Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	authority_n	believe_v	church_n	3,588	5	5.7037	4	true

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A17865	A tract of the soueraigne iudge of controuersies in matters of religion. By Iohn Cameron minister of the Word of God, and divinity professour in the Academie of Montauban. Translated into English by Iohn Verneuil. M.A.	Cameron, John, 1579?-1625.; Verneuil, John, 1582 or 3-1647.	1628 (1628)	STC 4532; ESTC S107505	32,785	50

she confesseth to be set downe in dumbe words obscure ambiguous applyable to every sense and which may be produced and vrged against her selfe How will the Atheists laugh at this how alas will the consciences of them bee shaken that beleeue and receiue this opinion of the obscurity ambiguity and insufficiencie of the Scriptures Let vs consider in the second place that their ayme is to cast all Christians into incertainty striuing to proue by these allegations that a man in what concernes Religion ought to mistrust his owne judgement which being once granted how shall a man know whether hee deceiues not himselfe in beleeving that there is a Church Here the Scripture cannot succour or helpe for it is presupposed that it cannot afford any certainty It is laid for a foundation that a Christian hearing reading meditating on the Scripture may coozen and deceiue himselfe Neither can a man in this straight haue recourse to the testimony of the holy Ghost for the allegation presupposeth that it cannot be knowne neither who hath neither whether a man himselfe hath the holy spirit or no. And as for the authority of the Church it cannot bee alleaged for question may bee made whether there be any Church at all As then to him who should doubt whether there ought to be a Pope in the world it would seeme strange far froÌ„ the purpose to alleage the testimony of the Pope for to perswade him that there ought to bee one Even so when we are to proue that there is a Church it is in vaine to alleage the testimony of the Church If then Christian Religion hath no foundation either in the Scripture or in the testimony of the holy Ghost or in the authority of the Church as it followeth from the allegation where shall shee seeke where shall shee finde where-vpon to vphold her selfe shall it bee in Philosophie there much lesse for if a Christian man cannot judge whether there be a Church by the spirit as not being able to assure himselfe whether hee hath the spirit much lesse able shall hee be to do it by his reason which without the spirit is starke blinde in spirituall things Let vs in the third place consider that in the disputes touching the markes and notes of the Church it is questioned what they are one is of one opinion another of another whence may a certaine knowledge of them bee had shall it bee from the Scripture but the allegation presupposeth that it is impossible shall it bee from the Church never the nearer for it so litle appeares which is the Church that it is controversed what are her markes by which she is knowne Let vs in the fourth place consider that grant wee had found the markes of the Church according to the allegation which casts men into incertitude it could not be discerned to what congregation to apply them amongst so many and divers assemblies who challenge them for it is supposed as granted according to the allegation that the Scripture cannot here guide vs that wee may deceiue our selues in making the choyce and the testimony of the Church can as little helpe vs if first of all it bee not presupposed that it hath the markes of the Church which is the point in question for wee seeke in what Church the markes of the Church are to bee found and to rely herein vpon the testimony of the Church doth presuppose that wee know already in what Church the markes of the Church are found Let vs in the fift place consider that according to the allegations there is no meanes how a man converted to the Church canne bee assured of his Religion For if hee hath not beene convinced by lawfull arguments neither his profession which followed the conviction of his conscience shall be lawfull It is very certaine that if the foundation of his faith who hath beene converted bee the authority of the Church the foundation of his conuersion hath not beene lawfull for there was no meanes to perswade him that the Church hath any such authority in alleadging to him the testimony of the Church And the allegation of Scripture and of reason according to their supposition is not a lawful meanes to resolue the conscience Having bin then brought to acknowledge the authority of the Church founded vpon these arguments it cannot be but weake and vnlawfull and consequently the beleefe of all that hee hath beleeued as depending vpon the authority which hee giveth vnto the Church And indeede if such a one whom wee would convert doth question the authority of the Church shall we proue vnto him that whereof he doubteth by alleaging vnto him that whereof hee maketh likewise doubt the argument then of his conuersion to the acknowledgment of the Church cannot haue beene the authority of the Church If then no man can bee assured of the foundation of his conversion no more neither can hee bee which is builded vpon the foundation In the sixt place let vs obserue that the Church which is called Catholique never speaketh by word of mouth they are the particulars that are her Heralds It may bee demanded then by what meanes a man may bee assured that they discharge their place faithfully since they may erre in proposing doctrine contrary to the meaning of the Church This cannot bee by the Scripture for according to the allegation truth and falsehood cannot be discerned by it no nor by the testimony of the Church for he speaketh not but by particular men of whom it is doubted whether they haue faithfully reported the determination of the Church In the Seaventh place let vs consider that if the authority of the Church bee the foundation of faith every one shall beleeue because his companion hath beleeued and so christian religion shall bee made ridiculous for seeing the Church is a congregation of persons in which every one grounds his faith vpon the authority of the whole congregation of which they are Members it will necessarily follow that every one of them shall beleeue apart because all haue beleeued together In the eight place let vs weigh this horrible inconvenience that we shall not beleeue the mysteries of the Trinit of the incarnation of the redemption of mankinde but by heare-say because our Ancestours our Parents our fellow burgesses haue beleeued so and shall not beleeue that they haue beene the Church of God but because they haue left this testimony of themselues which the Iewes may vsurpe with the like appearance of right if we renounce the authority of Scriptures Now haue wee verified this last meanes of Nullity not to incense any God is our witnesse but to shew if it bee possible into what and how many execrable absurdities some amongst them vnadvisedly precipitate themselues who by the meanes of these allegations endeavour to draw vs from the judgement of God speaking in the Scripture to the judgement of men pretending the title of the Church being most certaine that he who vrged principally this

