Selected quad for the lemma: faith_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
faith_n	catholic_n	church_n	unity_n	4,815	5	9.7580	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A52706	A letter from a gentleman in the city to a gentleman in the country, about the odiousness of persecution wherein the rise and end of the penal laws for religion in this kingdom, are consider'd : occasioned by the late rigorous proceedings against sober dissenters, by certain angry justices in the country.	A. N.; Penn, William, 1644-1718.	1687 (1687)	Wing N3; Wing L1388A_CANCELLED; ESTC R9450	23,013	34

for Matters meerly of Religion and in particular For meeting together meerly for matter of Religion Doubtless their Answer would have been given with one general Voice That it was not Lawful and that it was against the Rule of Christ and the Law of Nature Quod Tibi non vis fieri Alteri non feceris Do not unto another what thou wouldst not have done unto thy self And that true it is the Jews who Persecuted the Lord of Life and put him to Death for matter of meer Religion did alledge for their Justification That they had a Law and that by their Law he ought to Dye But that that Law and all Laws of that Nature were against the Law of God And that the Christians had no such custom nor the Churches of Christ is I think a most undeniable thing These Ages by the Agreement of all were esteemed the purest Ages of Christianity Religion being then most Pure when the Professors of it were most Poor And if any one shall conceive that the Christians of those Ages would have given any other Answer contrary to what I have here framed for them and shall give a convincing Reason for such his Apprehension I shall confess my mistake In the mean time I must say That I cannot see what other answer they could have given but what must have justified the Persecutions against themselves to have been innocent on the part of the Persecutors who believed those first Christians to Err in Religion and to be Disturbers of the Peace and Government of their Countries and their Meetings to be unlawful Assemblies And much more Innocent on the part of the inferiour Magistrates who took care to put those Laws in Execution they being as much obliged in all civil Respects to put in Execution the Laws of their Superiours as our Inferiour Magistrates are obliged to the Execution of our Laws and they gave the same Reasons And the same is to be said in the Case of the Persecution of our Lord Christ as seems very clear from that Prayer which he offered for his Persecutors Father forgive them they know not what they do here then is a Principle of Christianity undivided In the next place We are to consider Christianity in England when divided only into two distinct Parties viz. Protestants and Papists and when the Protestants had made a Sub division amongst themselves here This I take to be in the times of K. Hen. 8. K. Edw. 6. Q. Mary and part of the Reign of Q. Elizabeth for though there were diversities of Opinions amongst Protestants as well here as in other Countries even in the first beginnings yet they were not divided into Parties being every-where upon the Defensive In the time of K. Hen. 8. which I intend to instance in both Parties were persecuted The Case stands thus That King at his coming to the Crown found the whole Nation in a quiet possession of Popery and holding it as an Article of their Faith and the Principle whereon they believed the Unity of their Faith depended that The Pope was the Supream Pastor and visible Head of Government next under Christ of the Catholick Church of Christ of which the then national-National-Church of England was a Member The King had defended this Article by Writing so vigorously against M. Luther that the Pope had for that very work conferred upon him the Title of Defender of the Faith to be enjoyed and used by him and his Successors for ever After this by Act of Parliament this Supream Pastor this Visible Head was thrown off and this King put in his place so far as concerned the Church of England by the Title of Supream Head of the Church of England annexed to the Crown and this by a Law 26 Hen. 8. C. 1. And then by another Law 26 Hen. 8. C. 13. it was Enacted That if any by Word or Writing should attempt to Deprive the King of the Title of His Royal Estate he should be adjudged a Traytor This change of the Headship of the Church was and is truly at least in England a Protestant Doctrine and undoubtedly there is no Protestant whatsoever but approves the casting off the Popes Headship as conformable with the Doctrine of Protestants And upon the latter of these two Laws divers suffered Death for their denying the Kings Supremacy This was the first step made in England from Popery towards Protestancy And the Vigorous Execution of this latter Law encouraged several Protestants from Forreign parts to come into England not doubting but to have a Liberty to Exercise their Religion here and it gave confidence to many of the Subjects of England to receive and to others to entertain good thoughts of Protestancy being perswaded that after the shedding of so much Blood as had been shed here upon that Occasion England would never any more admit of the Article of the Popes Supremacy and consequently would every day make greater steps from that Church of which the Pope was owned to be the Supream Pastor And certain it is that Protestancy upon this Occasion also made its entrance into England and gained Ground here and such if not by open application to the King for that purpose yet at least in their Hearts desired a Toleration and to be admitted to Preach and Exercise their Religion here without being Persecuted for their so doing so that their Principle was at that time at least against Persecution for meer Religion But Protestancy being now taken notice of to grow another Law was made 31 Hen. 8. for setling unity of Opinion in the six Articles therein named by which the denyal of Transubstantiation and several other Doctrines therein named are Enacted to be punished with Death And now Persecution in England for matters of meer Religion grew sharp and high so that it is observed by our Historians that upon one and the same day some who were Professed Papists were put to Death for denying the Kings Supremacy which was a Protestant Article And some who were professed Protestants were put to death for denying Transubstantiation which was an Article of the Papists So that at this time the Government could neither be said to be Popish nor Protestant but both Parties were Persecuted most severely for matters of meer Religion And he who should then have said to either Party in justification of the Proceedings of the Magistrate in the Execution of either of those Laws That that Party did not then suffer for any matter of meer Religion but for breaking of the Peace in breaking of the King's Laws would certainly have been taken not to have understood those Laws or the cause of their then Suffering And now suppose each of these Parties separately interrogated when thus under Persecution for Afflictio dat intellectum Is it lawful to Persecute and to make and Execute Laws for the Inflicting of Pains and Penalties upon quiet and peaceable People for matters of meer Religion for it seemed a time to teach both Parties an