Selected quad for the lemma: faith_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
faith_n	church_n	scripture_n	tradition_n	15,184	5	9.5685	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A52613	A letter of resolution concerning the doctrines of the Trinity and the Incarnation	Nye, Stephen, 1648?-1719.	1691 (1691)	Wing N1507B; ESTC R217844	25,852	20

Mary is the Mother of GOD so that Conclusion was the Cause of the idololatrical Worship and Invocation of her by the far greater part of Christians even by all Catholicks so called and by the whole Eastern Church 3. After Mary was worshipp'd and prayed to it soon became the Custom to pray also to the Apostles and Martyrs and afterwards to other Saints and reputed Saints For if Mary who confessedly was but a Woman and a Saint though she was Mother of GOD can help us by her Intercession Why may not others who were perhaps as great Saints as she 4. The Practice of worshipping Holy Mary and other Saints had been but a little while received in the Churches but it occasioned the Worship of their Images and Pictures For if the Saints are to be worshipp'd then so too are their Images and Pictures with a relative Worship that is for the sake of those whom they represent and so that the Worship ultimately terminates not in the Image but in the Saint Even as the Royal Chair or Throne is worshipp'd for the King's sake though he be absent 5. The Question about the Worship of Images was long contested in the Church Those that stood for that Worship thought it a very heinous Disrespect to our Saviour that no Honour should be shown to his Picture or Image no more than if it were the Image or Picture of an Heathen God And this was a very common Argument and Allegation against the Opposers of Image-Worship In answer to this the Fathers of the 7th General Council anno 754 said There is but one Image or Representation of the Lord Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Bread given to us in the Sacrament This Council consisted of 380 Fathers But the contrary Party at length prevailed and it was concluded both for the having and worshipping of Images and by way of Support thereto that the Sacrament is not the Sign Image or Representation of Christ but true and very Christ the Bread and Wine after the Words of the Consecration though they agree not which are the Words of Consecration being turned into the the real Body and Blood of Christ 'T is true the Greeks used not the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Transubstantiation till within this 300 Years but they used equivalent words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and such like If any Wonder that such absurd and contradictory Doctrines as the Transubstantiation and the real Presence met with so little Opposition in the Greek and Latin Churches such an one may make these two Reflections First that those Churches were led as it were by the Hand to those Doctrines by certain Consequences from the Doctrines of the Trinity and Incarnation thus There is a Trinity of Divine Persons one of these was incarnate in the Womb of the Virgin she is thereupon the Mother of GOD if the Son of GOD is undoubtedly to be worshipp'd then so too is the Mother of GOD if Holy Mary then others who were as much Saints as she if Christ and the Saints then for their Sakes their Images also which are Signs of them But Christ hath appointed the Sacramental Elements as the only Signs of his Body This is a Difficulty indeed Therefore to defend Image-Worship we will say the Sacrament is not the Sign but the very Body of Christ GOD-MAN Secondly it may be farther considered that these Churches having already swallowed so many palpable Contradictions to Reason Scripture and first Antiquity in the Doctrines of the Trinity and Incarnation they now stuck at nothing It became now the Note and Mark of an Heretick to talk of Absurdities and Contradictions in any Doctrine whatsoever and the Character of a Catholick or Orthodox Person if one had no regard at all to such things but only to help forward the Humour and Current of Superstition that is to believe incredible Tales about the Saints and monstrous Opinions concerning GOD and the Sacraments of the Church 6. That the Holy Scriptures are not a a compleat Rule not sufficient to direct our Faith and Practice without the Aid and Help of the Churches Tradition all know is one of the Errors of the Roman Catholicks and which they could never yet be perswaded to give up Ask them what ground they have for such an Opinion They answer as one Man 'T is notorious and undeniable that the principal Articles of the Christian Faith the Trinity and Incarnation cannot be proved by only Scripture They profess openly and ingenuously that the Vnitarians have certainly beaten all their Opposers at those two Weapons mere Scripture and Reason 7. Another Birth of the Trinitarian Doctrines is the Papal Indulgences with all that Merchandize of Souls that has followed upon them First and by way of Foundation it is supposed that the Lord Christ is GOD as well as Man and that he being GOD incarnate in our Nature his Righteousness and Sufferings must needs be of infinite Value Next it is held that the Sufferings of Christ who is GOD-MAN and of the Saints are the Treasure which he hath given to the Church which Treasure is to be dispensed by his Vicar even the Pope or Bishop of Rome The Dispensations of this Treasure to particular Persons by the Pope himself or those who are by him authorized are called Indulgences and have been bought at mighty Rates by those who thought they had need of them either for themselves or their dead Friends 8. The last of their Paradoxes which I shall now mention and which is common to all Trinitarians and is by their own Confession a necessary Consequence of the Incarnation is their Doctrine of the Satisfaction The Holy Scriptures say Almighty God of his Grace and Goodness doth pardon our Sins on the Conditions of Faith and Repentance on our Parts The Scriptures are so express in ascribing our Pardon and Deliverance from Hell and Damnation to the Mercy and Grace of GOD forgiving us that Trinitarians dare not directly deny it so to be but then because they pretend that GOD was incarnate and suffered in our stead they are forced to this Conclusion That God hath freely pardoned and yet was infinitely overpaid for all our Transgressions and Sins That of his mere Grace the Abundance and Riches of his Grace he will pardon and save the Penitent because he hath received for them a Price of Redemption able to redeem as many Worlds as he is pleased to pardon or save particular Sinners These are the Branches growing upon the Trinitarian Stock these the Fruits of that Tree But such as the Fruits or Consequences of these Doctrines have been such also was their Original and Extraction as we shall see in the next which is our sixth Reason or Exception against them They are of Paganick or Heathen Descent and Original and were introduced into the Church by the Platonick Philosophers when they came over to Christianity One of our Disputes with the Trinitarians is concerning the Original of these Doctrines from