Trinity Colledge near DVBLIN LONDON Printed for Benj. Tooke and are to be sold at the Ship in St. Paul's Church-yard 1676. THE CONTENTS Q. 1. Whether any one going from the Church of England and dying a Roman Catholick can be saved page 1. Q. 2. Whether they be Idolaters or No 39 Q. 3. Where was the Church of England before Luther's time 48 Q. 4. Why all the Reformed Churches are not United in One 81 Q. 5. Why the Church of England doth not hold up to Confession Fasting-days Holy Oyl which we our Selves commend 94 Q. 6. Why was Reformation done by Act of Parliament 110 ERRATA P. 34 l. 13 before vet add may p. 42. l 13. after office add of p. 58. l. 10. even for when p. 92 l. 2. shews p. 115. l. 8. for its r. his A PREFACE IT is of no further concernment to acquaint the Publick with the occasion of penning these Papers than as the occasion might have an influence on the design and as it may be very useful to inform the Reader of the design that he may the better know what to expect in the performance He may therefore be pleased to understand that the following Queries were tendred to a Gentlewoman of the Communion of the Church of England by a Romanist who had a design of seducing her and that they were answered by another hand but on such Principles or in such a way of management as that it did not give her the desired satisfaction This gave occasion to some that were concerned for her to shew the Paper to some others in order to the inviting them to undertake it in a way that might be likely to prove more successful By this means of communication it came at length to my hands from a Person who first desired my Opinion concerning it and then with some earnestness importuned me to commit my thoughts to writing Pursuant therefore to this occasion my design was in the first place to shew from sound Principles that the Church of England is able to defend her Reformation from the Errors of the Romanists and to clear her self as far as She is charged with that Breach of Communion which followed thereupon without giving any advantage to the Non-Conformists to justifie either their first Separation from Vs or their Eternal Subdivisions from one a-another Nor was I willing to engage a Person in the Gentlewomans condition in any Controversies that might be spared without Injury to the merit of the Cause or to debate even such as could not so be spared by such Arguments as might exceed her opportunities of Enquiring or her capacity of Judging so as to oblige her to depend on the conduct of others more Inquisitive and Judicious But I have either waved Authorities where I could debate the Case by Arguments less liable to Dispute and better suited to the understanding of a Gentlewoman or where I have been necessitated to insist on them I have endeavoured to make out their Credibility by such Presumptions as are easie to be understood and familiar in parallel Cases and generally granted as most Prudent whenever unskilful Persons find themselves obliged to acquiesce in the conduct of Persons more skilful and Judicious than themselves And I have purposely avoided all citations of Authors even where necessary but such as were to be had even in English and therefore might be consulted by the Gentlewoman her self I confess those other Reasonings fit for Scholars as they are more subtle so they are withal more solid and conclusive But withal I consider 1. that those things wherein Scholars have the advantage of unlearned Persons are principally such wherein Reading is absolutely necessary for their Historical conveyance to us It is certainly impossible for any to know what Doctrines were maintained in the Apostles times and consequently what Doctrines are true where they are supposed capable of no other Evidence of their being true but because they were so maintained without insight into the several Histories Authors of the intermediate Ages through which they are to be deduced But for other things whose evidence of their being true does not depend on such a conveyance the Reason of the thing is a sufficient Evidence and of this every equally rational Person how little soever he be conversant in Authors is an equally competent Judge And of this kind are many of the things here mentioned on which the stress of the Cause depends The prudent Reader will easily discern which they are without my instancing And 2. even in those things which depend on Positive Revelation and wherein the only means of our Assurance of them is Historical Tradition though it be indeed true that Persons of little Reading cannot so competently assure themselves of the writings and opinions of former Ages without the assistance of others more conversant in those Studies yet since it is not the way of Prudent rational Persons therefore to conclude a thing to have been revealed by the Apostles because such Authors tell us that it was so much less because such Authors maintained it as their own Opinion but first to assure themselves of such things on which the Credibility of such Authors in such matters may be made clear to us and then of those Expressions from whence they conclude such Authors to have given Testimony to such a thing as an Apostolical Tradition it is plain that the judgment of these things depends wholly on the reason of the things themselves And therefore where Learned Men are agreed as to their accounts of the Authors and their Expressions and where the