Selected quad for the lemma: judgement_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
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A45430
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Of the power of the keyes, or, Of binding and loosing
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Hammond, Henry, 1605-1660.
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1651
(1651)
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Wing H569; ESTC R14534
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153,935
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168
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the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I have now written vers 11. will enforce for so in 3 4 and 5. verses we read I verily as absent in body but present in spirit have judged already as though I were present concerning him that hath done this deed in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ when you and my spirit are gathered together with the power of the Lord Jesus Christ to deliver such an one unto Satan c. The Apostle though absent yet having an Apostolick ruling power or jurisdiction over them passeth censure as formally as if he had been amongst them upon that fornicator or incestuous person and by that spirit or power of his whereby he was present in their Assemblies doth therein pronounce this censure of excommunication or delivering up to Satan against him that by this means he may reduce that notorious offender that is the importance of those 3. verses and that others be not tainted by his example verse 6. c. And then verse 9. having a little digrest v. 7 8. he resumes his matter again and saith it over briefly in another phrase with an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. this then was it I wrote to you in or by Epistle because I was not present that you should not company with such By which it appears that the delivering a man to Satan and the commanding 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 are all one or one but a light addition to or variation from the other all other men being so far concern'd in such a ones being so delivered as not to company with him yet that not so much as men now a daies think lest they should be polluted by him i. e. by that act of communion with him as under the Law by touching an unclean thing as to help discipline him that the insensate sinner may see himself left alone to no society but Satans avoided abandoned by all and so be brought to a sense of his detestable dangerous condition and others kept from thinking his actions exemplary or fit to be imitated by them And therefore though this discipline be not used upon sinners cut of the Church ver 12. for they will not be wrought on by the Christians abandoning their company yet saith St. Paul vers 11. with a professor of Christianity one that lives in the Church and yet is guilty of this sin or the like 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for so I conceive the words must be joyned all betwixt being in a Parenthesis neither to company nor eat with him in stead of which 2 Thes 3.14 't is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 simply onely with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which it seems is a preparative to it set a mark or brand upon him and doe not company with him which in either place whether it belong onely to exclusion from communion in sacris or be to be extended to interdiction of ordinary civil society I professe my self not over-confident For the former onely this may be said 1 That although the sound of the words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 especially as we render it no not to eat seem to contain the latter also yet perhaps the aequipollence of that other phrase delivering to Satan may restrain it to the former 2. Because the interdiction of conversing or eating with Christian offenders might now at least make it necessary for a man to go out of the world as wâ—ll as the interdict of heathen-fornicators company would have done then 3. Because the phrase 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which in the close of the Chapter is set to expresse the former censure is by the Canons of the Councels solemnly applyed to these Ecclesiasticall censures suspension either from the Church or from office in it And yet on the other side the Jews were so severe to some Sect. 89 as to deem it unlawfull either to eat or familiarly to converse with them as Samaritans Publicans heathens and sinners so call'd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. notorious sinners and a notable evidence and example of that practice of theirs we have in the 3. book of Maccabees where speaking of the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 deserters or those that fell off to any notorious breach of their law the author saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they did expresse a detestation of them judging them as enemies of the Nation and denyed them the civility of common converse or good usage al friendly entertainments c. and the same is called after in that place 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a separating from them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 though it be read corruptly and without sense 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 aversation and exprest by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they appeared enemies to them and even the Jewish nidui or first degree of excommunication being a remotion ad 4. passus not suffering any man to come within four paces of him that was so censured was an interdiction of familiar conversation or eating with him And therfore perhaps some of that their discipline may be here imitated and retained but then again for the former opinion Christ by his contrary practice seemed to dislike that custome of theirs and though he brought excommunication into the Church or in sacris 't is not necessary he should continue that other that extended to civil commerce and therefore still perhaps may not Sect. 90 The best decision perhaps wil be that this censure ordinarily belongs only to society in Sacris but yet sometimes the state of affairs so requiring and when some other defect may be so supplyed The Governours may proceed to the second interdict that no man shal talk familiarly or entertain or eat with them that all men shall avoid their company discountenance them and not so much as say God speed allow them ordinary Christian civility by this means to besiege and starve them up and so if possible humble and reduce them To which purpose it is observable what the learned and judicious Hugo Grotius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hath noted concerning this matter that in a Christian Church where either through the recentnesse of their plantation communes conventus non sunt there are no constant common assemblies of the Christians in it or wherupon the same occasion there is no settled Government in the hands of a Bishop and assistent Presbyters or where the Church is torn asunder by Schismes as in Corinth when this first Epistle was written chap. 11.18 whence it follows v. 31. That judgments or censures were neglected and upon that neglect diseases and deaths among them I would I could not say among us also whereas at the writing of the second Epistle the discipline together with a quiet judicature was restored 2 Cor. 2.6 there in stead of exclusion from communion in sacris that other interdict of private commerce or avoyding of private familiarity hath been thought useful by the Apostle To this you may apply Rom. 16.17 where the Apostle beseeches them to mark and
