Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A41388
|
Firmianus and Dubitantius, or, Certain dialogues concerning atheism, infidelity, popery, and other heresies and schisme's that trouble the peace of the church and are destructive of primitive piety written in a plain and easie method for the satisfaction of doubting Christians / by Tho. Good.
|
Good, Thomas, 1609-1678.
|
1674
(1674)
|
Wing G1029; ESTC R23950
|
83,883
|
174
|
Firm. As the Kingdom of Heaven does not consist in Meats and Drinks but in Righteousness and peace Rom. 14. so neither does it consist in gestures vestures or any thing that is in it self indifferent when the Church commands us to wear such a vestment or to use such a gesture for Uniformity sake and outward decency not placing any intrinsecal Holiness or absolute necessity in any of those Ceremonies 't is our duty and not any superstition at all to be obedient yea we are guilty of the sin of disobedience and superstition also if we stand out against lawfull Authority For there is a two fold Superstition one Positive as when we ascribe Holiness to any thing that is in its own nature indifferent morrally neither good nor evil another Negative as when we Dogmatize and call that evil which Morally is not so and in such things Weare not Kneel not is as much Superstition as Weare or Kneel possibly can be What is it to any understanding man whether he Prayes or Preaches in Black or White or any other Colour unless it be for decency and uniformity the power of the Church limits us to a White Surplice rather then to a Black Iump or short Cloak Dub. But is not this an intrenchment upon our Christian liberty to be confind to particular Modes and Forms Firm. Not at all So long as our practice only is limited and our judgment left free as before any such Canon was made 't is strang that the same men who enjoyned three Ceremonies at the taking of the Covenant as to be bare Headed bare Handed the right Hand lifted up should so much scruple them in our Publick Service But in a word 't is plain Scripture that every Soul should be subject to the Higher Powers not onely for wrath but also for Conscience sake Now unless the Non-Conformists can bring as plain Scripture against our Ceremonies to prove them morally evil they must incurr the sin of Schisme and disobedience to those powers which God has ordained and these are far greater sins then the wearing of a Surplice though we had borrow'd it from the Pope himself Dub. You mind me now of one of the greatest exceptions against the Surplice c. because the Papists use it in their superstitious Worship therefore 't is unlawful for us to wear it in ours Firm. If this were a good reason 't would follow whatsoever the Papists do use or have abused in their Superstition 't is unlawful for us who have abandoned such trash and I rumpery to use but Papists have abused our Churches halices and other Ornaments in their fals Worship and Services therefore we may not use them but down with them down with them even to the Ground Dub. This indeed will be a very necessary consequent but a very costly one I fear the men that make this exception would not be very forward to Build them up again if Idolatry and Superstition were a just cause to make us lay aside our Surplices by the same reason we must pull down our Churches and upon the same accompt the Primitive Christians ought not to have eaten meat offered to Idols neither to have made use of the Heathens Tempels to celebrate the Worship and Service of the true God Firm. You see then how frivilous the exception against the Surplice is and so are all those that are offer'd against the Ring in Marriage bowing at the name of Jesus Kneeling at the Sacrament the Crosse after Baptisme and therefore I shall very briefly pass them over 1. For the Ring 't is as Antient at least as Turtullian who lived about two hundred Years after Christ he makes mention of it more then once and our Church do's use it as an ancient Ceremony no ways essential to Matrimony 2. Bowing at the name of Jesus is likewise very Antient The reason of it was 1. To shew our readiness to yield obedience and subjection to him as our Lord and King to whom all power both in Heaven and Earth is given and to whom every Knee must bow Phil. 2.10 The Antient Christians rather bowed at the naming of Jesus then at the name of Christ in opposition to the unbelieving Jews who most of all Blasphemed that sweet and saving name of Jesus which therefore they did indeavour the more highly to exalt 3. To declare their certain belief of what the Apostle foreteâ—â— that at the name of Iesus every Knee should bow of things in Heaven things in Earth and things under the Earth that all things should be subject unto him Phil. 2. 3. Kneeling at the Sacrament our Church conceives to be the most humble and reverend posture and therefore most suitable to so high and Heavenly a Mistery especially it being Administred with a Prayer yet we do not condemn the practise of other Churches where this holy Sacrament is received sitting or standing neither should they condemn us for Kneeling because Christ's Disciples receiv'd it in a Table gesture to which we are no more bound then to the place or time in which they reciv'd it An upper Room and after Supper as the learned Dr. Sanderson has evidently demonstrated 4. The Cross after Baptisme is also a very Antient Ceremony which the Christians of the first ages used in a couragious and undaunted opposition against the Heathens and Jews who scoffed and derided them for beleiving in and Worshiping a Crucified God for their Saviour who could not save himself True 't is in process of time the Cross was abused to grose Superstition and therefore say some it ought to be laid aside as Ezekias abollished the Brasen Serpent when the people made it an Idol Dub. Much more ought the Cross to be taken away being abused to superstition because 't was but an humane invention where as the Brasen Serpent was set up by Gods own direction and command Firm. Very true but then let Ezekias do it not the people on their own heads without the Authority of the King However the use of an innocent Ceremony ought not to be taken away because of ' its abuse and here it ought to be consider'd whether it be better to use the Cross to put us in mind of our duty not to be ashamed of Christ Crusifi'd as also of the courage and boldness of the Primitive Christians who not withstanding the Scoffs and Reproches of Infidels would make such open profession of their Faith in Christ Crucified as to use the sign of the Cross not only in Baptism but also upon sundry other occasions or else whether 't were better to forbear the use of it because it has been so much abused to Superstition let the Suprem power judge which of these is fittest to be done and determine accordingly either for the Negative or the Affirmative and I believe every sober and peacable Christian will esteem it his duty to submit unto such a determination Dub. But seing these and other ceremonies have been and are a great scandal to
