who doth not know or not consider that what was deliver'd by Peter the Prince of the Apostles to the Roman Church and is kept till this very Day ought to be observed by all and that nothing is to be superadded or introduced which either hath not Authority or may seem to take Example from elsewhere Especially since it is manifest that none have instituted Churches in all Italy France Spain Africa Sicily and the interjacent Islands but those which the venerable Apostle Peter or his Successors have ordained Priests Or let them search whether any of the other Apostles is found or read to have taught in those Provinces if they do not read this because they no where find it they ought to follow that which the Roman Church observes from whence no doubt they had their Original least in giving themselves selves up to the Assertions of Strangers they may seem to wave the Head of their Institutions This Testimony of Innocent the First is very considerable by which it appears either that St. Peter or those whom he or his Successors made Priests instituted Churches through all Italy France Spain Africa Sicily and the interjacent Islands and therefore that these ought to acknowledge the Roman Church as their special Head. For this he expresly declares in those last Words Least in giving themselves up to the Assertions of Strangers they may seem to wave the Head of their Institutions 6. Neither is there just cause why any one should object to Innocent that the Apostle Paul preach'd two years at Rome and that this appears from the Acts of the Apostles which were writ by Luke Pauls inseparable Companion For the most Eminent Cardinal Baronius in his Annals Tome 1. ad An. 4 makes answer that under the name of Peter Paul also is to be comprehended and if the answer of this Parent of Annals do not fully satisfie you let us interpret Innocent's Mind by his own Words and shew that Peter only preach'd in the West in that sense wherein the most Holy Pope asserts him to have preach'd Innocent speaks in the Place before cited concerning that Apostolical Preaching by which Churches were instituted in the Western Regions not of that which the Churches had after they were once constituted after the same manner that Paul the Apostle himself in the Epistle to the Romans Chap. 15. spake concerning the Churches that were instituted by him From Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum Rom. 15. I have fully preach'd the Gospel of Christ Yea so have I strived to preach the Gospel not where Christ was named lest I should build upon another mans Foundation but as it is written to whom he was not spoken of From which Words it is plain that Paul reckons no Church in the number of those that he had preach'd to wherein the Gospel was preach'd before which being so and evidently so from his own Words the Roman Church is not to be reckon'd as one of those which were instituted by Paul for that was instituted before his coming to the City as is plain from his Epistle to the Romans which as the very Words of it shew was written before he came to Rome and yet he asserted that even then when he wrote there was a Church instituted at Rome because Chap. 26. he sends his Salutation to many of the Faithful at Rome and Chap. 1. he derects his Epistle to all that be in Rome beloved of God called to be Saints and expressed their Faith was spoken of throughout the whole World. Therefore Paul doth not suffer us to reckon the Roman Church among those which he by his preaching instituted which Innocent the First knowing of declared that Peter only preach'd at Rome because he had found that the Roman Church was instituted by Peter before Paul came to that City the same may be said of Spain and the other Regions if any shall believe that Paul at any time preached in them for there was a Church founded in them before either by Peter or by those Priests which Peter had ordain'd and sent to those Parts so that the preaching of Paul was no Argument against Peter's instituting those Churches which way of preaching and no other is here meant by Innocent whilest he attributes the Institution of the Occidental Churches solely to Peter or to the Priests that were sent either by him or his Successors 7. These things therefore being premised for the better understanding of the Testimony of Innocent we are now to answer the Authors two Objections the former of which impugns the Matter of Fact the latter the reason of the thing deduced from the Matter of Fact. Both which Objections he proposeth in these Words But the Matter of Fact saith he Author p. 132. is far from being evident for we have great reason to believe there were Churches planted in the Western Parts neither by Peter nor by those who were sent by his Successors yet let that be granted what connexion is there between receiving the Christian Doctrine at first by those who came from thence and an Obligation to be subject to the Bishops of Rome in all their Orders and Traditions The Patriarchal Government of the Church was not founded upon this but upon the ancient Custom and Rules of the Church as fully