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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	believe_v	church_n	infallible_a	3,076	5	10.3460	5	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A28839	An exposition of the doctrine of the Catholique Church in the points of controversie with those of the pretended reformation by James Benignus Bossüet, counseller in the King's counsels, Bishop and Lord of Condom, tutor to His Royal Hyghness the Dolphin of France ; translated into English by W.M.; Exposition de la doctrine de l'Eglise catholique sur les matières de controverse. English	Bossuet, Jacques Bénigne, 1627-1704.; Montagu, Walter, 1603?-1677.	1672 (1672)	Wing B3782; ESTC R30305	47,803	218

preuent all scandal They haue concluded by this regulation that both kindes were not essentiall to the Communion by the institution of CHRIST for otherwise they would haue bin bound absolutely to refuse the Sacrament to such as were not able to receaue it compleat and not to giue it them in a manner contrary to that CHRIST JESVS had commanded and in that case their disability would haue sufficiently excused them But our Aduersaries haue conceaued that such a rigour would be excessiue if they did not allow at least one of the Species to such as were not capable to receaue the other and since this condescendence hath no ground in the Scripture they must needs confesse with vs that the words whereby CHRIST IESVS hath proposed to vs the two Species are liable to some interpretation and that the right vnderstanding of them ought to be declared by the Authority of the Church But it might seeme that this Article of their Discipline which is of the Synode of Poytiers held 1560 had bin reformed by the Synode of Vertueil assembled in the year 1567 where it is said that the company is not of opinion the Bread should be giuen to those who would not receaue the Cupp These two Synodes neuerthelesse are not at all opposite to one another that of Vertueil speaketh of those who Will not receaue the Cupp and that of Poytiers of such as Can not take it And indeed notwithstanding the Synode of Vertueil that Article remaineth in their Discipline nay more hath bin approued by a Synode later then that of Vertueil namely by the Synode of Rochelle in 1571 where the Article was renewed and putt into that state which it now remaineth in But supposing the Synodes of the Pretended-Reformers had differr'd varied in their opinions that would serue only to manifest that the matter in question is not a point of Faith but of that kind which the Church may order dispose of according to their own principles There remaineth now nothing but to expose what the Catholiques hold touching the Word of God concerning the Authority of the Church CHRIST IESVS hauing lay'd the foundation of his Church vpon the Preaching of his Disciples the Vnwritten Word was the first guide rule of Christianity when the writings of the New Testament were adioyned to them the former Word did not for all that loose its Authority which causeth vs to accept with the same veneration all that was taught by the Apostles be it by writing or by word of mouth according to what S. Paul himself hath expresly inioyned And the certain proofe that a Doctrine comes from the Apostles is its being accepted and embraced by all Christian Churches whilst its beginning can not be pointed mark'd out We can not choose but receaue all that is establish'd in this manner with the submission due to the Diuine Authority and we are confident that such persons of the Pretended-Reformed Religion as are not very obstinate haue the same perswasion in the bottome of their harts it being impossible to beleeue that a Doctrine setled and receaued from the beginning of the Church can flow from any other spring then that of the Apostles Wherefore our Adversaries ought not to wonder that we being zealously carefull to inherit all that our Fathers haue left vs doe conserue the Deposite of Tradition as well as that of the Scriptures The Church being ordained by God to be the Depositary of the Scripture of Tradition we receaue from her hands the Canonicall Scriptures and we beleeue whateuer our Aduersaries say that it is principally the Church's Authority that determineth vs to reuerence as Diuine writt the song of Salomon which hath so few sensible markes of Propheticall inspiration and likewise the Epistle of S. Iames which Luther reiected and that of S. Iude which might be suspected by reason of some Apocriphall bookes cited in it in fine there can be no motiue but that Authority to perswade the receauing the whole body of the holy Scriptures which Christians accept as Diuine euen before the reading hath wrougt any feeling of the Spirit of God in those