentals as if no such distinction were to be made § 14. But the ancient Fathers talkt at a higher rate even as Theophil Alexandr Epist. Paschal 2. Cont. Orig. Biblioth Patr. To. 3. pag. 96. Ignorans quod daemoniaci spiritus esset instinctus sophismata humanarum mentium sequi aliquid extra Scripturarum authoritatem putare divinum i. e. not knowing that it is the instinct of a devilish spirit to follow the sophisms of mens minds and to think that any thing is Divine without or besides the authority of the Scriptures CHAP. IV. The distinct Questions all Implied or Confounded in his one Quest 1. What are the Revelations in Controversie § 1. I Must now for the satisfaction of him if he be judicious answer his Question more distinctly and therefore divide it into all these Questions Quest. 1. What are the Revelations of God about which our Controversies lie 2. Whether it be true that the Papists grant us that all Divine Revelations are true 3. What Certainty have we what is a real Revelation of God 4. What Certainty have we of the true Copies and Readings 5. What Certainty of the Canonical or Divine books 6. What Certainty of the Truth of Translations 7. What Certainty have we of the true sense of the words 8. What unity of faith may be expected to be consferred by such certainties 9. What Determination is necessary to this Certainty and Unity And the Questions what Principle and what Medium is established will be Answered in these § 2. Quest. I. What are the Revelations of God about which our Controversies lie Answ. To mention no more than I needs must there are three sorts of Revelation which we assert and rest in 1. Of Natural Production and Evidence such as is the Light and Law of Nature in the Nature of all things especially of man himself as revealing Gods will per modum signi 2. Infallible Oral and Historical Traditition And so 1. All the Covenant of Grace in the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lords Supper with the Catechistical explanation in the Creed Lords-prayer and Decalogue have been particularly delivered by themselves 2. And so the Bible hath been delivered to us in the bulks 3. Written Revelation in the sacred Records of the Spirit which is the holy Scriptures themselves § 3. Of the first more anon The second they grant us so far as to confess 1. That the said Covenant and Catechistical Principles have had that way of delivery by themselves as well as in the Scripture But they tell of much more I know not what delivered the same way than is in them and the Scripture it self 2. Yet as you see they confess that none of that addition is commonly necessary to Salvation The third they grant us that all those books which we receive are the Certain word of God But 1. They say that there are more 2. And that we must
that they attested every phrase method yea or the truth of every word of the penmen so as that none of them could through oversight or forgetfulness misrecite a name number or circumstance Though we have here sufficient satisfaction yet not so full a Certainty as we have of the Doctrine of the Gospel which the Apostles converted the world by Preaching of before the New Testament was written and which in the Sacramental Covenants the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue and Catechisms was distinctly by it self delivered to the Churches and so cometh to us by a double way of tradition CHAP. VII Quest. IV. What Certainty have we of the Copies § 1. Answ. THE same that we have of the Statute Books in England save that the Recorded Originals of some Laws remain And the same that you have of the Copies of the most Certain Councils and Authors extant § 2. 1. They are delivered to us by men of so many Countries minds and interests as could not possibly agree to falsifie them in the substance and in those points in which the Copies agree § 3. 2. They were constantly read in the holy Assemblies through the Christian world and by private Christians and especially all Teachers And therefore any great depravation could not grow common § 4. 3. The Copies all over the world of Greatest antiquity still agree so far as is aforesaid and the Commentaries of the Fathers containing the Text with all the Citations are the same in the main So that we have a Historical Certainty of the Copies so far as they are commonly known to agree which the Old Translations also Confirm § 5. The words in which they disagree though many are such as no article necessary to Salvation dependeth on and are plainly the errors of Scribes and not of the holy Penmen § 6. In the points where any late or inconsiderable Copy differeth from the generality which have Evidence of Antiquity and Concord that singularity is no cause of doubting § 7. Many slips are such as the Context will sufficiently detect § 8. In all those points where the Copies so differ as that it cannot be proved which is the truest by certain proof we can have no certainty Nor is our uncertainty of any danger to us CHAP. VIII Quest. V. What Certainty have we of the Canonical Books § 1. Answ. 1. OF all those Canonical Books which the Christian world now commonly receiveth there is the same Certainty by the same means which I before mentioned of the Copies The Doctrine of them was spoken of before it being that Divine Revelation which God hath attested as was opened We have the Certain History and Tradition of all ages from the first common notice and reception of them agreeing which are the true Books § 2. 