only remaining Dispute is whether such undoubted Works of such Authors be competent for the conveyance of a Tradition and whether such Expressions considered in all their circumstances come home to the Controversies at present debated these are things whereof common Prudence and a cultivated natural Judgment may as well qualifie Men to pass a Censure as the greatest Reading imaginable And this seems to me the best way in affairs of this nature to wave such things as were disputed among Learned men concerning their Historical Informations and only to found my reasonings on their unanimous Concessions And most of the Controversies betwixt Us and the Romanists are of that nature as to be capable of this way of management Now this way of not intermedling in the Disputes of Learned men but only proceeding on their unquestioned concessions is as most solid and satisfactory to the most accurate Learned men themselves so most prudent and easie for those who are unlearned And 3. even as to those other things wherein I have indeed proceeded on popular Presumptions yet considering that these are the only reasons which God has fitted to the capacities of the greatest part of Mankind and that God is in his Goodness concerned to give them reasons sufficient for their direction and that the nature of the things themselves is of importance to his Government and that it is therefore requisite that
yet thus much at least will follow that we cannot be satisfied that they had any such Evidence which is enough to render it doubtful to us whether it were an Apostolical Tradition Now that they did not mention this Supremacy I do not desire the Ignorant to take the bare word of our Authors but I am content that they trust their own Judgments concerning the passages produced as far as they are capable of judging them or where they find themselves unable that there they acquiesce in the Confessions of candid learned Men though of our Adversaries Communion Which is no more than what they themselves count Prudent in the like Cases when they occurr in the management of their secular affairs use II § 7. Nor is it only thus Convenient but it is almost Necessary in dealing with our Adversaries to begin at least with this Fundamental Principle For till they be convinced of the Fallibility of their Guide all the Reasons produced against them are only taken for Temptations and tryals of the stedfastness of their Implicite Faith And in affairs of this nature they are taught to distrust their own Judgment nay in matters of Faith the most Learned Clergy are taught to do so as they are considered in their private capacity as well as the more ignorant Laity and they are further taught that in such matters their Faith is by so much the more excellent and meritorious by how much more it captivates their Understandings and that this captivating of their Understandings implies a denial of their own Judgments when different from that of their Superiors Now upon these terms it is impossible to deal with them by particular Reasonings For the utmost that can be expected from the clearest Reasonings is that their private Judgments may be convinced by them But if when this is done they distrust their own Judgments nay think themselves obliged to deny their own Judgments in complyance with that of their Superiors nay take it to be the greater glory of their Faith to deny the greater and more powerful Convictions it will then follow that by how much more Conscientiously they Act according to their own Principles by so much the less capable they must be of this kind of Reasoning It must needs be in vain to urge them with such Reasons by which they will not be tryed though they should indeed prove convictive and that to their own Understandings § 8. Nor indeed is it rational to expect that they should be otherwise disposed pursuant to their Principles For all Prudent Considerers of things will confess that one direct proof that a thing is actually True is more considerable than many Probabilities to the contrary Especially if the direct proof be of it self stronger than any contrary Objection as indeed no Objection can be so sufficient to prove any Proposition false as the Infallibility of the Proponent is to prove it true Which must the rather hold considering that they take the judgment of their Judge of Controversies for an adaequately-infallible Proof never remembring that though indeed the Spirit of God be Infallible yet the Arguments whereby they prove their Judge of Controversies so assisted by that Spirit as to partake of its Infallibility that is so assisted as that their Judge of Controversies shall Infallibly follow the Infallible Guidance of the Spirit otherwise themselves cannot pretend that all assistance of the Spirit must infer Infallibility unless they will grant that every good Christian is Infallible because they cannot deny that he is so assisted I say these Arguments are only Moral and such as may in many Cases be exceeded by Arguments taken from the nature of the thing and that the Consequence must follow the weaker part so that still their Faith can be no more than morally certain though their Judge of Controversies were granted to be Infallible in regard of his assistance § 9. Yet even so it should be remembred on our part that no Arguments were fit to be admitted against the sense of an infallible Judge but such as might exceed those whereby their Judg