Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	catholic_n	church_n	communion_n	6,739	5	9.8919	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A61568	The mischief of separation a sermon preached at Guild-Hall Chappel, May 11. MDCLXXX. being the first Sunday in Easter-term, before the Lord Mayor, &c. / by Edw. Stillingfleet ...	Stillingfleet, Edward, 1635-1699.	1680 (1680)	Wing S5604_VARIANT; ESTC R35206	32,588	67

is no sin 2. That a State of Separation would be a sin but notwithstanding their meeting in different places yet they are not in a state of Separation And herein lies the whole strength of the several Pleas at this day made use of to justifie the Separate Congregations both which I shall now examine 1. Some plead that it is true they have distinct and separate Communions from us but it is no sin or culpable separation so to have For say they Our Lord Christ instituted only Congregational Churches or particular Assemblies for Divine Worship which having the sole Church power in themselves they are under no obligation of Communion with other Churches but only to preserve Peace and Charity with them And to this doctrine others of late approach so near that they tell us that to devise new species of Churches beyond Parochial or Congregational without Gods Authority and to impose them on the world yea in his name and call all Dissenters Schismaticks is a far worse usurpation than to make or impose new Ceremonies or Liturgies Which must suppose Congregational Churches to be so much the Institution of Christ that any other Constitution above these is both unlawful and insupportable Which is more than the Independent Brethren themselves do assert But to clear the practice of Separation from being a sin on this account two things are necessary to be done 1. To prove that a Christian hath no obligation to external Communion beyond a Congregational Church 2. That it is lawful to break off Communion with other Churches to set up a particular independent Church 1. That a Christian hath no obligation to external Communion beyond a particular Congregational Church They do not deny that men by Baptism are admitted into the Catholick visible Church as Members of it and that there ought to be a sort of Communion by mutual Love among all that belong to this Body and to do them Right they declare that they look upon the Church of England or the Generality of the Nation professing Christianity to be as sound and healthful a part of the Catholick Church as any in the World But then they say Communion in ordinances must be only in such Churches as Christ himself instituted by unalterable Rules which were only particular and Congregational Churches Granting this to be true how doth it hence appear not to be a sin to separate from our Parochial Churches which according to their own concessions have all the Essentials of true Churches And what Ground can they have to separate and divide those Churches which for all that we can see are of the same nature with the Churches planted by the Apostles at Corinth Philippi or Thessalonica But I must needs say further I have never yet seen any tolerable proof that the Churches planted by the Apostles were limited to Congregations It is possible at first there might be no more Christians in one City than could meet in one Assembly for Worship but where doth it appear that when they multiplied into more Congregations they did make new and distinct Churches under new Officers with a Separate Power of Government Of this I am well assured there is no mark or footstep in the New Testament or the whole History of the Primitive Church I do not think it will appear credible to any considerate man that the 5000 Christians in the Church of Ierusalem made one stated and fixed Congregation for divine Worship not if we make all the allowances for strangers which can be desired but if this were granted where are the unalterable Rules that assoon as the company became too great for one particular Assembly they must become a new Church under peculiar Officers and an independent Authority It is very strange that those who contend so much for the Scriptures being a perfect Rule of all things pertaining to Worship and Discipline should be able to produce nothing in so necessary a Point If that of which we read the clearest instances in Scripture must be the Standard of all future Ages much more might be said for limiting Churches to private families than to particular Congregations For do we not read of the Church that was in the House of Priscilla and Aquila at Rome of the Church that was in the House of Nymphas at Colosse and in the House of Philemon at Laodicea Why then should not Churches be reduced to particular Families when by that means they may fully enjoy the Liberty of their Consciences and avoid the scandal of breaking the Laws But if notwithstanding such plain examples men will extend Churches to Congregations of many Families why may not others extend Churches to those Societies which consist of many Congregations Especially considering that the Apostles when they instituted Churches did appoint such Officers in them as had not barely a respect to those already converted but to as many as by their means should be added to the Church as Clemens affirms in his Epistle The Apostles saith he went about in Cities and Countries preaching the Gospel and appointed their First-fruits having made a spiritual trial of them for Bishops and Deacons 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of those who were to believe From hence the number of Converts were looked on as an accession to the Original Church and were under the care and Government of the Bishop and Presbyters who were first settled there For although when the Churches increased the occasional meetings were frequent in several places yet still there was but one Church and one Altar and one Baptistry and one Bishop with many Presbyters assisting him And this is so very plain in Antiquity as to the Churches planted by the Apostles themselves in several parts that none but a great stranger to the History of the Church can ever call it in question I am sure Calvin a person of great and deserved reputation among our Brethren looks upon this as a matter out of dispute among learned men that a Church did not only take in the Christians of a whole City but of the adjacent Country too and the contrary opinion is a very novel and late fancy of some among us and hath not age enough to plead a Prescription It is true after some time in the greater Cities they had distinct places allotted and Presbyters fixed among them and such allotments were called Titles at Rome and Laurae at Alexandria and Parishes in other places but these were never thought then to be new Churches or to have any independent Government in themselves but were all in subjection to the Bishop and his College of Presbyters of which multitudes of examples might be brought from most authentick Testimonies of Antiquity if a thing so evident needed any proof at all And yet this distribution even in Cities was so uncommon in those elder times that Epiphanius takes notice of it as an extraordinary thing at Alexandria and therefore it is probably supposed there was no