2. But yet even of these Canonical Books agreed on the Evidence of Divinity is not equal For 1. Some of them have more Evident Impressions of Gods Image upon them in the Matter than others have As the Psalms more than Ruth the Chronicles c. The Doctrinal Books more than the Genealogies Chronologies particular Histories 2. God did confirm some more notoriously by Miracles and publick attestations than others So Moses his words had more confirmation by Miracles than Ruth Chronicles Ecclesiastes Canticles c. 3. Some have had a fuller testimony by Tradition than others As the Pentateuch and Psalms more than the Chronicles part of Daniel c. 4. In all these respects the New Testament cometh to us with fuller and clearer Evidence than the Old As being of later date and so the Historical proof more discernible And hath more clear Impressions of Divinity and was confirmed by the most notorious multiplied long-continued Miracles and by the most notable effects of holiness in all true Believers c. And indeed its attestation to the Old Testament is not our weakest proof of its Divinity § 3. There is less doubt of those few books of the New-Testament which were unknown or doubted of but by some Churches for a time than of those which are controverted as belonging to the Old § 4. As to those Books which he saith the Ebionites and Valentinians denied they have as full Historical proof as any And those that denied them denied Christs Resurrection or some Essentials of Christianity and were no Christians but mad-brained factions withdrawn from Christians the Valentinian Gnosticks in their whole heresie plainly shewed themselves crackt-brained Fanaticks as Irenaeus and Epiphanius describe them so that for Number Quality and Cross-interest their Exceptions were not any considerable discredit of the History and indeed but excite the Christians the more carefully to examine and preserve their Canon Nor were their exceptions so much against the Matter of Fact whether Mark c. wrote those books as about the Divinity of them And were but of the like nature with all the Turks Heathens and other Infidels exceptions against the whole Gospel § 5. And as for those Apocryphal books which are in Controversie between the Papists and us some Protestants say that they are Certainly none of Gods word and some that it is utterly uncertain to any man that they are his word And let the Papists who assert the Certainty that they are give us the proof of it and we will thank them Till then our denial or uncertainty of those books maketh no alteration in the Great and Necessary Articles of our faith CHAP. IX Quest. VI. What Certainty have we of the truth of Translations § 1. Answ. 1. THose that understand the Original and the Language into which it is Translated have a Certainty from the Known signification of the words answerable to the degree of their skill in those tongues The signification of the words is Certain to them by Infallible Tradition The use and sense of the words in Hebrew and Greek is known by Lexicons and the constant use of Authors and by the confession of all parties friends and Enemies and by present use so that as your Priests understand a true Translation of any Latine Greek or Hebrew Author Cicero Plutark Demosthenes Antonine Maimonides c. by the same means do the Learned know a true Translation of the Bible § 2. In the Essentials of Christianity and all the necessary Articles of faith the Ignorant themselves have an Infallible Certainty that the Translations are true so far as that all that is necessary to Salvation is contained concordantly in them all 1. Because it hath pleased God to deliver all those Necessary points in various words distinctly by themselves by all Baptizers and Pastors of the Churches as is aforesaid With which the Scripture Translations do agree 2. Because there is a natural Impossibility that men of so various minds and interests as all the Translators and all the Defenders of those Translations should agree till this day to deceive the world and not be discovered § 3. And by the same evidence it is certain to an unlearned man that
Commentators And yet must we know Translations and Copies only by the Popes determination III. Your own Popes ex Cathedra have given the Church various Translations That Edition of the Vulgar Latine made by Sixtus 5. and that made about two years after Clemens 8. differ in so many hundred passages and abundance of whole verses and sentences that if a Bible be a Divine Revelation one of them shamefully erred about Divine Revelations or de fide See Dr. Iames his Bellum Papale and its Defence against Gretser Where then is your Certainty IV. You are utterly uncertain and disagreed among your selves who it is that hath this Ascertaining Determining Authority You say it is your Church But some say that the Infallibility and Power is in the Pope alone in Cathedra Some say it is a General Council though the Pope dissent Some say that the Pope and Council must agree and some say that the Church Essential of all Countries must receive the decrees before they are infallibly ascertaining And who can be Certain of Gods word by an Authority which is it self so uncertain See the proof in Safe Relig. p. 192 193 194. V. Your own sentence condemneth your own Judges as uncertain General Councils as Constance and Basil have concluded that Popes may err in matters of faith yea accused and Condemned them as Hereticks if not Infidels And shall we not believe a General Council in matter of present fact and yet must believe them what is Gods word And that one Council hath Condemned another and Popes have Condemned Councils I have ibid. proved at large And if Popes and General Councils distinct are deceitful how shall we be sure that two false parties when they meet do make one true one VI. Popes and General Councils have often erred from the faith as our Church of England truly asserteth and therefore we are not sure that they never will do so more Bellarmine himself noteth about fourty Popes charged with error or Heresie Liberius subscribeth the sentence against Athanasius and received the Arrians to Communion and subscribed the Sirmian faith Hane ego libenti animo suscepi in nullo contradicens See his Epist. 