and yet are grossely deceiued how many haue the spirit and yet erre oftentimes in their iudgements and indeede it is so but is it not either a strange perversity or indiscretioÌ„ to inferre from thence that none can know that none can judge and discerne assuredly to salvation the spirituall things which God hath revealed outwardly to his by his word inwardly by his spirit For do we not see amoÌ„gst men how many there are who glory and deceiue themselues with a false opinion of wisdome being indeed imprudent foolish yet whosoever would conclude from thence that hee who is truly wise cannot know that hee is so should bring into the world not that of the Academiques but even the Pyrronian suspence of judgment If then the boasting and vanity of a foole cannot prejudice the assured knowledge which hee who is wise can and ought to haue of wisdome no more can the false perswasions of hypocrites which proceede from the illusioÌ„ of Satan shake the certainty of that assuraÌ„ce which proceedeth from the sense and feeling of the spirit dwelling in the heart of the spirituall man and giuing as wee haue said testimony to his spirit Yea the conformity of his motions with the word of the Scripture assures and strengthens him and putteth a difference betweene the sence and feeling he hath and that which ariseth from the false illusion of Satan which hath no other rule then it selfe From the same fountaine either of malice or vnadvisednesse it proceedes that vnder pretence that those who haue receiued the spirit do erre sometimes they would conclude that in that which is necessary to salvation they cannot passe any certaine judgement for the wisest in the knowledge of worldly businesses may offend against the rules of wisdome and yet who will deny for all this but they can giue advise and sure counsell Wee say sure according to the rules of wisdome For no man can answere for the event which is oftentimes contrary to the wisedome of Counsell and favoureth rash attempts The learned are ignorant of many things but not of such without which they cannot deserue that name As then the prudent differ not from fooles in this that they never commit any follies but in this that their follies are not grosse are not ordinary and as the difference that is between the learned the ignoraÌ„t coÌ„sists in that which is the Principall in the Science which he professeth The ignoraÌ„t on the contrary is either ignorant of all or knowes very little and even that little which hee knowes to speake properly hee knowes not So the difference that is betweene the man spiritually wise him that is ignorant according to the spirit it is not in this that the Spirituall man never but in that hee erres not grossely and ordinarily Not in that hee knowes all but in that hee knowes all that which is necessary in his profession whereas hee that is spiritually foolish and ignorant erres almost alwayes erres ordinarily is ignorant of that which is necessary that he should know for the making of himselfe such as hee professeth himselfe to bee And euen as there is a great disproportion betweene fooles and wisemen in the ordinary course and cariage of their liues betweene the learned and ignorant in the knowledge of good arts and yet all the wise in that kind are not equally wise nor all the learned equally learned nay in that very humane and secular wisedome and learning there is no one perfectly wise perfectly learned so great is the difference betweene those whom God hath enlightned with his knowledge and those whom the eyes of their vnderstanding the God of this world hath blinded and yet there is no one amongst them all who hath attained to the highest degree of perfection Wee conclude then that as those that belong not to the Lord cannot assure themselues of his spirit and by consequent cannot discerne his word vnto saluation so all those that are his do feele the efficacie of his spirit in their hearts euen as they feele and finde in themselues by experience the vse of reason and judge by the spirit of spirituall things proposed in the word after the same manner as by reason they judge of things that canne bee comprehended by it It sufficeth vs to haue proued that the faithfull haue an assured and certaine rule in the Scripture CHAP. 17. The verifying of the third meanes of nullity against the allegations And by these reasons wee thinke wee haue made good the two first meanes of Nullity proposed against the eight allegations It remaineth that wee verifie the third to wit that they tend to the subversion of Christian Religion To come then to the point let vt first of all consider that their ayme is to proue that a ChristiaÌ„ can haue no assurance of his Religion of that which he ought to beleeue by the Scripture because it is dumbe obscure ambiguous imperfect which cannot assure those who depend on it and may bee alleaged in favour of heretickes If that detestable opinion bee once engrafted in the heart as it is set forth and maintained by word and writing what will become I pray you of the authority of the Church which is grounded vpon the Scripture if the foundation of it be so falty is it not to bee feared that the building will sinke If a Christian cannot yea ought not to ground himselfe vpon the Scripture by reason of these pretended imperfections with what confidence shall hee ground himselfe vpon the authority of the Church which hath no other foundation then this foundation so imperfect if the foresaid allegations be true But if the one and the other proppe of faith faile this of the scripture and consequently that of the authority of the Church grounded on the Scripture as of necessity when the foundation is vndermined those that leane vpon the wall must fall together with the wall what will become of the authority of the assurance of Christian Religion The right of the Church is called in question and shee either as a daughter produces the scripture the coppy of the Testament of her Father or as a spouse brings forth the Scripture the coÌ„tract of her marriage and this Testament is fouÌ„d dumbe obscure ambiguous of a double meaning being not able to cleare the night of the Church nay which may bee imployed against her In this case what shall bee the foundation what the title what the proofes of the right of the Church will they not be found if we beleeue the allegations to be dumbe ambiguous obscure imperfect proofes and consequently shall not the right instead of being confirmed become invalide and of no force And who will not judge that the Church proceeds not fairely attributing to her self so great authority and maintaining it by proofes fo defectiue or who will beleeue that the same is the true Church the true people of God who shew a Testament a couenant of God coÌ„tracted with her which

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