Selected quad for the lemma: friend_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A60240
|
The critical history of the religions and customs of the eastern nations written in French by the learned Father Simon ; and now done into English, by A. Lovell ...; Histoire critique de la creance et de coutumes des nations du Levant. English
|
Simon, Richard, 1638-1712.; Lovell, Archibald.
|
1685
(1685)
|
Wing S3797; ESTC R39548
|
108,968
|
236
|
Constantinople against the Jesuits and Court of Rome was chosen Patriarch and for the space of five or six Months after made nothing appear in his Actions that might give any sign of Defection from the Religion of his fore-Fathers But seeing he had the Jesuits for Enemies he thought himself obliged to declare for the Hollanders that he might be seconded by them he engaged also in his party a considerable Number of Bishops and Churchmen who relished his opinions and were in the same Disposition as he was to introduce Novelties into the Greek Church But they were not the Stronger because the Jesuits who have a College at Constantinople where they teach the Youth Gratis easily gained the People who made an Insurrection against Cyrill The Greeks held an Assembly in the year 1622. wherein he was deposed from his Patriarchate and banished to the Isle of Rhodes Another Patriarch was chosen in his Place who by Letters submitted himself to the court of Rome that had forwarded his Election But seeing Cyrill still entertained a Party in Constantinople and that the Dutch supplied him with great Summs of Money it was not long before he was restored to his Patriarchate Then it was that he revenged himself on the Jesuits and those who had espoused the Interests of the Court of Rome and that Calvinism reigned at Constantinople This brought great Disorders into that Church for Cyrill set every thing to sale that he might pay the Money which he had borrowed of the Dutch The Jesuits and Court of Rome finding that Cyrill had absolutely got the better on 't endeavoured to gain him by proposing terms of accommodation and representing to him the danger of his Church if he continued those Intrigues with the Calvinists He seemed to be very willing to embrace an accommodation but seeing he still continued his Practices with the Dutch the Court of Rome made a fresh attempt to turn him out of his Chair which succeeded but for a very short time because the Dutch Money soon recalled him again to his Patriarchate The Court of Rome doubling their efforts against Cyrill sent one to Constantinople in Quality of Vicar of the Patriarch for maintaining the Orthodox Faith in that Church which seemed to be upon the brink of Ruine Cyrill's Party failed not to lay hold on that occasion to render the Jesuits and their Party odious to the Turks who were jealous of that Envoy of Rome Insomuch that he was very ill used by the Turks and Cyrill cruelly revenged himself on all the Greeks whom he thought to be his Enemies Nevertheless he rendered himself so odious by his great vexations and had so powerfull a Party as the Jesuits of Constantinople seconded by the Court of Rome to deal with that he at length fell and was strangled by express Orders from the Grand Signior This is the History of the Patriarch Cyrillus Lucaris in whose Name the Huguenots Printed a Confession of Faith boasting that they agreed in Opinions with the Greek Church But with the glance of an Eye one may judge what kind of a Confession of Faith it is It is true it was written by a Patriarch of Constantinople with the Title of The Belief of the Eastern Church but it was not written in name of that Church nor hath it any publick approbation Cyrill gave it privately to the Dutch Ambassadour whose assistance he needed to defend him against the Jesuits of Constantinople That work of Cyrill's is much like the Book that is said to have been made by William Postel for a Nun whom he perswaded that he might squeeze a little Money from her that the Messiah came into the world onely for Men and that she Lady Jean was to be the Messiess of the Women There is as much likelyhood of truth in that Confession of Cyrill's that went under the name of the Greek Church as there is in the Impostures of that famous Normand William Postel and I wonder that Protestants should still dare to object to Catholicks that pretended Confession Grotius gave a better Judgment of it in a Book that he published some time after that Confession came abroad in the word wherein he frankly says (1) Nuper Constantinopoli Cyrillus sine Patriarchis sine Metropolitis sine Episcopis novum nobis propinavit Symbolum Grot. de Antichrist that Cyrill forged a new Symbol without the assistance of any Patriarchs Archbishops or Bishops Now after all I have related the History of this Cyrill with all the exactness I could without any regard to what the Dutch have written of him nor to what Leo Allatius hath said who also exceeds the bounds of moderation I have scarcely mentioned any thing but what is agreed upon by both the opposite Parties Besides Cyrill there are other Greeks of less note who have written in favour of the Protestants and amongst others one Gergan a Bishop who hath published a Catechism wherein he openly denies Transubstantiation but with this difference from Cyrill that he follows not the Confession of Geneva but that of Ausbourg If we compare the Doctrine of this Catechism with that of the Greek Church we shall find it almost different in every Point that it may be accommodated to the Sentiments of Protestants as when it saith that Scripture alone is sufficient without the help of Tradition to prove the Articles of our Creed That the Scripture is plain and clear as to the Points of Faith and that Scripture ought to be interpreted by Scripture In a word Gergan is a Protestant and onely a Greek in Language and that too a base Vulgar Greek Nevertheless he dares boast that he is none of those false Brethren (2) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 who have been poisoned at Rome But it is generally known that the Greeks themselves who have no Commerce with Rome confirm neither the Confession of Ausbourg nor of Geneva in their Books Protestants may also reckon amongst the Greeks of their Communion Nathanael of Crete who promised some time agoe to the Dutch that he would translate Calvin's Institutions into Greek and teach his Countrey-men Calvinism provided they gave him the Summ of Money which he demanded Mr. Claude adds to all these Greek Calvinists the Testimony of one Meletius Metropolitan of Ephesus in an answer he made about thirty Years agoe to the Divines of Leyden as to several Questions that had been put to him Father Simon made answer to Mr. Claude that he doubted not but that that was the Act of some Greek gained by the Dutch Divines who answered their Questions as they themselves would have him and that to judge of that answer it would be proper to publish it in the Authours Language I procured by means of one of Mr. Claude's Friends whom he could not deny a Copy of that answer and having read it I found that Father Simon 's conjecture was a real truth For Meletius who in that Letter takes the Title of Archbishop of Ephesus not onely