7. in Binnius To. 1. p. 465. and his notes on it See more in my safe Relig. p. 249 c. And of Councils p. 274 c. The sixth General Council at Constantin approved by Pope Adrian and by the seventh Council hath many errors as have many others there instanced in What Certainty then can they give us VII The Ancient Christians and Churches received not the Certainty of their faith upon the Authoritative determination of a Pope and Council Therefore there is a Certainty to be had without it The Churches that Paul or any Apostle Converted believed not at first upon the Authority of a General Council nor of a Pope Till the Council of Nice for above 300. years the world was without a General Council And were they without faith Frumentius and Aedesius that preached to the Indians and all other Christian Preachers that then converted souls took another course They did not first convince men of the Authority of a Pope and General Council to tell them what was Gods word before they brought them to believe it VIII Scripture it self never mentioneth this Method or Evidence And would it be silent of the only way of Certainty It never saith to the world You must know by the Judgement of Peter or the Pope and a General Council what is the word of God Did Christ forget it IX The Ancient Defenders of the Christian Faith did all go another way Iustin Tertullian Athenagoras Tatianus Minutius Faelix Arnobius Lactantius Eusebius in his two first Volumes de Praepar Demonstrat Augustine and all such writers seek to prove our faith by other Evidence and never say the Pope and a General Council are the only ascertaining declarers of it X. Our Proof of the Matters of fact is incomparably more certain than yours For 1. As to the Power of Judging we maintain a concurrence of the peoples Discerning Iudgement the Pastors Teaching or Directing Iudgement and both Magistrates and Pastors Deciding and Governing Judgement not to be the only Determiner of mens minds de fide but to Rule the publick Doctrine and Communion of the Church according to Gods foreknown Laws And as to the Truth of Copies Miracles and the actual delivery of the Gospel in the Scripture and in the distinct Catechistical Articles aforesaid we rest on Tradition which hath a Natural Infallibility and not a pretended Authoritative Iudge Your Tradition receiveth its credit from pretended Power to Iudge which all the wise men in the world will deny till it s proved Our Tradition hath its credit from a Natural Impossibility that the History should be false I have shewed you the proof of this in my More Reasons for the Christian Religion and else where If you will not read them there I know not whether you will read them here and therefore will not write them again We have all your Evidence which is Evidence indeed and far more with it And as Hierom saith The world is more than the City Your Tradition is that of a Popes judging Power only as some say and of a Pope with his Council as others say and of the Pope with his subjects as your few moderate Latitudinarians say You are not above the third or fourth part of the Christian world If you deny this your Impudent lying may cheat a woman that never read the state of the world but will shame you the more with learned men And is not the Tradition 1. Of all the Christian world for 300. years before there was any General Council 2. And of all the Christian world since even Greeks Armenians Syrians Copties Abassines and all others more than the Tradition of a Pope and a few inslaved Priests The Council of Trent had for a considerable time but 42. Bishops even when it set up your Tradition as a supplement to Scripture And is the Pope and these 42. of equal historical credit to all the Christian world 3. Yea our History takes in Hereticks yea and Infidels and Heathens too so far as they have left us any Testimony of these things Even a Pliny a Celsus a Porphyry a Iulian and any other the bitterest Enemies Because we prove it Impossible that so many men of different Countries and no converse and contrary minds and Interests should confederate or agree to deceive the world and be undetected in such a matter And what is the Pope and 42. or two hundred Prelates most of Italy to such Historical Evidence as this O that you could lay by partiality and base selfish respects but for one day or hour What if the Question among us were whether ever Paul was at Rome Or Iustin wrote his Apologie Or Origen was a professed Christian Or Constantine the Great professed Christianity Or whether the writings of Iustin Tertullian Cyprian Augustine c. be