appears by the Council of Nice And as to the British Churches this very Plea of Innocent will be a farther Evidence for their Exemption from the Roman Patriarchate since Britain cannot be comprehended within those Islands which lie between Italy Gaul Spain Africa and Sicily which can only be understood of those Islands which are situate in the Mediterranean Sea. 8. These two Objections which the Author here joyns together are to be handled distinctly And in the first place that we may speak to that which concerns Matter of Fact the Author says that all the Churches in the West were not instituted by Peter or those whom the Apostolical See ordain'd Innocent testifies the contrary of Italy Africa France Spain and the interjacent Islands which of these shall we give credit to an English Writer who upon his own Authority denies this when many hundred Monuments of Antiquity are lost in sixteen hundred years time or the most Holy Pope who liv'd above one thousand two hundred and seventy years since and had the Opportunity of seeing many Monuments of Antiquity in the Registry of the Apostolic See concerning this Matter and constantly affirms it If we ask the Opinion of our Ancestors as well those who liv'd in England as in the rest of the Western Parts adhere to the Testimony of Innocent since from the time of Dionysius Exiguus they have receiv'd it as authentic and have plac'd it amongst the Decretal Epistles religiously venerated by the whole Western Church It appears then by the Testimony of Innocent which hath been approv'd by the Judgment of all the West for almost twelve Centuries that no one hath instituted Churches either in Italy Africa
France Spain or the interjacent Islands but Peter the Apostle or those which he or his Successors have ordain'd Priests so that 't is in vain for our Author to presume that England after so many Ages teaches otherwise and to affirm that this Testimony of Innocent doth not comprehend the British Churches De Marca understood Innocent quite in a different sense supposing that the British Islands were understood by the Islands mention'd by Innocent the Reason is because Innocent did not mention by name those Islands of the Mediterranean Sea which lye between Italy France and Africa but only mentions the interjacent Islands in general under which the British Islands adjacent to France and partly interjacent might and if we will believe antient Writers ought to be comprehended For from them it appears as is before prov'd that the Churches in the British Islands were instituted if not by Peter the Apostle or by Preachers sent by him yet at least by the Priests which his Successor Eleutherius constituted 9. Thus have I answer'd the Objection concerning Matter of Fact and now proceed to the Second which the Author urges against the Reason drawn from the Matter of Fact. Innocent so manifestly concludes from the Institution of the Western Churches that they ought to be subject to the Roman Patriarch that our Author confesses it cannot be denied Yet saith he let that be granted what connexion is there between receiving the Doctrine at first by those who came from thence and an Obligation to be subject to the Bishops of Rome in all their Orders and Traditions He asks the Reason of this Connexion let him hear it from Christ who would not have his Apostles to preach through the World unless they were sent for being about to ascend into Heaven he spake to them in these Words as we find in the last Chapter of Mark Go ye into all the World Mark. Chap. Last and preach the Gospel to every Creature And let him answer the Apostle Paul thus asking in his Epistle to the Romans For how shall they preach unless they are sent Epist to the Romans Doth not the Apostle here affirm that Mission is necessary in order to preaching of the Gospel Ought not all to acknowledg that there ought to be a special Authority when Churches are to be instituted by preaching and Priests and Bishops to be ordain'd So the Apostles having receiv'd Power from Heaven undertook to instruct the World by their preaching and dividing amongst themselves the Regions of the whole Earth instituted Churches of which those only obtain'd Patriarchal Dignity in which Peter either by himself or by Mark his Disciple had placed Sees He himself presided at Antioch where he erected a See which govern'd the Eastern Patriarchate He sent Mark the Evangelist his Disciple to Alexandria whose See there erected constituted a Patriarchate which in St. Athanasius's time extended its Borders as far as India interior Carolus à S. Paulo in Geographia Sacra For as Carolus à S. Paulo in his Geographia Sacra truly observes This Custom prevail'd amongst the Ancients that the Provinces which were converted to Christianity should remain subject to that Patriarch by whose Industry and Vigilance they were first converted and so Aethiopia and India interior appertain'd to the See of Alexandria because Frumentius being sent thither by St. Athanasius preach'd the Gospel instructed the People in the Faith and ordain'd their Bishops as Ruffinus testifies he had learned