of Controversies seems to them to be proved Infallible which would cut off many of those Arguments which are used in the particular Disputes But beginning at their First Principle it is easie to shew that they are obliged to take our Arguments into serious consideration and to determine according as they judge Reasonable in their private Judgments For the Judge of Controversies cannot in reason oblige them to captivate their Understandings to it self till it be proved And the Arguments here used are Antecedent to that Proof And when upon examination of the Credentials of the Judge of Controversies their proof of such a Judge shall be found insufficient they will then and not till then have reason to trust their private Judgments in the particular Disputes And then and only then the particular Disputes may be likely to obtain an equal hearing from such of them as are truly Conscientious use III § 10. Besides if this Hypothesis hold true it will be very useful both to retain several in the Reformed Communion and to bring several others over from the Roman who are already by their Principles disposed for the Reformation 1. There may be several who in the particular Disputes may probably incline to the Roman side and yet have an abhorrence for the Roman rigour in those principal ones concerning Infallibility and the Popes Supremacy These if they may be perswaded that they may be admitted to that Communion without professing the Belief of those Principles to which we are as yet to suppose them so very averse may be tempted to think it lawful to joyn themselves in Communion with them This seems plainly to have been Mr. Cressy's Case whose entrance into that Communion was very much facilitated by the account of Infallibility given him by Dr. Veron whereby he was perswaded that it was only a School-term not used in the Decrees of any received Councils no nor any way expresly defined and that the use of it would not be exacted from him by their Church as a Condition of her Communion For he acknowledges he had formerly believed that this main ground of the Roman Religion so he calls it namely the Infallibility of that Church was as demonstratively confutable as any absurdity in Mathematicks And particularly he confesses that Mr. Chillingworth's Arguments against it had to him appeared unanswerable and that his Book alone had the principal influence on him to shut up his entrance into Catholick Unity But it is here proved that whatsoever may be thought of the Word concerning which more may be said than was observed by Mr. Cressy's Friends but that it is unnecessary to say it on this occasion yet the Thing must necessarily be maintained by them on the same Principles by which they have presumed to censure the Reformation and in that very sense wherein our Arguments are so conclusive against it It is very
necessary by the exigences of the Communities for which they are intrusted And if in any Case this may be allowed to be Expedient there can be no reason to doubt but that it is so here The thing is of that importance as that upon it depends the Reconciliation of the Divided Parties of Christendome which are neither likely to be subdued by the Power of any one nor possible to be reconciled without Concessions on some if not on all sides by Churches as well as by private Persons and it cannot appear on which side the Concession is fit to be made unless all submit to a tryal and resolve upon tryal to yield to what they shall judge reasonable Besides there is a particular Reason why the Church should reserve an open Ear for all things that can be urged for her information in matters of Faith Not only in regard that the things are such as do not derive their Lawfulness or Unlawfulness from her Authority but are what they are either True or False Antecedently to it so that her Authority as it cannot change the Nature of the things in themselves so neither can it alter their obligation in reference to the Consciences of those who are otherwise perswaded Nor that She must be Responsible to God how little soever She be so to her Subjects if She betray her trust in the Faith once delivered to her and thereupon drive out of her Communion Persons who ought to have been encouraged to continue it and break off from the Communion of other Churches with whom She ought to have maintained a correspondence But also because her whole Authority depends on it For if She be Erroneous in Fundamentals especially if her Error be by way of Defect in them She is uncapable of being a Christian Church and consequently uncapable of Ecclesiastical Authority So that as She tenders her whole Authority in other things She is obliged to use all diligence to secure her self from Error in these and it must be her best Policy to do so Nay the greatest Human Authorities that are and who are most Critical in insisting on these Punctualities of Policy in maintaining what they have once determined yet think it no disparagement to them to condescend to a review and to change their Judgments upon better Information And since the retriving of that sort of Learning which is requisite for clearing Apostolical Tradition which came in with the Reformation of Religion the Church of Rome her self is much better informed and better qualified for Judging than She was in those obscurer Ages wherein She first defined them § 25. Supposing therefore that She were thus disposed to come to a