Selected quad for the lemma: earth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
earth_n	apostle_n	heaven_n	loose_v	2,492	5	10.3143	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67435	The controversial letters, or, The grand controversie concerning the pretended temporal authority of popes over the whole earth, and the true sovereign of kings within their own respective kingdoms : between two English gentlemen, the one of the Church of England, the other of the Church of Rome ...	Walsh, Peter, 1618?-1688.	1674 (1674)	Wing W631; ESTC R219375	334,631	426

Iconoclast I value them not Thus then stood things in the vvorld when Hildebrand Archdeacon of the Church of Rome was chosen to the Papacy in the year 1083 and called Gregory the VIIth The Contests which in his daies began betwixt the Spiritual and Civil Power are the reason I suppose why he is so differently represented by those who vvrite of him His Enemies give him the Character of an Imperious Tyrannical and several waies Wicked Man his Friends on the other side praise him as much and affirm he was a man of great Prudence and Vertue and so far that it hath been attested by several Miracles And for my own part I must confess I incline to believe well of him For he had been the support of the Papacy during the time of several Popes his Parts and Industry having drawn upon him the greatest weight of all business and was so far from aspiring to that dignity that if Baronius say true He treated with the Emperour not to consent to his Election assuring him before hand that if he did He would be very severe against the Abuses practic'd in his Court. Besides if Sigonius may be believ'd and the passages he relates vvhich can hardly be read vvithout horrour the Emperour was a very Wicked Man but that which concerns this matter was That all Benefices were with all the Licentiousness of a depraved Court expos'd to sale and He that could Fee a Courtier was vvithout Merit or even Capacity possest of the most considerable Preferments of the Church As this vvas a mischief palpably destructive to all Goodness so 't is not incredible from the irregularity of a debauch'd Court. And if the Pope desir'd to have it remedied the end he propos'd was but what became him if the means had been so too I am the more inclin'd to believe this true because the Germans in a great measure took part with the Pope forct the Emperour to comply and after several Traverses at last took the Crown from him and plac'd it on his Son However it were the Emperour notwithstanding the Popes Remonstrances gives consent to the Election and confirms him and the Pope was as good as his word And first Excommunicates those who should receive Investitures of Benefices from Laymen afterwards the Laymen who should grant them and lastly provok'd by the Emperour who in a Synod at Wormes had forbidden Obedience to him Excommunicates and deposes the Emperour himself And this i● the first unquestionable Example of this kind which has appear'd in the Christian World Bellarmin indeed and his Followers would make us believe there are Examples more Ancient but in my opinion he proves them not well and you see Onuphrius counts them but Fables and those of that Age at least those vvho favoured the Emperour exclaim'd against it as a Novelty unheard of not to call it Heresie as one faies But though the thing were now done it appears not yet in vertue of what Power 't was done As that Age was not I think extraordinary subtle the distinctions of Direct and Indirect Power were not yet found out and the Pope himself speaks in common That the care of the Christian World and Authority to bind and loose was committed to him confiding in the Judgment and Mercy of God and Patronage of the B. Virgin and supported by the Authority of SS Peter and Paul c. but descends not to particulars So that it appears not whether he acted in vertue of a Spiritual or Temporal Power Directly or Indirectly and 't is likely he speculated not so far One thing is pretty remarkable in his second Sentence for he made two which ends in this manner After he had commanded all concerned to withdraw their Obedience from Henry and yield it to Rudolphus speaking as he does all along to the Apostles SS Peter and Paul You then See the words in Platina saies he most holy Princes of the Apostles confirm what I have said by your Authority that all men at last may understand if you can bind and loose in Heaven we likewise on Earth may give and take away Empires Kingdoms Principalities and whatever mortals can have Let Kings and all Princes of the World understand by his Example what you can do in Heaven and what power you have with God and hereafter fear to contemn the commands of the Holy Church And shew this Judgment upon Henry quickly that all Sons of Iniquity may perceive that he falls from his Kingdom not by chance but by your means This nevertheless I desire from you that by Repentance he may at your request find favour of our Lord at the day of Judgment For my part I cannot imagine but a man who speaks thus must needs mean uprightly and think at least he does well Notwithstanding the Apostles did not do as he desir'd them For this Rudulphus after he had fought twice upon equal terms with the Emperour was overthrown in the third Battle and so wounded in the right hand that he dy'd of it and dy'd full of Repentance and acknowledgment of his own fault and the Justice of God who had deservedly punisht him in that hand with which he had formerly sworn Fealty and Service to his Lord. So that though I believe the Pope thought himself much in the right yet the Court of Heaven thought not fit to grant his Request but ordered things quite contrary to his expectation and desire The next famous Example is of Frederic the IId a Prince of great Power and Parts who falling out with several Popes as resolute as himself after several breaches at several times made up and several Sentences publisht and recall'd and renew'd again was at last with the astonishment and horrour of all present saies M. Paris solemnly Excommunicated and depos'd in the Councel of Lions And this made both Princes and Prelates begin to look about them foreseeing that if this deposing Power should go on a slight Pretence might at last serve turn to unthrone perhaps an Innocent Man and bring the vvorld into confusion which possibly was the cause the Popes Sentence was not executed For this Frederic notwithstanding those proceedings kept the Empire till his death which happened long after But still I see not any ground to judge whether the Power were yet thought Direct or Indirect and in likelyhood People had in common a great Veneration for the Supream Pastour and his Decrees and thought them wicked men vvho submitted not to them but what kind of Power he had and hovv far it extended as far as I can perceive they little considered 'T is observable both in this Sentence and the former of Gregory VII that the Emperour is first Deposed and afterwards Excommunicated in aggravation as it were of the former Penalty The business was a little more discust in the Contests betwixt Boniface the VIIIth and Philip the Fair of France As this Pope is Recorded for a man of more mettle than Vertue his proceedings were