from Aedesius So that it ought not to seem strange to us that the See of Rome should have obtain'd the Patriarchate of the West since the Prince of the Apostles chose that City for himself and instituted Churches throughout the West and no other Apostle ordained Bishops or Priests there but he reserved this Power to himself and his Successors This therefore is the Connexion between the receiving of their Doctrine from those which were sent from Rome and the Subjection of such who were converted by them which had their Mission from the Apostolic See because those Churches owe their Institution to the special Authority of the Roman Bishop so that Innocent the First rightly said that the Churches which had their Institution from the Apostolic See ought not to attend to the Instruction of Strangers but to consult the Roman Bishop * Ne caput Institutionum videantar omittere least they might seem to omit a chief point of their Institutions 10. The Author obviates this argument p. 68 by asserting from antient Tradition out of Notkerus Notkerus Balbulus 8 Calend. Junii Author p. 59. that Lucius after he was converted leaving his Kingdom converted all Rhetia and part of Bavaria to the Christian Faith by his Preaching and Miracles If so saith our Author the British Church on the account of King Lucius his converting their Country hath as much Right to challenge Superiority over Bavaria and Rhetia as the Church of Rome hath over the British Church on the account of the Conversion of Lucius by Eleutherius The first words of the Author here are to be observed If so saith he so that he seems very much to doubt of the truth of the thing Neither can it be said that the matter of fact is evident for whether we consult Regino Abbas Prumiensis Hermannus Contractus Sigebertus Gemblacensis or other German Historians Or Galfridus Monemuthensis Mattheus Westmonasteriensis and other English Writers these latter write that Lucius died in Britain the former do not tell us that he Preach'd the Gospel in Germany and there suffer'd Martyrdom And if we look into the more ancient Martyrologies we shall not find one word in them of Lucius his dying in Germany Venerable Bede may be consulted who hath nothing either at the Third of November or any other day concerning this matter Also a more ancient Martyrology of the Western Church attributed to St. Jerom lately Printed at Lucca makes no mention of Lucius his being buried in Germany An old Martyrology set forth by Rosweidus since Baronius died no where makes mention of Lucius King of England his being the Apostle of Bavaria and Rhetia Nor is he remembred in the Martyrologies of Rhabanas Maurus Vsuardus and Ado Viennensis And Notkerus is the first of all men who hath made mention of the Apostleship of Lucius in a Martyrology who notwithstanding doubted whether Lucius King of England were the Apostle of Bavaria and Rhetia or some other Holy man named Lucius Whether saith he ad 5. Kal. Jun. it was he that was heretofore King or whatsoever servant of God it was So that the thing was doubted of in Germany it self where Notkerus wrote Notkerius in Martyrologio Sive Rex quondam ille sive quicunque servus Dei fuerit even in Notkerus his time And if it were another Lucius and not the King of England who was Apostle of Bavaria if I mistake not our Authors argument for Englands Authority over Bavaria falls to the ground which
Heresie came late into Britain and was first brought thither by Agricola the Son of a Pelagian Bishop about the time of Pope Celestine for it appears from Bede that Britain was free from that Heresie during the whole time that Innocent and Zosimus were Popes which cannot be thought to proceed from any other Ground than this viz. that they had receiv'd the Decrees of Innocent and Zosimus 6. But when Agricola spread the Pelagian Heresie in Britain the Apostolic See making use of its Authority sent Bishops into Britain whom Britain receiv'd and by their help was not only converted from Heresie in those parts where they were Christians but likewise from Infidelity in the Parts where the Christian Faith was extinguished Indeed Venerable Bede relates Lib. 1. Hist Gentis Anglorum Cap. 17. that the Britains implored the Aid of the French Bishops against the Pelagian Heresie and that Lupus Bishop of Troies and Germanus Bishop of Auxerre came into Britain from France whence our Author Pag. 89. deduces that the Authority of the Roman Church was not acknowledg'd by the Britains But whilst he cites Bede let him also consult that Writer from whom Bede might have borrowed his History viz. St. Prosper who ad Consulatum Florentini Dionysii gives us an account of the Matter of Fact in these Words S. Prosper in Chronico Vid. num XLIV Agricola the Son of Severianus a Pelagian Bishop being himself also a Pelagian corrupted the British Churches by the Insinuation of his Doctrine but Pope Celestine being solieited by Palladius the Deacon sends Germanus Bishop of Auxerre as his Legate and having expell'd the Heretics he instructs the Britains in the Catholic Faith. Thus St. Prosper who for his Age might