same S. Augustine l. 22. de civitate Dei cap. 11. Disputing with the Infidels who according to the laws of Nature did argue that there could not be any Resurrection of the body because it is earthly and so could not be contained in heaven every Element having his particular poise and tending naturally to its proper place his answer besides perswasive reason is Cannot God almighty give the body of Man such a form likewise that it may ascend and support it self in heaven Cannot then the Almighty maker of the whole world take away the Ponderosity of earth and give the quickned body and hability to dwell in the same place that the quickned spirit shall elect why then may we not believe that the nature of a corruptible body may be made incorruptible and fit for heaven so that arguments drawn from the scituation and qualities of the clements can no way diminish the power that God Almighty hath to make mans body of a quality fit and able to inhabit the heavens Cap. 25. If they would shew me a thing which God cannot do I will tell them he cannot lye let us therefore believe only what he can do and not believe what he cannot I If they do not thus believe that he can lye let them beleeve that he will do what he promised and let them believe as the world beleeves which he promisea should beleeve and whose belief he both produced and praised Cap. 26. Why do they now cry out that this is impossible which God hath promised which the world hath believed and which was promised it should beleeve seeing that Plato himself is of our minde and saith that God can work Impossibilities that is such things which we conceive to be impossible If any one would ponder and seriously examine the arguments and reasons which our pretended Reformers do oppose against the Reall Presence of Christs Body in the Eucharist he shall easily perceive that they ground themselves on such humane Inventions proceeding more on their senses in opposition to Gods Omnipotency for the Hereticks of our times with their vain weak and weightless arguments do contradict the Catholick Church in the wonderfull effects which God hath wrought in the Eucharist principally because we cannot make them apparent to their senses nor give them a natural reason for them which we freely confess we cannot yet we know that God doth do nothing without reason in putting moral men by them past reason we know not his will in many things yet we know that what he will is no way impossible and we believe what he hath declared to be his will in this subject far be it from us to deny or question it which were no less then to impute falshood or imperfection unto him God can and will do according to his promise no apparent difficulty whatsoever no law of nature can any way impede it Plato as S. Augustine notes lib. 13. de civit Dei said well Gods will is beyond all other assurance God is not bound or limited to any condition in alotting of any particular being to any thing as though he could not make an absolute alteration thereof into an unknown quality of Essence God then as he can create what he will so can he change or alter the nature he hath created at his good pleasure for his wonderful power exceeds all wonders his wisdome permits and effects all and every particular or marvelous things and can make the most wonderful use of all the parts of the world which he only created Cannot the power of God exceed them in working such things as are incredible to Infidells or hereticks but easy to his Omnipotency God being the Author of Nature why do they ask a stronger reason of us when in proving what they hold to be impossible we affirm that it is thus by the will of Almighty God who is therefore called Almighty because he can do whatsoever he will Our Adversaries will not give credence to the Church affirming teaching and believing in all times the verity of such miracles with a proud supposition as if God Almighty could do nothing that exceeds their capacities to conceive we know no better or stronger Reason can be given for any thing then to say God Almighty can or will do this which he hath promised in the sacred Text wherein he hath declared as strange things as these which also he has performed surely he will do these because he has said he will as he hath made the incredulous Heathens to believe things which they held to be impossible Let not the faithful hoodwink themselves in the knowledge of Nature as though Gods power could not alter the nature of any thing from what it was before unto mans knowledge let them not think these things to be contrary to nature since they are effected by the will of God the Lord and maker of Nature they are not in themselves against Nature but at most against the common Order of Nature These words of S. Augustin in regard of other such wonderful things may be applyed as properly to our present subject for Catholicks do confess that they cannot give any humane or naturally known reason for the Mysteries which follow the Eucharist the most that we can ever pretend to is to shew that there is nothing in them against the essence of natures being our whole belief in these Mysteries depends on Gods word wherein he has manifested his will which carries with it an omnipotent power whereto all created things are in obedientiall subjection aswell in their essential as accidental being all mutable and alterable according to the will of God especially in all accidental qualities or dispositions which also he may add to natures being yea and also give another nature So he made Iron swim Fire not burn water to mount and become passible solid things to walk upon it Humane bodies to ascend to be also not consumed by perpetual fire Things of no weight at all as Angells called spirits to descend even within the bowels of the earth God by his will so disposing yea to be burnt with fire I might alledg many more examples of this kinde but these may suffice to manifest that Gods power is not to be limited to mans humane reason much less to his senses yea not to any created Intelligence what he can do is known only and solely to himself what he has done according to the ordinary course of Nature is latent to all humane understanding for there are many things whose natures and qualities the wisest men are ignorant of what he has done beyond the ordinary course of nature we know by his revelation which moves us to believe not know we trust in Gods word no way doubting of his omnipotency and therefore we little esteem of what the wit of man can think imagine or conceive to the contrary The Church grounded on Gods word and Tradition attested by the holy Fathers and Doctors has always so taught us