only such as are propos'd for Faith This being admitted as it is universally the difficulty is plainly answered For 't is as plain as can be that here is nothing propos'd for Faith The Emperor is depos'd his deposition is that which is decreed and that is propos'd as a thing to be done not believed To depose is one thing to define they have power to depose is another Had they made such a Decree and obliged all Christians under Anathema to believe it had been to purpose to alledg it But as far as I can learn there was no thought of any such thing in the Council Now for Acting People may act and sometimes very rationally upon probable grounds and such as none are bound to believe And they may have very good grounds for acting in one case which themselves may not think sufficient in another It is very unreasonable out of a particular action to conclude a power which shall extend to all cases when from the bare action there is no necessity of believing a power even in that case The most that can be made of it is that the Council suppos'd or took for granted they had power to do what they did And it may be they had For the Emperor had sworn particularly to stand to the Judgment of the Church He pleaded in this Council by his Procurators who when they saw things go against them made no exception to the Jurisdiction of the Court but appeal'd to a future Council more general pretending all were not present who had right to sit there But why may not a Council take for granted more then every body is obliged to grant This supposition of theirs was undoubtedly one of the Reasons of their Decree And Bellarmin assures us we are not bound to believe any of their reasons So that for his particular he had no reason to expect this Decree should cause belief in any But whether he had or no this is plain without him That where there is nothing to be believ'd there can be no belief and where there is nothing in his languag propos'd for Faith there is nothing to be believ'd Here is something commanded but nothing defin'd and as sure as no Mass no hundred Mark no Definition no Article of Faith Wherefore I cannot sufficiently wonder to see learned men lay so blindly about them some with great formality citing the Council and heightning its authority by reckoning up the number and quality of those who met there others striving to diminish it by consulting Historians and carefully observing all exceptions they afford when all this while the Authority of it neither applys it self nor can be applyed to the matter in hand For t is evident they defined nothing one way or other and afford us no more then a bare matter of fact past indeed in or by a Council but whatever be true or whether the Fact were just or unjust our belief is not a jot concern'd and this even by the confession of those who most urg the Council The Fate of eager Disputers is upon us with much ado we are where we were again and must either be taught this Doctrine by Decrees which teach nothing or which neither are nor were intended for teaching Decrees or not to be taught it all as far as I perceive For this is the sum total of his ten Councils His fourth and last Argument is He says from Scripture and if you will pardon a scurvy pun t is indeed very far from it so far that one would not readily perceive what Scripture has to do with it As tedious as it is to transcribe I must submit to the pains of setting down and you to the patience of reading his whole Discourse for fear I should be suspected of wronging it by contracting Fourthly says he We prove it from the divine writings as Greg. 7 proves it in 21 Epistle of the 8 Book For we find the Ecclesiastical Primacy of the Bishop of Rome most manifestly founded on Scripture and Tradition in which Primacy is contained most ample Power of governing binding and loosing whomsoever even Kings and Emperors and this neither Barclay nor any Catholick denies But out of this principle is gathered plainly enough that there is in the Bishop of Rome a power to dispose of temporals even to the deposition of those Kings and Emperors For by that spiritual Power the Pope can bind secular Princes by the bond of excommunication by the same he can loose the people from their Oath of Fidelity and Obedience he can oblige the same People under pain of Excommunication not to obey the excommunicated King and chuse them another Besides since the end of spiritual government is the gaining eternal life which is the supream and last end to which all other ends are subordinate of necessity all secular Power must be subject and subordinate to the spiritual power of the supream Ecclesiastical Hierarch which secular power he is to direct and if it deviate correct and judge and in fine bring to pass that it hinder not the salvation of Christian people And this is the reason why both Greg. 7 and Innocent 4. when they depos'd Emperors to shew they did it justly alledg'd the words of our Lord Whatever you shall bind on Earth shall be bound in Heaven and whatever you shall loose on Earth shall be loosed in Heaven Mat. 16. And feed my Sheep Jo. 21. namely to signify that their power to dispose of temporals when the salvation of souls the safety of Religion and preservation of the Church require it depends not on the uncertain opinions of men but the divine Ordination of Christ the eternal King and highest Bishop and who above all is God blessed for ever according to the Apostle Rom. 11. This is every word of what he calls proof from Scripture if you or any else think it so you shall find me reasonable But indeed it sticks with me Let us see The Ecclesiastical Primacy of the Pope says he is founded in Scripture and Tradition and this Primacy extends to Kings and Emperors and contains most ample power of governing binding and loosing and this no Catholick denies Very well and because I must acknowledg my self a Catholick I must acknowledg I think it all very true Thus far we are right Only I take this most ample Power to mean no more then most ample Ecclesiastical power for that is all which Ecclesiastical Primacy imports which Ecclesiastical Power that it extends to Kings and Emperors no King nor Emperor who acknowledges the Ecclesiastical Primacy scruples to admit For they take themselves to be part of the flock of Christ and claim their share in the benefit of the Keys as well as others But out of this Principle says he the deposing Power is plainly gathered The Controversy sure will quickly be at an end now Scripture is acknowledged on all hands and what is plainly there or may be plainly deduc'd from thence will find a ready