bookes Being then inseparably bound as we are to the Authority of the Church by meanes of the Scriptures which we receaue from her hand we are taught also by her Tradition and by the help of Tradition the true sense of the Scriptures So that the Church professeth to say nothing meerly of her self and likewise that she inventeth nothing new in her Doctrine that she doth but follow and declare the Diuine Reuelation by the interiour direction of the holy spirit which is giuen her for her Teacher That the holy Ghost expresseth himself by the Church the dispute raised about the Ceremonies of the Law euen in the time of the Apostles doth euidence and their Acts haue directed all succeeding ages by the manner that first contest was decided by what Authority all following differences are to be determined so that whensoeuer any dispute happens to deuide the faithfull the Church will interpose her Authority and the Pastours assembled will say after the Apostles It hath seemed good to the Holy Spirit and vs. And when the Church hath pronounced and determined her children will be taught not to examine a new the Articles resolued vpon but that they are bound to accept with all submission the Church's Decisions And in this methode we follow S. Paul and Silas who deliuered to the faithfull the first iudgment of the Apostles and were so farr from allowing a new discussion of what had bin decided as they trauell'd through the townes teaching to obserue the ordinances of the Apostles In this manner the children of God acquiesce in the iudgment of the Church beleeuing that by her mouth they hear the Oracle of the Holy Ghost and it is vpon the ground of this perswasion that after hauing profess'd in the Creed I beleeue in the Holy Ghost we ioine next to it The Holy Catholique Church by which protestation we oblige our selues to acknowledge an Infallible and Perpetuall Verity in the Catholique Church since the same Church which we beleeue perseuering throughout all ages would cease to be a Church if it left to teach the Truth reuealed by God so that such as apprehend least she should abuse her power by introducing Falsities haue little Faith in him by whose hand she is held and conducted And if our Aduersaries would consider discusse these matters in a fairer and more humane manner they would be forced to auowe that the Catholique Church is so farre from affecting to render herself Mistresse of her Faith as her Aduersaries charge her that quite contrary she hath laboured with all her power to binde her self and to exclude all means of In̄ouation since she doth not only submitt to the holy Scriptures but to banish for euer all Arbitrary interpretatiōs which would make the conceipts of men passe for Scripture declareth herself obliged

same name Neuerthelesse our Faith being attentiue to his word who effecteth what euer he pleaseth in heauen and on earth doth acknowledg in this case no other Substance remaining but that which is designed by the same word viz the proper Body and Blood of CHRIST IESVS into which the Bread and the Wine are changed which is what we terme TRANSVBSTANTIATION And notwithstanding this yet the Reality which the Eucharist contains in regard of the interiour part is no impediment to the being a Signe in respect of what it retains of exteriour and sensible but yet a Signe of such a nature as is so farre from excluding a Reality as it carieth it of necessity along with it since in effect this speech This is my Body being pronounced vpon the matter CHRIST IESVS hath chosen is an assured signe that he is Present and although the matters seeme to our senses to remayne the same yet our spirit iudgeth otherwise of them then it would doe if a superiour Authority did not interuene so that although those species and a certaine sequence of naturall impressions which are made on our bodies are vsed to suggest to vs the Substance of Bread Wine yet in this case his Authority whome we beleeue intirely preuailes so much vpon vs that the same species begin to designe to vs an other Substance for we beleeue CHRIST who sayth that which we take and that which we eate is his Body and such is the efficacy of his word as it keeps vs from ascribing to the Substance of Bread these exteriour appearances and moueth vs to referr them to the Body of CHRIST being present vnder them so that the presence of so Adorable an obiect being once ascertain'd to vs by this signe we make no question of offring to it our Adorations I doe not enter into the point of Adoration by reason that the most learned and sober of our Aduersaries haue long since granted vs that the presence of CHRIST IESVS in the Eucharist ought to impose Adoration vpon those who are of that perswasion In fine being once conuinced