believe because Miracles were clearly seen by these who first received the Faith And Christ said believe me for the very works sake Ioh. 14. 11. And so their sight of these works was a certain ground for their belief therefore the senses unvitiated fixing on a proper object through a due mean are infallible therefore what our sight our taste and our touch tell us is Bread and Wine must be so still and cannot be imagined to have changed its substance upon the recital of the five words Shall I add to this that throng of absurdities which croud about this opinion For if it be true then a body may be in more places at once triumphing in glory in one and sacrificed in a thousand other places And a large body may be crouded into the narrow space of a thin Wafer they holding it to be not only wholy in the whole Wafer but also intirely in every crumb of it A body can be without dimensions and accidents without a subject these must be confessed to be among the highest of unconcievables and yet these Miracles must be believed to be produced every day in above a hundred thousand places Certainly he hath a sturdy belief who can swallow over all these absurdities without choaking on them It is little less unconceivable to imagine that a man of no eximious sanctity nay perhaps of noted impiety nor extraordinarily knowing nay perhaps grosly ignorant in Theological Matters shall have the Holy Ghost so absolutely at his command that whatever he decrees must be the Dictates of the Spirit And what an unconceiveable mystery is the Treasure of the Church and the Popes Authority to dispense it as he will No less conceivable is the efficacy of the Sacraments by the work wrought nor is any thing more affronting to reason than the barbarous worship And of a piece with this is the blind subjection is pleaded for the Confessarius his Injunctions and their opinions of expiating their sins by a company of little trifling penances which tend not to the cleansing the Soul nor killing of the life of sin much less can be able to appease God either of their own inbred worth or by reason of any value God is pleased to set on them either by Command or Promise But should I reckon up every thing is among them that choaks reason I should dwell too long on this and reckon over most of the things have been through the whole Discourse hinted which seem to stand in the most diametrical opposition to the clearest impressions of all mens reasons But to bring my Enquiry to an issue easiness and gentleness are by Christ applied to his yoke laws and burden and whatever opposition or trouble they may give to the carnal man by mortifying his lusts and contradicting all his inordinate and unlimitted desires yet by the rational faculties and powers they are both easily understood and practised Indeed Religion lies in few things and its chief work is the reforming and purifying the inward man where it mainly dwells and exerts its force and virtue but these who have added so much both to be believed and done beyond what our Lord prescribed as they accuse his unfaithfulness so bring unsupportable burdens on the Consciences of Christians These therefore who lead out the mind by presenting a great many foreign objects to it do introduce superannuated Judaism instead of that liberty Christ brought with him unto the World But shall I number up here all the Impositions of that Church whose numbers are great as well as their nature grievous for it is a study to know them all but what a pain must it be to perform them It is a work which will take up a great deal of time to understand the Rubricks of their Missals Breviaries Rituals and Pontificals In a word they have left the unity and simplicity of Religion and set up instead of it a lifeless heap of Ordinances which must oppress but cannot relieve the Consciences of their Disciples Shall I add to this the severity of some of their Orders into which by unalterable Vows they are engaged their whole lives Now whatever fitness might be in such Discipline upon occasions for beating down the body or humbling of the mind yet it must be very tyrannical to bind the perpetual observance of these on any by an oath for thereby all the rest of their lives may become insupportably bitter to them wherein they stand obliged under perjury to the perpetual observance of some severe Discipline which though at first in a novitious ferâ—…our might have had its good effects on them yet that drying up it will afterwards have no other effect but the constant dejecting of the soul and so their life will be a rack to them by their perpetual toil in these austerities This I speak of those who seem the chief Ornaments of that Church whose Devotion doth for most part turn to outwards and rests in the strict observance of their rules not without voluntary assumed mortifications which they add to them â—…ut wherein they for most part glory and so the life of pride and self-love the â—…ubtillest of all our enemies is fed and â—…ourished by them Neither can we think that these whose exercises are so much external can be so recollected for the inward and serene breathings of the Mind after God and Christ without which all externals though they seem to make a fair shew in the flesh yet are but a skelet of lifeless and insipid things But indeed they have studied to remove this objection of the uneasiness of their Religion by accommodating it so that the worst of men may be secure of Heaven and enjoy their lusts both according to the corrupt conduct of some of their spiritual Fathers But what I have hinted of the uneasiness of their Religion is taken from the Nature of their Devotions in their highest altitude and elevation And thus far I have pursued my Design in the tract whereof I have not been void of a great deal of pain and sorrow for what pleasure can any find by discovering so much wickedness and so many errours in the Christened Regions of the World and see the holy and beautiful Places wherein the former Ages worshipped God in the Spirit turned to be habitations of Idols and graven Images by which God is provoked to jealousie God is my witness how these thoughts have entertained me with horrour and regret all the while I have considered them And that I am so far from being glad that I have found so much corruption in the Roman Church that it is not without the greatest antipathy to my nature imaginable that I have payed this duty to truth by asserting it with the discovery of so many Impostures which have so long abused the Christian world and if any heat or warmth hath slipped from my Pen I must protest sincerely it is not the effect of anger or passion but of a tender and zealous compassion for those