have seen and spoken with Palladius Deacon to Pope Celestine who was also at Rome under Leo the Great Successor to Celestine and Notary to the said Leo and so might have read in the Registry of the Roman Church the authentic Instrument wherein Germanus was constituted Delegate of the Apostolic See for Britain so that there can be no question made of the Authority of this Fathers Testimony Nor imports it that Bede says Germanus came together with Lupus into this Island at the Instance of the Britains and that they were chosen by the Council of Verolam to dispute with the Pelagians For as Baronius the Parent of Annals rightly observes this doth not at all hinder but that Pope Celestine made Germanus Bishop of Auxerre his Delegate at the Instance of Palladius the Roman Deaconâ— and that Germanus relying upon the Apostolical Authority came to compose the differences of the British Church and went out of his own proper Diocese into the Dioceses of others which as the Monuments of those times inform us was a frequent practice 7. S. Prosper Vid. num XLV Venerab Bâ—da lib. 1. cap. 133. Vid. num XLVI Matthaeus Westmonasteriensis Vid. num XLVII For Prosper relates that two years after the mission of Germanus Antisiodorensis Bassus and Antiochus being Consuls Palladius was ordain'd by Pope Celestine and sent the first Bishop to the Scots who believ'd in Christ Venerable Bede tells us the very same thing lib. 1. cap. 13. asserting at the Eighth year of Theodosius junior that Palladius was the first Bishop that was sent by Celestine Bishop of the Roman Church to the Scots believing in Christ After Palladius Matthaeus Westmonasteriensis mentions St. Patrick as sent by the same Pope in these words Pope Celestine after he had heard of the death of Palladius Theodosius and Valentinian being Emperors sent Patrick to display the Banner of the Holy Cross to the Gentiles who when he came to Britain preach'd the word of God there and was kindly receiv'd by the Inhabitants of that Island Then going into Scotland he preach'd Gods word which could not be restrained Indeed he adds that he was advanced to the degree of a Bishop by Matthew Archbishop and this also might be done by the command of Celestine in the same manner as we shall see anon Augustine was ordain'd by the Bishop of Arles upon the Order of Pope Gregory Moreover Marianus Scotus asserts that St. Patrick was ordain'd Archbishop of Scotland by Celestine and that all Ireland was converted by him for which we have not only the testimony of Sigebert and other foreign Writers but likewise of many English Authors as the Bishop of Armagh hath observ'd p. 838 c. where he cites their testimonies and amongst the rest that of Joceline the Monk who hath placed St. Patricks life at the latter end of the Twelfth Age which Henschenius puts at the 17th day of March and doth not only mention that St. Patrick was created Bishop by Pope Celestine but likewise that he came again to Rome in the time of Pope Hilary to give an account of his mission who Jocelinus in vâ—â—â— S. Patricii Vid. num XLVIII saith he giving him power to act in his stead and constituting him his Legate by the Sanction of his Authority confirm'd all that he had done constituted or settled in Ireland From all which it is clearly proved that the Apostolic See did make use of its Authority in governing the British Churches by its Legates and that Britain did acknowledg this Authority till the Invasion of the Saxons which was after the time of Celestine 8. After that upon the coming of the Saxons into Britain the Churches had been demolished the Altars broken down and the Priests dispersed Gregory the first sent Augustine the Monk to restore the Catholic Religion gone to decay in the chief Provinces under the Tyranny of the Heathen Princes for a long series of years and Britain receiv'd and honour'd him as their Apostle Venerable Bede lib. 7. cap. 28. testifies that Augustine was ordain'd Archbishop of the English Nation by Etherius Archbishop of Arles according to the commands he had received from the Holy Father Gregory Venerab Bede lib. 1. Hist c. 28. Auctor vitae Gregory Magni vide num XLIX Augustine was therefore ordain'd by the command of Gregory the Great because Gregory being the chief Bishop in the whole World presided over those Churches which were long since converted to the true faith as Spelman relates Tomo 1. Conciliorum Angliae ad anum Christi 597. ex vita Gregorii lib. 2. cap. 2. per Bedam conscripta Also at the beginning of the Sixth Age Augustine the first Bishop of Canterbury when he made it his business to restore the Discipline of the English Church consulted Gregory who by vertue of his Apostolical Authority gave Rules according to which the Discipline of the English Church was Established By virtue of this Authority Gregory commanded Augustine to create two Metropolitans the one at London and the other at York together with twenty four Bishops and order'd that they should be subject to Augustine so long as he continued as his Legate All which is a plain evidence that the Bishops exercised a supream