that the omnipotent words of the sonne of God effect whatsoeuer they pronounce we beleeue vpon good grounds that in the last Supper they produced their effect as soone as they were vttered and vpon a necessary consequence we acknowledg the Reall presence of the Body before our receauing it These preceeding points being supposed the Sacrifice which we assert and maintain in the Eucharist retayns no longer any particular difficulty We haue obserued two actions in this Mystery which cease not to be distinct although the one relateth to the other the first is the Consecration by which the Bread and Wine are changed into the Body and Blood the second is the Eating by which we communicate and partake of them In the Consecration the Body and Blood are mystically separated by reason that CHRIST IESVS said seuerally This is my Body This is my Blood the which includeth a liuely and effectuall representation of the violent death he suffered And so the sonne of God is sett vpon the holy table by vertue of those words couered with signes that represent his death This is what is effected by Consecration and this Religious act carieth with it the protestation of the Soueragnity of God by reason that CHRIST IESVS being present reneweth and in some sort perpetuates the memory of his obedience euen to the death of the Crosse so that indeed there is nothing wanting here towards the rendring it a True Sacrifice Without all question this Religious act as it is distinct from that of the Communion must needs be of it self acceptable to God and must inuite him to looke vpon vs with a more fauorable and propitious eye by reason it presenteth to his sight the voluntary death which his wellbeloued sonne hath suffer'd for sinners or rather replaceth before his eyes euen his own sonne vnder the signes of that death whereby he hath bin appeased and reconciled to Man All Christians confesse that the single presēce of CHRIST IESVS is a most powerfull manner of Intercession before God for all mankind according to this saying of the Apostle CHRIST IESVS presenteth himself and appeareth for vs before the face of God and thereupon we beleeue that CHRIST IESVS being present vpon the holy table in this figure of death intercedeth for vs and representeth continually to his Father the death he hath suffered for his Church It is in this sense we affirme that IESVS-CHRIST offereth himself for vs to God in the Eucharist and in this manner it is we conceaue that this Oblation inuiteth God to become more fauorable and propitious to vs and for this reason we call it Propitiatorie When we reflect vpon what CHRIST IESVS worketh in this mystery and when we looke vpon him by our Faith as actually present vpon the holy table with the signes of death we ioine our selues to him in that estate and we present him to God as our only Victime and as our sole Propitiator by the merit of his Blood protesting that we haue nothing to offer vnto God but IESVS-CHRIST and the infinite merit of his death We consecrate all our prayers by this Diuine Oblation and by our presenting CHRIST IESVS to God we are taught to offer vp our selues at the same time to the Diuine Maiesty in him and by him as liuing Sacrifices Such is the Sacrifice of Christians and infinitely differing from that which was practised in the Law being a Spirituall Sacrifice worthy of the New Couenant wherein the presence of the Victime is not perceaued but by Faith where the word of God is the instrument that separateth Mystically the Body the Blood and cōsequently where the Blood is shed but Mystically and where death interueneth but by Representation and yet a most Reall True Sacrifice for this reason that CHRIST JESVS is truly contained and presented to God in it vnder this figure of death and therefore a Sacrifice also of Commemoration which is so farre though obiected from parting loosening vs from our application to the Sacrifice of the Crosse as it fixeth vs the faster by all its circūstances vnto it since it doth not only relate intirely vnto it but in effect it hath neither being nor subsistance but by this relation from whence it deriueth all the virtue it contains This is the expresse Doctrine of the Catholique Church in the Councel of Trent which teacheth that this Sacrifice is instituted only to the intent of representing that which was once perfected vpon the Crosse and to preserue the Memory of it vnto the end of all ages and apply vnto vs that sauing virtue for the forgiuenes of sinns which we dayly commit Wherefore so farre we are from beleeving that somewhat is wanting to the Sacrifice of the Crosse as quite contrary the Church holds that it was so perfect and so fully sufficient as all which followes it is but ordain'd in order to the