ancient Custome than a Ceremony of Religion There is a great difference to be made then betwixt the Jacobites when under that Name are comprehended the Cophties Abyssines and Armenians and those who are properly called Jacobites for though they all follow the Opinion of that same James from whom they have taken the Name yet for all that they differ in some Ceremonies Abraham Ecchellensis alledges that the Jacobites believe aswell as the Latins that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son but in that he is mistaken aswell as in many other things relating to the Belief and Customs of the Christians of the Levant CHAP. X. Of the Belief and Customs of the Cophties IT is probable that the Cophties or Copties have had their Name from a Town called Coptus which was heretofore the Metropolis of Thebais mentioned by Strabo and Plutarch The Christians of Egypt carry that Name at present and they have also a particular Language which is called the Coptick Tongue though they use it not but in their Offices Arabick being the Language of the Countrey And that Language which the Jesuit Kircher pretends to be a Mother-tongue independent of any other hath been much altered by the Greeks for besides that it still retains the Characters a very great Number of its words are pure Greek The Belief of these People is the same as that of the Jacobites for they are Monophysites as we observed when we spoke of the Jacobites and therefore it is to no purpose to repeat what we said in that Place They have at several times made several Reconciliations with the Church of Rome but onely in outward appearance (1) Sacchini in hist Societ The Jesuit Roderigo who was sent to that Nation by the Pope in the Year 1562 upon submissive and respectfull Letters which they had written to his Holiness as if they owned the Church of Rome for Chief and Mistress of all others will furnish us with a pretty instance of these counterfeit Reconciliations which most frequently have no better Foundation than mere humane Interest This Jesuit having had some Conference with two Cophties whom the Patriarch Gabriel had deputed for that purpose easily perswaded them of the Pope's Authority but when the Jesuit afterwards pressed the same Patriarch to send Letters of Submission and Obedience to the Pope telling him that he ought not to scruple at that seeing in his former Letters he had called the Pope Father of Fathers Pastour of Pastours and Head of all Churches he made answer that since the Council of Chalcedon and the establishment of divers Patriarchs independent one of another every one of them was chief and absolute Master in his own Church and that if even the Patriarch of Rome fell into any Errour he ought to be judged by the other Patriarchs He farther answered that as to the Letters which he had written to the Pope it ought not to be taken strictly what was onely meant for Civility and Modesty and that though he spoke of Obedience and Submission yet that was no more than Friends commonly doe one to another In fine he added that if there was any thing in those Letters which he wrote to the Pope that was not agreeable to the Doctrine of his Church it ought not to be imputed to him but to the Carrier of the Letters who without doubt had corrupted them In this manner did the Patriarch of the Cophties entertain the Pope's Envoys after that he had received from the Conful the Money that was sent him from Rome This History is more largely related by (1) Sacch in hist Societ Par. l. 6. the Jesuit Sacchini And I wave a great many other Reconciliations of that Church to the Church of Rome which have had no better Foundation than this The same Jesuit Roderigo observes amongst the Errours of the Cophties that they put away their Wives and Marry others that they circumcise their Children before Baptism that they acknowledge indeed seven Sacraments but that besides Baptism Confession the Eucharist and Orders they reckon in the same rank Faith Fasting and Prayer not to speak of others He says farther that the Cophties do not believe that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Son that they admit but of three Councils to wit of Ephesus Constantinople and Nice But some of these pretended Errours are either common to all the Eastern Church or they particularly concern the Jacobites who have rejected the Council of Chalcedon As to their reckoning amongst the Sacraments Fasting Prayer and Faith they take not the word Sacrament in that strict Sense we do and that inclines me to believe that they call none properly Sacraments but the four first and that some Mystical Doctors have afterwards added the other three to make up the Mystical Number of Seven In fine we may observe that it is not true that the Cophties believe as the Latins do that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son as (1) Brerew of Languag and Relig. chap. 22. Brerewood after Thomas à Jesu does assure us for that belief is peculiar to the Church of the West Kircher the Jesuit adds to this that they pretend that none but their own the Armenian and Abyssine Churches are true Churches that they believe that the Souls of the departed goe neither to Heaven nor Hell before the Day of Judgment I shall not spend time in refuting many Errours of Brerewood concerning the Religions of the East It is enough I relate matters of fact as really they are without giving my self the trouble to refute Authours who have written on that Subject (2) P. Vasle Rel. della stato Pres dell Egitto Father Vanslebio who hath written the Present State of the Christians of Egypt Printed at Paris in Italian relates many other things which chiefly concern their Ceremonies He observes that when the Priest elevates the Host in time of Mass they who are present knock their Breasts casting themselves upon the ground and making the sign of the Cross and that they move their Cap a little which seems to me to be a Latin Ceremony nor do I think the Cophties elevate the Host unless it be after the manner of the Orientals to wit a little before the Communion which is of no long standing neither in their Church Possibly Father Vanslebio might have seen that Ceremony in some of the Churches of the Abyssines who might have taken it from the Portuguese that have had Churches in Ethiopia where Mass was celebrated after the manner of the Latins The same Authour remarks that when the Priest communicates he breaks the bread in form of a Cross and that he puts it into the Wine of which he eats three little Morcels with as many Spoonfulls of the Species of Wine ad that he communicates thereof to him who serves at Mass He adds that they keep not the Holy Sacrament after Mass and that they never consecrate in private Places but always