Ioh. 4. 1. Now reason being the chief excellency of man and â—…hat wherein the Divine Image doth â—…ainly consist it were very absurd to â—…eny man a rational judging and discering of these things wherein his eternal â—…terest is most concerned Besides the nature of Religion it being a thing sutaâ—…e to the powers of the soul shews that man must have a conviction of the truth of it on his mind and that he cannot be bound in contradiction to his own apprehensions to receive any opinions â—…rly upon the testimony of others If to confirm all this I should add all can be brought from History for proving General Councils to have erred in matters of Faith or that Popes have beeâ—… Hereticks or that they have been ana thematized as such by other Popes and General Councils I should be too tedious But in end how shall the Vulgar know the definitions of Councils or the De crees of Popes Or must they be blindly determined by the Priests assertion Certainly this were to expose theâ—… to the greatest hazards since they aâ—… not suffered to found their Faith upoâ—… the Scriptures Nor doth the Churâ—… reveal her Doctrines to them so thâ—… their Faith must be resolved upon tâ—… bare Testimony of a Priest who is peâ—…haps both ignorant and licentioâ—… And by this we may judge to whâ—… a pass the souls of the people a brought by this Doctrine In a woâ—… we are not the servants of men nor bound to their Authority for none can be a Judge but where he hath power both to try and to coerce Now none but God can either search our hearts or change them for as no humane power can know our thoughts so neither can it turn them which are not in our own power much less in the power of others therefore our Consciences can and must only fall within Gods jurisdiction And since the renovation of the Image of God consists in Knowledge and Religion designs an union of our souls to Divine Truth that we may freely converse with it it will follow that all these pretences of absolute authority and infallibility in Teaching are contrary to Christs Prophetick Office who came to reveal the Father to us The second of Jesus Christs Offices was the Priestly without which the former had never been effectual for had we known never so perfectly the Will of God without a method had been laid down for reconciling sinners to him it was in vain to think of Religion since nothing sinners could do was able to appease God or expiate sin but this was fully done by the Sacrifice of that Lamb of God Who became sin for us and bare our sins on his own Body In whom we have redemption even forgiveness of sin through his Blood 2 Cor. 5. 21. 1 Pet 2. 24. Ephes. 1. 7. If then any have derogated from the value of this satisfaction they have offered the utmost indignity to the highest love and committed the crime of the greatest ingratitude imaginable who would requite the most inconcieveable love with such a Sacrilegious attempt But how guilty are they of this who would set the Merits and works of men in an equality with the Blood of God as if by these we were justified or owed our title to Glory to our own performances whereas we are taught by the Oracles of God that by grace we are saved that God only hath made the difference betwixt us and others and that he hath freely chosen us in his Son Christ Iesus Ephes. 2. 5. 1 Cor. 4. 7. And alas where are we or what is all we do that it can pretend to the lowest degree of Gods acceptance without he freely both help us in it and accept of us for it so that when he rewards us for our services with Eternal Life he freely crowns his own free gifts to us For when we consider how great a disproportion there is betwixt our best Services and Eternal Glory when we also remember how all our good actions flow from the Principles of Divine Grace freely given but withal reflect on the great defects and imperfections that hang about our best performances we will not be able to entertain any thoughts of our meriting ought at the hands of God And certainly the deeper impressions we have either of the evil of sin or the goodness of God we will be further from a capacity of swelling big in our own thoughts or of claiming any thing on the pretensions of justice or debt It is true this Doctrine of Merit is so explained by some of that Church that there remains no ground of quarrelling it except for the Terms sake which is indeed odious and improper though early used by the Ancients in an innocent sense But many of that Church acknowledge there can be no obligation on God by ouâ—… Works but that which his own promise binds upon him which none who believe the truth of the promises of the Gospel can question but still we must remember that we owe all to the love of Jesus and nothing to our selves which as it is the matter of the Allelujahs of glorified Saints so should be the subject of our daily acknowledgements wherefore we must abominate every thing that may seem to detract from this But alas were all this zeal many of that Communion own for Merits and good Works meant for the advancing a Holy and Spiritual Life it would carry a good apology with it and its noble design would very much qualify the severity of its censure but when these good works which for so many ages were highly magnified were the building of Churches the enriching of Abbeys Pilgrimages and other trifling and voluntary pieces of Will-worship advanced for the Secular interests of the Church what shall be said of all that pains was used by the Monks for advancing them but that they were willing to sell the value of the Blood and Merits of Christ for advancing their own Secular interests and divised practices Alas how far are these from that Holiness and Sanctity which must qualify us for the Kingdom of God and the inheritance of the Saints And to end this matter let me add one thing which is most evident to all who have observed the methods of the directours of Consciences in that Church that with whatever distinctions this matter be varnished over among them yet the Vulgar do really imagine they buy and sell with Almighty God by their undergoing these Laws of the Church and penances imposed by their Confessour Which as it nourisheth the life of Pride and Self-love so it detracts from the value they ought to set on the blood of Christ as their only title to Heaven and Glory And to this I must add that distinction of the temporary and eternal punishments sin deserves The latter whereof they acknowledge are removed by the Blood of Christ but the former must be expiated by our selves either by sufferings in this Life or those we must endure in Purgatory unless by