fiercest condenders about them and such eager Disputants are fitter to make quarrels than to end them for they can be contentious for Peace-sake and make new differences about the ways of Unity Wisdom and Sobriety a good judgement a prudent temper and freedom from prejudice will tend more to end our differences than warm Debates and long Disputations which as Greg. Nazianzen said once of Councils seldom have had any good end But there is a more fiery sort of zeal and more dangerous than this which may lie smothering for a time till it meets with suitable matter and a freer vent and then it breaks out into a dreadful flame This we have already seen such dismal effects of in this age that we should think there were less need to give men caution against it again were it not to be feared that where Reason connot prevail Experience will not All that we can say to such persons that may be like to move them is that if their blind zeal transport them as it did Sampson to pull down the House over their Heads they will be sure to perish themselves in the fall of it but here will lie the great difference of the case while they and their Friends perish together the Philistims without will rejoyce to make others the instruments to execute their designs 2. Not to be always complaining of their hardships and Persecutions as though no People had suffered so much since the days of Dioclesian whereas the severity of Laws hath been tempered with so much gentleness in the execution of them that others have as much complained of Indulgence as they of Persecution It doth not look like the Patience and Humility and Meekness of the Primitive Christians to make such noise and outcries of their suffering so much when they would have been rather thankful that they suffered no more Is this the way to Peace to represent their case still to the world in an exasperating and provoking manner Is this the way to incline their Governours to more condescension to represent them to the People as an Ithacian persecuting Party Where are the Priscillians that have been put to death by their instigation What do such insinuations mean but that our Bishops are the followers of Ithacius and Idacius in their cruelty and they of the good and meek Bishop S. Martin who refused Communion with them on that account If men do entertain such kind thoughts of themselves and such hard thoughts of their Superiors whatever they plead for they have no inclination to Peace 3. Not to condemn others for that which themselves have practised and think to be lawful in their own cases What outcries have some made against the Church of England as Cruel and Tyrannical for expecting and requiring Uniformity And yet do not such men even at this day contend for the Obligation of a Covenant which binds men to endeavour after uniformity in Doctrine Discipline and Worship But they want the ingenuity of Adonibezek to reflect on the Thumbs and the Toes which they have cut off from others and think themselves bound to do it again if it were in their power Who could have been thought more moderate in this way than those who went upon the principles of the dissenting Brethren And yet we are assured that even in New England when their own Church-way was by Law established among them they made it no less than Banishment for the Anabaptists to set up other Churches among them or for any secretly to seduce others from the Approbation and use of Infant-baptism And how they have since proceeded with the Quakers is very well known Nay even these notwithstanding the single Independency of every mans light within him have found it necessary to make Rules and Orders among themselves to govern their Societies to which they expect an uniform Obedience and allow no Liberty out of the Power and the Truth as they love to speak From all which it appears the true Controversie is not about the Reasonableness of Uniformity but who shall have the Power of prescribing the Rules of it Is it not now a very hard case that the Church of England must be loaded with bitter reproaches and exposed to the common hatred of all Parties for the sake of that which every one of them would practise if it were in their Power and think it very justifiable so to do 4. Not to inflame the Peoples heats by making their differences with the Church of England to appear to be greater than they are Let them deal honestly and faithfully with them by letting them understand that they look on our Churches as true Churches and occasional Communion at least with them to be lawful and it is hard to understand if occasional Communion be lawful that constant Communion should not be a Duty This were the way to abate mens great prejudices and to soften their Spirits and to prepare them for a closer Union But if instead of this they endeavour to darken and confound things and cast mists before their eyes that they cannot see their way clear before them all understanding men will conclude they prefer some little interests of their own before the honour of Christ and the Peace of his Church 5. Not to harb●● or foment unreasonable jealousies and suspicions in Peoples minds concerning us This hath been one of the most successful arts of keeping up the distance and prejudices that have been so great among us viz. by private whispers by false suggestions by idle stories by unreasonable interpretation of words beyond the intention and design of those who spake them By such devices as these great mischief hath been done among us and I am much afraid is doing still For nothing sets men at a greater distance from our Church than the apprehending that we are not hearty and sincere in the Protestant Cause which although it be a most groundless and malicious calumny yet there have been some who have had so little regard to Conscience or common ingenuity as not only to charge particular Persons but our Church it self with Marching towards Popery What injustice what uncharitableness what impudence is it to fasten such an imputation upon a Church that hath hitherto continued and long may it do so the chief Bulwark of the Protestant Cause Little do such persons consider how much they serve the design of our enemies who cannot but be mightily pleased to find their most formidable adversaries represented to the People as their Secret Friends 6. Not to run the hazard of all for a shew of greater Liberty to themselves For under this pretence our Adversaries endeavour to make them their Instruments to bring upon our Necks 〈◊〉 Yoke which neither we nor our Fathers were able to bear An universal Toleration is that Trojan Horse which brings in our enemies without being seen and which after a long Siege they hope to bring in at last under the pretence of setting our Gates wide enough