Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n
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A11464
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A relation of the state of religion and with what hopes and pollicies it hath beene framed, and is maintained in the severall states of these westerne parts of the world.; Europae speculum
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Sandys, Edwin, Sir, 1561-1629.
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1605
(1605)
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STC 21716; ESTC S966
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125,256
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184
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he seeketh to perfect If then without faith there is no possibly of Salvation this surely must needes be the hie way to perdition Now seeing christianitie to be a doctrine of faith a doctrine whereof all men even children are capable as being grosse and to be beleeved in generall The high vertue wherof â—s in the humility of vnderstanding and the merite in the readinesse of obedience to imbrace it for these have beene alwaies the true owners of faith And seeing the outward proofes are no other than probable and of all probable proofes the Church testimonie is most probable what madnesse were it for any man to tire out his soule and to waste away his spirites in tracing out all the thorhy paths of the controversies of these daies wherein to erre is no lesse easie than dangerous what through forgery abusing him through Sophistrie transporting him and not rather to betake himselfe to the right path of trueth whereunto God and Nature Reason and Experience doe all give witnesse and that is to associate himselfe to that Church whereunto the custody of this heavenly and supernaturall trueth hath beene from heaven it selfe committed to weigh discretely which is the true Church and that beeing once found to receive faithfully and obediently without doubt or discussion whatsoever it delivereth Nowe concerning the first point some doubt might be made if there were any Church Christian in the world to be shewed which had continued from Christs time downe to this age without change or interruption this only excepted But if all other have had their end or decay long since or their beginning but of late if theirs bee founded by the Prince of the Apostles with promise by him That hel gates should not prevaile against it but that himselfe would be assisting to it vntill the consummation of the world which hath continued on now to the end of a thousand sixe hundred and foure yeares with an honourable and certaine line of two hundred and fortie Popes all beeing Successours of Saint Peter both Tyrants and Traitors both Pagans and Heretiques in vaine wrestling raging barking and vndermining if all the lawfull Councels that ever were in the world being the general Senates of Gods officers and Ministers have from time to time approved obeyed and honored it if God have so miraculousâ—y blessed it from above as that so many sage Doctors should inâ—ich it with their writings such armies yea millions of Saints with their holines of Martires with their blood of Virgins with their puritie should sanctifie and seale it if their Church have beene a ruine alwaies to them that opposed against her a stay repose and advancement to all her followers if even at this day in such difficulties of rebellions and revolts of her neerest children yet she stretcheth out her armes to the vttermost corners the world embracing whole Nations into her bosome If lastly in all other opposite Churches whatsoever ther be nothing to be found but inward dissention and contrarietie chaÌ„ge of opinions vncertaintie of resolutions robbing of churches robellion against Governors confusion of orders nothing to be attended but mischefe subversion and destruction which they have well deserved and shall assuredly have whereas contrary in their Churches the vnitie vndivided the obedience vnforced the resolvtions vnalterable the most heavenly order reaching from the height of all power to the very lowest of all subiection with admirable harmonie and vndefective correspondeÌ„cie al tending to the same way to the effecting of the same worke did promise no other than continuance increase and victorie Let no man dâ—â—bt to submit himselfe to this glorious spouse of God â—â— whose head is the blessing of God in whose hand is the power of God vnder whose feet are the enemies of God to whom round about do service all the creatures of God This then being accorded to be the true Church of God it followeth that shee be reverently obeyed in all things without further inquifition having this warrant That whoso heareth her heaeth Christ and whosoever heareth her not hath no better place then a Publican or a Pagan And what folly were it to receive the Scripture vpon the credit of her authority and not to receive the interpretation also vpon her authority and credite And if GOD should not protect his Church alwaies from error and peremptorily command all men to obey her then had hee made but slender provision for the Salvation of mankinde to whome errour in matter of faith is certaine damnation which conceipt of God whose care of vs even in all thinges touching this transitorie life is so plaine and evident were vngratefull and impious And hard were the case and meane had beene his regard of the vulgar people whose wants and difficulties in this life will not permit whose capacities will not suffice to sound the deepe and hidden mysteries of divinity to search out intricate controversies if there were not other whose authority they might rely on Blessed therfore are they which beleeve and have not seen the â—â—erite of whose religious humilitie and obedience doth exceede perhaps in honour and acceptation before God the subtill and profound knowledge of many other And lastly if any man either in regard of his vocation or reason of his leasure list to studie the controversies let him take heede he come not with a doubtfull minde vnto theÌ„ for diffidence is as the sinne of rebellion let him be stedfast in faith let him submitt his owne reason to the Churches authoritie being the house of God the pillar and ground of truth let him be fast and immoveably built vppon that foundation and let his end onely bee this to furnish and arme himselfe in such sort as to bee able to withstand and overthrow those heretiques when they shall at any time chose or chance to encounter This is the maine course of of their perswading at this day whereby they seeke to re-establish that former foundation In the vnfolding whereof I have beene the longer because triall hath taught mee that not by some mens private election but as it should seeme by common order direction or consent they have relinquished all other courses and doe hold them to this as the most effectuall meanes by the way of perswasion to worke this designe In considering whereof there commeth to my minde that diversity which a wise Philosopher hath intimated in the wits of men That some are of so sharpe deepe and strange discourse that they yeelde not their assent vnto any thing vntill they have found out either some proper demonstration for it or some other certaine proofe whereon to ground it â—suredly Others are so shallow and weake in that faculty that they feare alwaies errour and therefore doe more willingly accord to whatsoeuer some of account for wisdome doe barely affirme then to any thing which this reason alone which they suspect inferreth Now these latter exceeding the other as farre in number as in worthynesse and honour of nature they