and discovered their forgery had any such been But many of the Miracles of Rome are not heard of till some Ages at least Years be past whereby they are secure from the after-game of a discovery and he were a stout man that would adventure to question the verity of these pretences at Rome where it is the interest of that Church to have them all believed without once questioning them But how comes it that in Heretical Countreys as they call them where there is more need of those Miracles and where they might be more irrefragably proved if true since the Examiners of them were not to be suspected yet none of these mighty works do shew themselves forth Certainly that they are to this day so rife in Italy and Spain and so scant in Britain is a shrewd ground to apprehend Legerdemain and forgery in the accounts we get of their later Saints And indeed the Contrivers of these Stories have not managed their design by half so well as need was for they have bestowed as many of them on one person as might have Sainted the half of an Order But the gain that is made by new Saints and new Reliques is well enough known not to speak of the general advantage that Church pretends to draw from it In end though some things among them did seem to surpass the known powers of Nature these ought not to prevail upon us for departing from the truth since though an Angel from Heaven Preached another Gospel he is to be accursed Gal. 1. 8. If then they have so changed the Christian Doctrine by their Additions and Inventions that it is become thereby as another Gospel none of the seemingly Seraphical appearances they may have among them though true ought to reconcile us to it and that the rather since we were expresly guarded against this Imposture by St. Paul who gave it as an Indication of the Son of Perdition that his coming was after the power of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders and with all deceivableness of unrighteouseness 2 Thess. 2. 9 10. And it is a part of their curse that they are given up to strong delusions to believe lies the Beast also that appeared to St. John Rev. 13. 13. did great wonders so that he made Fire come down from Heaven in the sight of men and deceived many that dwelt on the Earth by these Miracles which he had power to do But to conclude this my greatest quarrel at these forgeries of Miracles is that the people being taught to believe them and the Miracles of the Gospel with an equal certainty since they have the Testimony of the Church for both and they seeing such evident Characters of fraud and forgery on these supposed miracles whereby they are convinced of their falshood are thereby in danger of suspecting all the Miracles of the Gospel as the tricks of subdolous and crafty men whereby they run head-long to an Atheistical disbelieving the truth of all alike And thus far we have found how opposite that Church is to the Spouse of Christ since her Doctrines are so ill founded and look so like cunningly devised fables without the authority of divine inspiration or the proof of true Miracles The next Character of our Faith is its perspicuity and simplicity all being called to the clear light of the day in it and every part of it being so genuine that it is apparent it was not the contrivance of designing men that by the belief of it they might obtain the power and possess the riches of the World And therefore there are no secret Doctrines in our Faith which must be kept up from the Vulgar whereby the Pastors of Christendom may have dominion over their souls But what must we conclude of them who by all means study to keep all of their Communion ignorant as if devotion were thereby nourished and allow them not the use of the Scriptures in their Mother-tongue nor a worship which they can understand whereby it is that they who occupy the room of unlearned cannot say Amen at the giving of thanks since they understand not what is said To this might be added their implicite Faith to all the Doctrines of the Church without further inquiries and their blind obedience to the Confessarius be 〈◊〉 never so ignorant and carnal These are certainly darkening opinions and practises and far different from the methods of the Apostles in preaching the Gospel who with-held from the people nothing of the Counsel of God and studied the enlightening their understandings as well as the enlivening of their wills But further how much of interest appears in the Doctrines of Rome which tend to the exalting or enriching the Papacy and inferiour Clergy for it is visible what a trade they drive by them and all the contrivances all the projectours in Europe ever fell upon for enriching their Masters Treasury falls short of the projects of Purgatory the Treasure of the Church Indulgences and the Popes absolute authority in making abrogating and dispencing with all Positive Laws Neither is there more of design to be found in the Alcoran than in the Mysteries of that Caliph of the Spiritual Babylon And we may guess of their concernedness in these matters since a gentler censure may be hoped for upon the violation of the greatest of the Laws of God than upon the least contradiction to their idolized Interests The one is the constant subject of their Studies and Sermons whereas the other is seldom minded The third Character of our Faith is that it is rational and suitable to our Souls God having fitted it and framed them so harmoniously that they are congenial one to another It is true the Mysteries about God and Christ are exalted above the reach of our faculties but even reason it self teacheth that it must be so since if there be a God he must be infinite and incomprehensible and therefore it is not to be wondered if the Scriptures offer some Mysteries to us about God and Christ which choak and stifle the impressions we are apt to take of things But in these it is visible that the Object is so disproportioned to our faculties that it is impossible we can reach or comprehend it but as for the other parts of Religion they are all so distinctly plain that the reasonableness as well as the authority of them serve to commend them to us but how void are they of this who have made one of the chief Articles of their Faith and the greatest matter of their worship that which is not only beyond but contrary to the most common impressions of Nature which teacheth us to believe our senses when under no lesion and duly applied to a proper object For indeed in that case we cannot really doubt but things are as they appear to us for we cannot believe it mid-night when we clearly see the Sun in the Meridian nay and our Faith rests on the evidences our senses give since we