Selected quad for the lemma: faith_n
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A34571
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Roman-Catholick principles in reference to God and the King explained in a letter to a friend and now made publick to shew the connexion between the said principles and the late Popish plot.
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Corker, James Maurus, 1636-1715.; M. B.
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1680
(1680)
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Wing C6303; ESTC R29274
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12,033
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24
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of Heresie or Schism such Dispensation would be vain and null and all Catholick Subjects notwithstanding such Dispensation or Absolution would be still bound in Conscience to defend their King and Countrey at the hazard of their Lives and Fortunes even against the Pope himself in case he should invade the Nation 8. And as for Problematical Disputes or Errors of particular Divines in this or any other matter whatsoever the Catholick Church is no wise responsible for them Nor are Catholicks as Catholicks justly punishable on their Account But 9. As for the King-Killing Doctrine or Murder of Princes Excommunicated for Heresie It is an Article of Faith in the Catholick Church and expresly declared in the General Council of Constance that such Doctrine is Damnable and Heretical being contrary to the known Laws of God and Nature 10. Personal Misdemeanors of what Nature soever ought not to be Imputed to the Catholick Church when not Justifyable by the Tenents of her Faith and Doctrine For which Reason though the Stories of the Paris Massacre the Irish Cruelties Or Powder-Plot had been exactly true which yet for the most part are Notoriously mis-related nevertheless Catholicks as Catholicks ought not to Suffer for such Offences any more then the Eleven Apostles ought to have Suffered for Judas's Treachery 11. It is an Article of the Catholick Faith to believe that no Power on Earth can License Men to Lye to Forswear and Perjure themselves to Massacre their Neighbours or Destroy their Native Country on pretence of promoting the Catholick Cause or Religion Furthermore all Pardons and Dispensations granted or pretended to be granted in order to any such ends or Designs have no other validity or Effect than to add Sacriledge and Blasphemy to the above-mentioned Crimes 12. The Doctrine of Equivocation or Menâ—al Reservation however wrongfully Imposed on the Catholick Religion is notwithstanding neither taught nor approved by the Church as any part of her Belief On the contrary Simplicity and Godly Sincerity are constantly recommended by her as truly Christian Vertues necessary to the Conservation of Justice Truth and Common Society PARAGRAPH III. Of some Particular controverted Points of FAITH 1. EVERY Catholick is obliged to believe that when a Sinner Repenteth him of his Sins from the bottom of his Heart and Acknowledgeth his Transgressions to God and his Ministers the Dispensers of the Mysteries of Christ resolving to turn from his evil ways and bring forth Fruits worthy of Penance there is then and no otherwise an Authority left by Christ to Absolve such a Penitent Sinner from his Sins which Authority Christ gave his Apostles and their Successors the Bishops and Priests of the Catholick Church in those words when he said Receive ye the Holy Ghost whose Sins you shall forgive they are forgiven unto them c. 2. Though no Creature whatsoever can make Condign satisfaction either for the Guilt of Sin or the Pain Eternal due to it This satisfaction being proper to Christ our Saviour only yet penitent Sinners Redeemed by Christ may as Members of Christ in some measure satisfie by Prayer Fasting Alms Deeds and other Works of Piety for the Temporal Pain which by order of Divine Justice sometimes remains due after the guilt of Sin and Pains Eternal are gratis remitted These Penitential Works are notwithstanding satisfactory no otherwise than as joyned and applyed to that satisfaction which Jesus made vpon the Cross in vertue of which alone all our good works find a grateful acceptance in God's Sight 3. The Guilt of Sin or Pain Eternal due to it is never remitted by Indulgences but only such Temporal Punishments as remain due after the Guilt is remitted These Indulgences being nothing else than a Mitigation or Relaxation upon just causes of Canonical Penances enjoyned by the Pastors of the Church on Penitent Sinners according to their several Degrees of Demerit And if any abuses or mistakes be sometimes committed in point either of Granting