men are apt to express toward the one and their cold disposition toward the other partly because 't is usual to let those things pass carelesly by our ears which we have often heard before or know we may haer again when ever we please and partly for that Sermons are new and fresh and if they slip by us for the present what excellencies soever they contain is lost which creats the grater atteâ—â—ion which causes the greater affections so far that worthy man This certainly is one great reason why set Forms of Prayer are so much undervalued in respect of extemporary and conceiv'd effusions Dub. I am abundantly satisfied that set Forms of Prayer are not only lawfull but very usefull in the Publike Service of the Church I shall now by your good leave descend to those exceptions which are made more particularly against the Liturgie of the Church of England First that 't is taken out of the Masse Book Secondly that it contains many shreds of Prayer which are short and customary wishes rather then serious and devout Prayers Thirdly that it appoints divers Apocryphal Chapters to be publikly read which contain things incredible and ridiculous As for those exceptions which are made against some particular passages in the body of the Liturgy they are so frivolous that they are not worth the trouble of a serious confutation he that pleases may see them sufficiently baffled by Mr Hooker Mr Ball himself a Nonconformist in his tryal of the grounds of Seperation with many others Firm. Your First excepâ—ion is the issue of Spite and Ignorance what though it contains many things that are in the Masse Book as the Creeds the Teâ— Commandments the Lords-Prayer and divers Collects Shall a true man refuse to take his goods and make the best he can of them because he finds them in a Theifs house Or shall the husbandman refuse pure wheat because 't was once mingl'd with chaff and tares albeit 't is now winnoâ—ed and sâ—fted Or shall we refuse Pauls Epistles because there are in them certain savory passages taken out of the writings of Idolatrous Heathens The Church of Rome was once a glorious Church true 't is it s now sadly corrupted yet as corrupt as 't is all is not chaff which that Church retains there remainâ— in her some good wheat which was in her before her novel superstitions were in their Swadling cloaths this wheat wee retain the châ—ff we hâ—ve blown away with a Fan of an orderly Reformation you see what a malicious cavil this is that our Common-Prayer is taken out of the Mâ—ss malice in some and ignorance in others have been the true parents of this groundless calumny 2. As to your Second exception that our Liturgie contains many short cuts and shreads of prayer pray you what do you think of the Publicans Prayer God be mercifull to me a sinner is any prayer in our Liturgie more short then that which our Saviour so well aproved Short ejacuculations concise forms Holy breathings of the Spirit are very frequent in the Scripture and past all peradventure very acceptable to Almighty God those that cavil at the shortness of our prayers and collects let them justify the length of theirs if they can from any one prayer in Scripture or Fathers that is a quater of an hower long Let any rational man who is acquainted with the nature of Prayer and humane infirmities seriously consider â—hether or no our Church has not carried her self very prudently both in the Method Phrase Form and ordering of her Service Are not all her holy Offices the matter and mostly the very words and choiâ—eâ—t portions of holy Scriptures what an unworthy calumny is it to tell the world our Common-Prayer is taken out of the Masse Could any thing be utter'd more fals and invidious those excellent Prayers She uses how are they â—itted to our infirmities mixed with Psalms Hymns and choise portions of Scripture is not this order and method more sutable to the weak capacities and unsteady attentions of the greatest part of the Congregation then a long extemporary Prayer for matter many times Heretical Schismatical Irreverent strangly bold unbeseeming a poor sinful Worme to offer up to the High and Dreadful Majesty of our Great and Good God Dub. I know by my own experience thâ—t long extemporary Prayers are very apt to dull â—nd deâ—den our attentions and I cannot deny but that sometimes I have been very much scandalized both at the matter as also at the un-Scriptural â—hantastical Affected expressions used in such Prayers which is not to be seen in the Common-Prayer Book whose phrase and words are very gravâ— and decent and being taken out of the word of â—od are most fit to be offer'd up to the Almighty God when we speak unto him in Prayer I am fully satisfied with the excellent Method Matter grave Oratory of the English Liturgie being 't is so consonant to and coresponding with the Holy Scripture So that I stand amaz'd at the impudence of those that first gave out that 't was borrowed from the Mass Book and at the dull ignorance of those that will believe so notoâ—ious a Lye The Book I acknowledge to be rarely compos'd and not onely useful in our publick Worship but also a very profitable directory for our Family private devotions Now to the last objection Were it not better that some Apochryphal Chapters were left out of the calender and Canonical Lessons set in their place Firm. Many learned men have indeed thought so and have wished for a change in this particular Mr Hooker has these words Those Ecclesiastical Books for so they were cald in auntient times not Apocryphal under which title were contain'd such Books which the Church allowed not at all to be read in publick I say those Ecclesiastical Books which in case my self did think as some do that 't were more safe and better that they were not to be read at all publikly nevertheless as in other things of like nature so in this I should be loath to oppose my private judgment against the force of their Reverend Authority considering the excellency of some things in all and of all things in certain of those Ecclesiastical Books which we publikly read and therefore I have thought it better to let them stand as a list or a marginal border unto the Old Testament and to grant at the least unto some of them publike audience in the house of God Dub. I do fully acquiess in the pious prudent and peaceable determination of this worthy man and so from the exceptions that are made against the liturgy I desire your discourse may proceed to those which are made against the Ceremonies of the Church 't is superfluous to name them all But only those which are most spoken against the Surplice the Ring in Marriage Bowing at the name of Jesus Kneeling at the Sacrament and especially the Cross in Baptisme which are said to be Popish and superstitions