other men whereas the other falling vpon a livelier metall Calvinists in France of the French especially who are alwaies stirring and practising vpon their neighbous And more vehement for the while in whatsoever they affect hath had a very huge increase in latter time notwithstanding those massacres which have beene vsed to extinguish them and still growing forwards in all places where once it taketh and overtoppeth them now from whose roote at first it sprung This therfore by all meanes they seeke to represse giving some blind hope to the Lutherane of quiet toleration so hee will ioyne against these a while the sretters out of both But of all places their desires attempts to recover England have beene alwaies still are the strongest which in their more sober moods so many of them wil acknowledge to have beene the onely nation that walke the right way of iustifiable reformation in comparison of other who have runne headlong rather to a tumultuous innovation so they conceive it wheras that alteration that hath beene in England was brought in with peaceable and orderly proceeding by generall consent of the Prince and whol realm represeÌ„tatively assembled in solemn ParliameÌ„t a great part of their owne Cleargie according and conforming themselves vnto it no Luther no Calvine the square of their faith what publique discussing long delberation did perswade them to be faulty that taken away The succession of Bishops and vocation of Ministers continued the dignity and state of the Cleargy preserved the honour and solemnitie of the word of God not abused the more ancient vsages not cancelled In summe no humor of affecting contrarietie but a charitable indevour rather of conformitie with the Church of Rome in whatsoever they thought not gaine saying to the expresse law of GOD which is the onely approoveable way in all new reformations yet notwithstanding in regard of the power and renowne of the Prince and of their exemplarie policy in government of the state in regard that they concurring entirely with neither side yet reverenced of both are the fitter and abler to worke vnity betweene them and to bee an vmpire also directer a swayer of al whensoever there should be an occasion of assembling of their councels or conioyning their forces for their common defence and especially for that it is the only Nation of the Protestant party able to encounter and affront their king Catholikes proceedings for the rooting out of heresie as their actions both by sea and land have manifested Of all places in the world they desire most to recover it making full account that the rest would then soone followe and apply to them of their owne accorde one after another But to as high a tide as they are risen in their desires thereof to as lowe an ebbe are they fallen in their hopes being lesse now for ought I perceive than ever having seene her Maiestie kept and almost myraculously preserved their treasons discovered their excommunications vanished their armies defeated their cartels and bookes answered their chiefe champions discouraged wasted deceased those that remaine though many yet few of ability insomuch were it not for some hope of reformation which time may bring their fouÌ„ders were likely to withdraw from them ere long their stipends which get them but a name of fruitlesse liberality And this is all I can say for any hope or meanes of this generall vnity and so much I leave and recommend it to God as being both our best and now onely remaining pollicie to addresse our vnited and generall supplications to his divine power maiestie That it may please him by that ever-springing fountaine of his goodnes gratious mercy even beyond all humane hope if it mayst and so with his blessed will and by such meanes as to his Divine wisdom are ever in readinesse to effect those things which to mans wit may seeme impossible to extend his compassionable and helping hand over his miserable defiled and disgraced Church persecuted abroad and persecuting it selfe at home confined by Tyrants into a corner of the worlde and therein raging and renting it selfe into fitters to purge out of mennes mindes that ambition vanitie which so bewitches them with the love of Pomps glories of this perishing and ending world which in the breathing of a breath they will loathe and despise as nothing and to graffe in them a pure and single eye to behold the eternall trueth which seene breedeth love and love conductes to happinesse To roote out all gall and acerbitie on both sides and to bend their hearts to charitie that being re-vnited in the pilgrimage of this life this countrie of our terrestriall bodies we may after our service course therein accomplished ascend vnder the conduct of our Saviour before ascended to our everlasting rest in the countrey of our celestiall Soules there in societie vnitie of Saintes and Angelles to enioy the happie vision of the all glorious deitie and to sing his praise for ever I should heere make an end concerning the Church of Rome but that a question incident to the mater which last was spoken of beeing mooved by many diversly aunswered dooth sommon me to deliver vppe my coniecture also and that is vpon what ground of equitie or pollicie the Pope should suffer both the Iewes and Graecians to have publike exercise of their religioÌ„ in Italie yea in Rome it selfe vnder his Holinesse nose and onely the poore Protestant must be persecuted and chased if it be possible out of the worlde no view of his religion to other no exercise of it to himselfe permitted For as for the Graecians they have a Church at Venice with an Archbishop of Philadelphia a Bishope of Oâ—igo and sundry other Priests to governe it And the Italians also doe often repaire vnto thiere Masse They have their Masse also in Greeke with leavened breade other schismaticall ceremoÌ„ies at Rome it selfe and in Naples they say their priests retaine their wives still by permissioÌ„ froÌ„ the Pope in regard that in these places they acknowledge the Pops preheminence and power which at Venice they doe not but a meere primacie of order which the auncient Councils thought good to give him No more do Grecians in Apuglia and Calabria about Otranto and at Cassana nor in Cortu other Ilands adioyning to that coast being the old remaines of the Occidentall Grecians and who have alwaies and doe still followe the Greeke Church in all things though these in Calabria and Apuglia be subiect to the King of Spaine and in his power to roote out when soeuer himselfe listeth And yet euen in Italy it selfe doth he suffer them and their Religion who never could be induced to tollerate the Protestants in any the remotest corner of his huge scattered Monarchie though the Grecians are condemned Heretiques even in matter of the Trinitie and perpetuall oppugners of the Papall right and authoritie Then for the Iewes they even swarme in the most of