being or power XXV Either the Pope and Council themselves know the true Copies Readings and Translations from the Authority of former Councils or by their own or by the Evidence of the thing and Common History or by Inspiration or Supernatural Revelation If all the rabble of wicked Popes and Prelates pretend to Rule the Church and our faith by Inspiration they are crackt-braind fanaticks Sure they were no Prophets before they were Popes or Councillers But if it be by their own Authority who will take a self-made faith of men that Believe only because they Believe And must have all others believe only because they believed before them Then it is themselves and not Christ that they believe If it be former Popes and Councils that they believe tell us whom and why the first believed Mark that you cannot arise to St. Peter For the various Copies and Translations which we are in question of were all made since St. Peters daies XXVI When in a Council the major part carry it by vote perhaps by one or a few How shall we be sure that all the minor part were deceived XXVII How shall all those Abassines Armenians Indians in New-England or others that know not that ever there was a Pope or General Council in the world become Christians Or are you sure they are none XXVIII We see by experience in the foresaid Nations and feel in our selves that men may have a certain faith without receiving it from the Pope Can you make me know that I do not believe when I know that I do And can you prove that only the third part of Christians in the world are true Christians and have Certain faith because all the rest receive it not from the Pope and why may not the major part of the Church be sure as well as he XXIX Hath the Church a twofold foundation for faith If the Pope and Council believe Gods word to be his word on one Ground and all other men on another ground that is because they say it then we have two faiths and two Churches on two foundations But if otherwise then Pope and Council do as we must do by their doctrine even believe it because they say it themselves XXX The Councils Decrees of Faith are so Voluminous that not one Priest of fourty knoweth them all and not one lay man of many thousand The very bulk therefore of your faith must make it more uncertain than ours is And who can tell whether he have it all XXXI The words of your Councils are as obscure as Scripture words and are controverted by your Doctors And how can it be otherwise when humane language is so ambiguous in such huge Volumes How then shall the sense of your Councils themselves be certainly known XXXII Councils are rarely extant God only knoweth whether ever there will be anothor even a pretended one And must we have no judge in the mean time to give us a Certainty of the meaning of the very foregoing Councils themselves Most confess that the Pope himself may err XXXIII It is but few persons in the world that ever saw and consulted with a Pope and a General Council How then shall we be all sure what they said or determined How know we whether the Records of them be truest in Crab in Surius in Nicolinus in Binnius or in none of them What was Caranzas's fault that he is blamed for Which of the various Copies of Canons are true which are given us oft by the same Author Who knoweth what alterations the Index expurgatorius not infallible maketh in the books Have we no more or other Certainty of our Creed than of all these Councils so variously and doubtfully delivered XXXIV Seeing that each lay man that never saw Pope or Councils can know them only by believing the Priest that telleth him This the Church saith is that Priest Infallible Can no man be be certainer of the Creed than of that Priests words Is not the faith of almost all your vulgar Papists resolved into the Priests affirmation And so is it not a humane faith And how ignorant and wicked is many a Priest Is our faith uncertain because we take it not on such a mans credit XXXV If you say that an Implicite faith that all is true and of God which the Pope and Council saith is so will save men 1. How do the people know whether the Pope and Council determine any thing at all but on the Priests credit 2. Then all Infidels may be saved without believing that there is a Saviour or salvation so they do but believe in the Pope and Council 3. Then believing in the Pope and Council is made far more necessary than believing in Christ. 4. Why will not an implicite belief in Christ go as far as yours XXXVI By your way we can never be Certain when we have all the Christian faith For more Councils may still make more decrees as hitherto they have done and who knows when they will hae done And so you make a Christian quite another thing than he was in the primitive Church And you cruelly make it far harder to be saved when as then a man might be saved that believed the Covenant and Creed and foresaid Catechism and now he must also believe so many Canons as that the Councils containing them in the last Edition exceed the purse of a poor Minister to buy them and the time and brains of most to read them XXXVII You confess all our faith and Religion to be true as far as I can learn but we deny all your additions Both parties therefore being agreed of the truth of ours it 's like to be the surer Our Religion in the Essentials is nothing but the Sacramental Covenant the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue with the Law of Nature And in the Integrals it is nothing but the Scriptures which we receive as Canonical And all this you commonly confess to be true And I told you before how Bellarmine Costerus and others confess less to be sufficient to Salvation as commonly necessary But your additions we reject as uncertain or false XXXVIII We see you to be a Carnal Kingdom set up against Christs express determination Luk. 22. 26. 1. Pet. 5. 3. As the Geographia Nubiensis saith In Vrbe Roma c. In the City of Rome are the seats of a King called the Pope Nor is there any superiority in dignity above the Pope and Kings are lower or inferior than he We see that you have compaginated your policie all for these carnal Ends and that dignity and dominion and riches and worldliness is promoted by your faith And that your Religion is propagated and upheld by most inhumane cruelties and bloodshed and they must be burned that seem not to believe as you do And will it not raise suspicions in us of the fidelity of such men when they make their own faith and tell us that we have no certainty of ours but by their determination