or Gaining Indulgencies through the Remisness or Ignorance of particular Persons contrary to the ancient Custom and Discipline of the Church such Abuses or Mistakes cannot rationally be charged on the Church nor rendred matter of Derision in prejudice to her Faith and Doctrine 4. Catholicks hold there is a Purgatory that is to say a Place of state where Souls departing this Life with Remission of their Sins as to the Eternal Guilt or Pain yet Obnoxious to some Temporal Punishment still Remaining due or not perfectly freed from the Blemish of some venial Defects or Deordinations as Idle Words c. not liable to Damnation are purged before their Admittance into Heaven where nothing that is defiled can enter Furthermore 5. Catholicks also hold That such Souls so detained in Purgatory being the Living Members of Christ Jesus are Relieved by the Prayers and Suffrages of their Fellow-members here on Earth But where this place is Of what Nature or Quality the Pains are How long each Soul is detained there After what manner the Suffrages made in their behalf are applyed Whether by way of Satisfaction or Intercession c. are Questions Superfluous and Impertinent as to Faith 6. No Man though just can Merit either an Increase of Sanctity or Happiness in this Life or Eternal Glory in the next Independent on the Merits and Passion of Christ Nevertheless in and by the Merits of Christ Jesus the good Work of a just Man proceeding from Grace and Charity are acceptable to God so far forth as to be through his Goodness and Sacred Promise Truly Meritorious of Eternal Life 7. It is an Article of the Catholick Faith That in the most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist there is Truly and Really contained the Body of Christ which was delivered for us and his Bloud which was shed for the Remission of Sins the substance of Bread and Wine being by the powerful Words of Christ changed into the Substance of his Blessed Body and Bloud the Species or Accidents of Bread and Wine still remaining Thus 8. Christ is not present in this Sacrament according to his natural way of Existence that is with extension of parts in order to place c. but after a Supernatural manner one and the same in many places and whole in every part of the Symbols This therefore is a real Substantial yet Sacramental Presence of Christ's Body and Blood not exposed to the external Senses nor Obnoxious to corporeal Contingences 9. Neither is the Body of Christ in this Holy Sacrament Separated from his Bloud or his Bloud from his Body or either of both disjoyned from his Soul and Divinity but all and whole living Jesus is entirely contained under either Species so that
Roman-Catholick PRINCIPLES In Reference to God and the King Explained in a LETTER to a Friend And now made Publick to shew the Connexion between the said PRINCIPLES And the Late POPISH PLOT The Third Edition Revised Matth. 22. v. 21. Render to Caesar the things which are Caesar's and and unto God the things that are God's John 11. v. 48. If we let him thus alone all men will believe on him and the Romans shall come and take away both our Place Nation Printed in the Year 1680. SIR I Find your last as full of Doubts and Inquietudes as your former was of Heat and Zeal Whether meer Compassion hath altered your Judgement or that You Fear your own Turn may be next I cannot tell But I easily percieve You and the greatest part of Honest Thinking Protestants as well as You begin tho late to suspect That Catholicks have Wrongfully Suffered the loss of their Fame their Goods their Fortunes and many their Lives Nor do I wonder to see you touch'd with some Concern at our Miseries For besides the sad Spectacles of Bloodshed which I mention without any Resentment or Disrespect to the Government the Prisons have been filled with Us whole Families Ruined and Exiled poor Widows and Innocent Orphans have Perished through Distress the very Woods and Desarts have not wanted Men Dying with Cold and Hunger And all this upon account of a PLOT Horrid indeed and Detestable in it self but which could never yet be Prov'd against Us by any One Credible Witness or Probable Circumstance evincing the Crime True it is Dr. Oates Captain Bedloe and others of Debauch'd Lives and Desperate Fortunes have Positively Sworn if bare Positive Swearing without any other Probability of Truth may stand for good Evidence to a multiplicity of Particulars But these Men have been and still are so notoriously stigmatiz'd with all sorts of Vice and Infamy Their Oaths have been Confronted with so many Self-contradictions Their Forgeries accompanyed with such Incredible such Impossible Circumstances Their Lies and Fables so stuffed with Absurdities Non-sense and Follies The Crime of