of our senses From what hath been said we plainly gather that in matters of faith we stand not to humane reason much lesse to our senses we may adde No sense or humane reason could tell us that Christ on earth was God The wise men who came from the East according to their senses imagination yea or humane understanding could conceive nothing but a little Child yet inspired by the holy Ghost in Faith only they adored the little Childe not as such but as being God and man which no sense or humane reason could dictate to them The Disciples Mat. 24. did not adore Christ by the rule of their senses or humane reason but when by faith they believed him to be the Son of God even after the Resurrection they did see Christ some believed others did not many who lived conversed and were in his company both simple and wise could never be convinced by their sense or reason that he was the Son of God and those who were of the simple sort sooner believed and were we not assured by divine revelation and testimony we could not believe either this or any other mystery of our Faith Where even according to reason it follows that we have a more sure ground to believe Gods word then our senses who perceive not the substance of the bread which is not perceptible by any of our senses whose objects are only accidents or sensible qualities which they have as well in the consecrated host or unconsecrated without any reflexion on the substance as being out of the sphere of their objects so that they discern not any thing of the substance or whether they be without any substance it is only the understanding which gathers by such or such accidents such or such a substance or subject and by natures ordinary course judgeth it to be bread but enlightned by faith and believing that nothing is impossible to God and that God in most express terms declared his body and bloud to be in the Eucharist the words are so clear that without wresting the terms none so simple but they may understand them as clearly as Peter is a man and those who contradict it on the ground of their senses are as the Apostle says 1 Cor. 2. sensual men not perceiving those things of the spirit of God it is foolishness to them and they cannot or rather will not understand for they are sensual measuring these heavenly mysteries by natural reason humane prudence and external senses which destroy Faith I know some object that of S. John 1. Epist cap. 1. where he attributes much to hearing seeing and touching matters of faith but they do not consider that the Apostles did hear and see many things which we believe from their testimonies but if we had only what they saw by their senses or humane wisdome our faith had been vain and of no importance for no visible thing or sensible as such can be the object of our faith what therefore they saw heard or touched was not believed as by faith but by experience see Scotus in 3. quaest 23. the Prophets and Apostles had a science which was not faith Faith taught them that the word was incarnate and that Christ who died rose again and ascended into heaven was the true Son of God now to us who have not seen them they are objects of faith as being only revealed unto us whereof we have testimony from Scripture and Tradition S. Thomas indeed believed because he had seen Christ after his resurrection Joan. 20. but as S. Augustine says tract 121. in Joan. He did see and touch man and confessed God whom he did not see nor touch but by this which he did see and touch that he believed now all doubt being removed and therefore he cryed out My Lord and my God and Jesus said unto him because thou hast seen me by sight and touch and certain knowledg that I am risen and believed that I am true God but blessed are those that have not touched me and have beleived Moreover S. John in this place opposes two diverse heresies to wit those who denied Christs divinity and those who denied his humanity and therefore begins his Epistle That which was from the beginning which he had declared in the beginning of his Gospel and for the other which we have heard by a voice from heaven which we have seen with our eyes which we have looked upon and our hands have handled we testifie unto you weereby he manifestly testifies that Christ in humane nature had true flesh and bloud God and man now because he was inspired by the holy Ghost one of Christs Apostles according to the testimony of the Scriptures we believe what he saw and heard to be true and receive it as a matter of faith CHAP. XII An addition to the former Chapter of the same Subject out of S. Augustine OUr adversaries who stand so much in matters of faith on their senses and private judgments should do well to consider that they imitate the heathens and Infidells who had no stronger arguments against the true Catholick doctrine then their senses and humane reason as we finde in all the holy Fathers who have laboured to convince them and in particular this is to be seen in blessed S. Augustine especially in his books de civitate Dei from whence I shall make choice of two articles of our Faith which are holy repugnant to humane sense and reason to wit the everlasting torments of Hell fire and the Resurrection of the flesh Of the first he treats in the first 8. Chapters of his 21. Book and thus he begins the second Chapter What then shall I say unto the unbeleevers to prove that a body Carnal and living may endure undissolved both against death and the force of eternal fire they will not allow us to ascribe this unto the power of God but urge us to prove it to them by some example saying There is no body that can suffer eternally but he must perish at length no flesh can suffer always and never die The Saint replys Cap. 3. What is this but to ground an assertion upon meer sense and apparence which he esteems absurd in matters of Faith for saith he These men know no flesh but mortal and what they have not known and seen they hold impossible A little after Through our flesh as now be such that it can not suffer all pain without dying yet then shall it become of another nature Whence in Cap. 4. he says That God who endowed nature with so many several and admirable qualities shall as then give the flesh a quality whereby it shall endure pains and burning for ever Cap. 5. But the infidells hearing of Miracles and such things as we cannot make apparent to their senses do ask the reason of them which because it surpasses our humane powers to give they deride them as false and ridiculous but let them give us reason for all the wondrous things that