honorem quo salvo salva pax est The Chief Priest who is the Bishop hath the power of giving baptisme after him the Presbyters and Deacons yet not without the authority of the Bishop for the honor of the Church which as long as it is preserved the peace of the Church will be preserved also So when the Scriptor anon quaest in V. Nov. Test which is thought to be Hilary saith In Alexandriâ per totum Aegyptum si desit Episcopus consecrat Presbyter that in Alexandria and Aegypt if there be no Bishop the Presbyter consecrates 't is clear by the mention of that liberty in the Presbyter as of a thing peculiar to Aegypt and that too only when there is no Bishop present that regularly this power belong'd to none but the Bishops and to those Presbyters to whom he gave it Where by the way will appear a great mistake of Blondel and I suppose out of him as his many other Notes in his apparatus against Bishops of Salmasius who in another place of Hilary in Eph. 4. cited by both of them apud Aegyptum Presbyteri consignant si praesens non sit Episcopus In Aegypt the Presbyters consigne if the Bishop be not present interpret consigning either to be confirmation or blessing I suppose absolving of penitents or ordination It being clear by the other place just now cited that consignatio signifies there consecrating of the Sacrament which is peculiarly call'd consecration that of giving orders being ordination not as he calls it ordinandorum consecratio which what it would grammatically signifie I know not unlesse some benediction of them that are after to be ordain'd and it seems Blondel himself p. 61. thinks it possible that consignatio may signifie the consecrating the Elements and by what follows I conceive him to use it in that sense saying quod antiquis per solam Episcoporum absentiam licuit omnibus nunc absolutè licet that which antiently was made lawful to all i. e. to Presbyters onely by the Bishops absence is now absolutely lawfull to all Which I suppose he must mean of consecrating the Sacrament and I am sure could not reasonably believe of ordination But this by the way in passage to confirm that assertion of Ignatius sufficiently that the Church was by the Apostles put into the hands of Bishops that ordinarily the consent of the Bishop was required to enable a Presbyter for any Ecclesiastical act the plenitude of power being by Christ delivered down to the Apostles and through them to their successor-bishops and by them dispenst out to others in that measure and those portions which they should think fit And if it be demanded here What it is which in our Church Sect. 14 is given to Presbyters in their Ordination as the full importance of the form then used Receive the Holy Ghost I answer not all that is at any time contained under that phrase when it is used in the consecration but only the particulars which are after mentioned and so distinctly not the power of ordaining which is not mentioned and which is a particular that never was regular for any Presbyter in the antient Church to assume to himself or to any number of that order without a Bishop over them and it would not be hard to give an account of all that hath been produced of late by Salmasius or any other from the origines Alexandrini or any other record of antiquity to the contrary but that it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and would be too large a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in this place and if the practice of some few Protestant Churches in this last Century be opposed against it then 1. I shal conceive those very unfit to be confronted against the Vniversal for 1500 years and therefore secondly I shall not doubt to affirm that want is not only a defect but a corruption among them Thirdly it will be observable that even those that want it among them have formerly thought fit to excuse it by the case of necessity and to acknowledge it their infelicity but not their fault their superiors in the State not permitting them to have Bishops to ordain them and to give their judgements freely that where Episcopacy is it is to be preserv'd and where it is not it is to be wisht for which is a sufficient expression of their sense of it And if the improsperousnesse of the cause of late in this Kingdome hath moved some of them to change their style I suppose there is no greater reason to depend on their judgements who are mov'd or wrought on by such extrinsecal arguments then on his who lately made no scruple to confesse in giving his opinion of H. Grotius Ego non probo prudentiam minùs felicem He lik'd not the choice of that side which was not prosperous And then fourthly that this cannot be applicable by way of excuse to those who desire to cast out Bishops where they are on purpose that Presbyters may usurp the power which belongs to them Secondly not al power of binding and loosing retaining or remitting though those words are there added whose sins you do remit c. but so much as the Bishops or Governours are presumed to have thought fit to impart to them and what that is will appear by other acts of our Church especially by the Liturgy as 1. The declaring of absolution in the Church after the Confession of sins 2. The absolving them by way of prayer before the Sacrament in case the Bishop be not present and 3. in Baptismal washing and 4. upon speciall Confession on the sick-bed or any time else which may by analogy or reduction come under these same heads as in the case of private conference and confession at other times In all these the remitting of sins is allowed among us to a bare Presbyter not only by way of pronouncing or declaring of absolution but as a ministerial act actually absolving him by Christs authority committed to the Presbyters from all his sins Sect. 15 All which yet will not extend to the absolving from the band of Excommunication or proportionably to such power of binding any further at most then to confer the first power of it which if it be then given doth yet remain as the other power of Preaching and administring the Sacraments bound and restrained from being exercised till they be further loosed by the donation of a second power as Luke 24.49 when Christ sent them the Promise of his Father which was at the time of his breathing on them Joh. 20.22 and gave them a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a grace or first power of it he yet restrains the exercise of it till the actuall descent of the Holy Ghost but tarry you in Jerusalem till you be indued with power from above and that is not done in this Church as it stands established by Law in this particular of the Keys till he become a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a