Perjury so often and so plainly prov'd against them In short both their Past and Present Villanies are now become so Apparent and Perspicuous that the greatest part of the Nation hath an Abhorrence of Them But You tell me and You are in the right That the Thing which hath rendred Credible the Testimony of otherwise Incredible Witnesses against Us and which hath Invalidated all contrary Evidence given in our behalf is a Persuasion many Protestants have That the Catholick Religion is made up of Traiterous Principles Destructive to Peace and Government You say You have been Inform'd by Common Report by Printed Books Nay by some Ministers in their very Pulpits That Catholicks hold it an Article of Faith to Believe That the POPE can Depose KINGS Absolve their Subjects from their Allegiance and Dispose of Kingdoms to whom He pleases That to Murder Protestants and Destroy the Nation by Fire and Sword for propagation of the Catholick Faith are Works of Piety and Meritorious of Heaven These and the like Horrid Aspersions together with I know not what Feigned Idolatries Superstitions and Abuses are as you have rightly Intimated laid to the Charge of Roman Catholicks whereby to render both their Faith and Persons Odious to many otherwise Well-meaning People who not sufficiently examining the Truth of Things but taking all for granted Judge nothing Ill enough can be said or done against Men so Principled And is it not Strange and Severe That Principles and those pretended of Faith too should be Imposed upon Men which They Themselves Renounce and Detest If the Turk's Alcoran should in like manner be urg'd upon Us and We hang'd up for Mahumetans all we could do or say in such a Case would be patiently to Die with Protestation of our own Innocence And this is the Posture of our present condition We Abhor We Renounce We Abominate such Principles We Protest against them and Seal our Protestations with our Dying Breaths What shall We say What can We do more To Accuse Men as Guilty in Matters of Faith which They never own'd is the same thing as to Condemn them for Matters of Fact which they never did You press the Question and say some of our General Councils several Papal Decrees and many of our Doctors and Divines assert the fore-mentioned Principles Sir I have been Instructed in the Articles of my Faith and I acknowledge the Lawful Authority of General Councils Yet I profess I never learnt or found asserted in any of them any such Principles And I propose unto You this plain and short Dilemma Either the above-named Principles are esteem'd by Us â—â— Matters of Faith or not If they be what further can be required of Us than to Deny and Forsake such a Faith And this We constantly do But if They be not Matters of Catholick Faith nor owned by Us as such why are Catholicks as Catholicks punished for them Why is Our Religion Persecuted on that account Let those in Gods Name if any there be of what Religion soever who hold such Tenents suffer for them Why should the Innocent be Involv'd with the Guilty There is neither Reason nor Justice in it Hereunto some Persons I hope out of Zeal and Misinformation rather than Malice stick not to say That Dispensations and I know not what Indulgences and Pardons wereby to Legitimate the Crimes of Lying and Forswearing when the Interest of our Church requires is a main part of our Religion And by Consequence the Denyal of our Principles is no sufficient Justification of our Innocence I answer First It is in the highest measure Censorious in any one to Impose upon all Our Ancesters and the greatest part of Mankind who are or have been Members of our Religion such an Excess of Folly and Wickedness as must needs have perverted all Humane Society Secondly If We could Lawfully Deny the Principles of our Faith when Interest requires Why have We lost Our Estates Our Liberties Our Lives for the Profession of it To what purpose are Oaths and Tests devised to intangle Us How Impertinently is the frequenting the Protestant Church and Receiving the Communion proposed unto Us and Refused by Vs Thirdly Though many Men may be induced to Lie and Forswear when they have some Hopes or Prospect thereby of Temporal Advantage Yet that Persons Dying for their Conscience and Religion as divers have done and those no Fools even by the Confession of our Adversaries should be so stupendiously Sottish and Mad either to imagine that Lies and Perjuries for concealment of Treason Murder Massacre and Destruction of others by Fire and Sword should be Acts of Virtue pleasing to God Dispensable by the Pope and Meritorious of Heaven Or that on the contrary Knowing and Believing as needs They must such Monsters and Horrours to be Odious and Detestable in the sight both of God