only adore with Latria the flesh and bloud of Christ Jesus for whatsoever our late Advarsaries have foolishly enough invented Catholicks do not so adore the Elements of Bread or wine or species of them presence or circumstances but only and soly Christ Jesus believing firmly and without the least hesitation that he is really there present from which belief as a necessary sequel follows all true Adoration Our pretended Reformers will not stick at this for the first and chief beginner of this Reformation Luther not only approved it but also left it in practise to all his followers for generally all Lutherans do use it in their dayly practise the Tiguran Calvinists do affirm That if the true and natural body of Christ be in the Eucharist why should not our Lord be adored there if we should teach that the Natural body of Christ were truly there with the Papists we should also truly and faithfully adore It is certain the same errours do follow from Consubstantiation as from Transubstantiation to wit Adoration circumgestation inclusion and oblation Osâ—ander in Cont. 16. par 12. alledges the Divines of Wittenberg saying If Bread in the Lords supper be the substantial body of Christ the sacrifice of the Mass and Adoration of the sacrament may be defended The Divines of Geneva say to the Lutherans that Consubstantiation or Transubstantiation being admitted Adoration necessarily follows Eusebius Alckercherus affirms That from this foundation of the corporal and real presence and eating we must necessarily grant that aswell Adoration as oblation do follow in the sacrifice of Christs body and bloud Chemnitius in his Examin Con. Trident. par 12. plainly says If we believe Christ God and man to be present in a peculiar manner of presence and grace in the action of the supper so that he doth there exhibite to them who cat truly and substantially his body and bloud c. It cannot or ought not to be done but that faith should worship and adore Christ present in that action so Jacob Gen. 28. Moyses Exod. 23. Elias 3. Reg. 19. Truly had no command that they should adore in those places but because they had a general command that they should adore God every where and God was truly present under those extern and visible symbols c. Truly they adore that God whom they believed to be there present c. but they did not adore God as far from them in the Imperial heaven as remote and absent from them c. rightly therefore S. Augustine in Psal 98. S. Ambrose Nazianzene in the Epitaph of his sister from the sentence of Eusebius Emissenus and Luther cont Lovanienses ar 6. call the Eucharist a venerable Sacrament whence he makes this Adoration out of all Controversies between him and the Tridentine Councel From these learned men of the pretended Reformation we may note that although they opposed the Catholick Doctrine of the Church yet they were far from condemning this Adoration or making it Idolatry that they plainly confess that those who believe the Real presence of Christ in the Eucharist do constantly affirm that it is our duty to do it since the real and only object of such adoration is the body and bloud of Christ Jesus whence I make this Syllogism 1. They who give the honour due to God to any creatures are Idolaters But Catholicks give no honour due to God to any creatures Ergo Catholicks in this are not Idolaters 2. To adore or worship Christ Jesus in the Eucharist is not Idolatry But Catholicks only adore Christ Jesus in the Eucharist Ergo Catholicks in this are not Idolaters 3. He that believes Christ Jesus in the Eucharist may lawfully there adore him But Catholicks believe that Christ Jesus is in the Eucharist Ergo they may lawfully adore him there The sequel of Adoration to our belief is no way to be reprehended and is admitted by most of our Reformers and only those who deny the Real Presence can with any reason deny it Those who admit Consubstantiation whereof many were of our first pretended Reformers cannot nor do any way exclude it and I see not how those who believe the Real presence in what manner they please can any more for if Christ be there sure he is an Object adorable Our present Church of England plainly admits the Real presence as is manifested in its Catechisme before Confirmation where it is declared that The outward part or signe is bread and wine the inward part is the body and bloud of Christ which are verily and truly taken and received by the faithful in the Lords Supper the benefits are the strengthening and refreshing of our souls by the body and bloud of Christ and so all ancient protestants in England did believe and accordingly did with kneeling and adoration devoutly receive it The additional note at the end of the form of Communion expounds it That the kneeling is but a signification of our humble and grateful acknowledgment of the benefits of Christ given to all worthy receivers pray what is this but adoration when the Minister kneels at the Lords table sure he adores not the table but the Eucharist which is to be offered and taken thereon Nay the peculiar form ordained peculiarly for the Communion argues some special honour to the Eucharist and in words can signify no less for therein it is called the sacrament of Christs body and bloud The spiritual food and sustenance of our Lord the Communion of the body and bloud of our saviour Grant us gratious Lord so to eat the flesh of thy son and to drink his bloud that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body and washed through his most pretious bloud Again make us partakers of his body and bloud In the Communion The body of our Lord Jesus Christ which was given for thee preserve thy body and soul unto everlasting life and the bloud of our Lord Jesus Christ which was shed for thee preserve thy body and soul unto life everlasting and after it is called The spiritual food of the most pretious body and bloud of thy son our Saviour Jesus Christ These words and many such like according to vulgar understanding import a Real Presence and signify no less and moves the hearers to a devout expression of the honour they bear to the holy Sacrament yea to adore it which I speak not to condemn them in it no more then I would condemn Jacob Gen. 28. who seeing nothing of God but by the effects which he felt in himself he gathered that God in a speciall manner had been in that place he adored and worshipped God The Israelites Exod. 35. beholding the pillar of the cloud which was but a sign of Gods presence adored God and 2. Par. 6. the people seeing fire descending and the glory of our Lord on the temple falling flat on the earth upon the pavement paved with stone they adored and praised our Lord they adored not what they saw nor any