review it plainly follows further that the whole force of her new Decrees upon this review must be resolved into the merit of the Cause For when her Judgment has once been acknowledged Fallible there can then remain no further pretence of any greater Certainty in her Conclusions than in the Premises from whence they were deduced by her And from hence it would be very reasonable to expect 1. that She would not upon this new review define what She should believe insufficiently proved Antecedently to her Definition This being applyed to particulars would cut off very many of her newly introduced Articles which her most eminent Champions confess inevident Antecedently to her defining them And we might expect the number of Articles which would be reduced upon this way of Tryal the more considerable if 2. all those counterfeit Miracles and Revelations and all those counterfeit Authors and Authorities were waved which at the defining of these Articles were generally believed genuine but are since as generally acknowledged to have been Forgeries All those Doctrines which upon such Testimonies as these were taken for Apostolical must lose their Credit of being so as soon as these Testimonies shall be convicted of incompetency for assuring us what was Apostolical Especally 3. if none but the earliest Writers be trusted as indeed none else are competent for conveying Apostolical Tradition to us And 4. if they were wary in this kind to impose no Doctrines as Conditions of their Communion but such as might appear even to themselves very Necessary and very Evident If the defalcations were made which we have reason to believe would be made even by themselves upon the Suppositions now mentioned I do not see any reason to despair of so much Liberty to be allowed by them as would suffice to reconcile our Communions And this I believe will be an information very useful and very acceptable to all hearty desires of the Peace of Christendom that is indeed to all truly-Christian Spirits use V § 26. A fifth Use of this Hypothesis is that it will serve for a Scheme of Principles to justifie the Reformation for which some of our modern Adversaries have been so very importunate Nor do I pretend hereby to supersede the Endeavours of that admirable Person who has already undertaken them His Principles do excellently well shew that as to the Resolution of our Faith in those Particulars which are truly of an Apostolical Original and wherein we do agree with the Romanists themselves we can sufficiently prove them derived from the Apostles by competent Testimonies of the several Ages through which they must have passed without being any ways beholden to an Infallible Judge of Controversies Nay that such an Infallible Judge is indeed a Means improper for such an End as requiring many such things for its proof to us who must be supposed to live at a distance from the time of its Original Institution as are every way at least as liable to Dispute as the Controversies to be determined by it So that hence it appears that we may be Christians nay and Catholicks too that is that we may believe as many Articles as at first were imposed as necessary to be believed without the least obligation of being Romanists that is of believing all their superinduced Novel Doctrines And this is of excellent use against them in the whole Dispute concerning the Resolution of Faith where they pretend that the Books of the Scriptures themselves and the Sense of those Books and consequently all the Articles which are proved from those Senses cannot be proved Credible to Us without the Authority of their Judge of Controversies and therefore that as we follow this Authority in these things so we ought to follow it in all other things equally recommended by it which must therefore be equally Credible with them This Consequence will indeed hold with them concerning whom the Supposition is true and therefore it cannot be strange that the Romanists who profess to believe our common Articles on the Credit of this Authority should look on those whom they call Hereticks as choosers in Religion and as self condemned in refusing to believe other things as credible and credible on the same Principles with those they do believe they still supposing that they whom they call
Hereticks believe the common Articles on the same Principles on which themselves believe them But from the Principles of that excellent Person it plainly appears that the Supposiâ—ion is not true concerning Us and that as we profess we do not so there is nothing that can in Reason oblige us to believe even our common Articles on the Authority of their or any other pretended Infallible Judge of Controversies § 27. But the Principles here advanced do not so much concern the Articles wherein we are agreed as those wherein we differ and therefore will more immediately reach the Popish Communion as Popish and the Protestant as properly so called that is as protesting against their Errors and against the Uncanonical courses taken by them for Imposing their Errors and for the suppressing of all opposition to the contrary Here it is first proved that it being our part only to Assert our own Liberty from their Additional Articles they are obliged to prove not we to disprove their Impositions Then because the first Principles of their Impositions are not agreed on by themselves but expresly denied by several Persons in their Communion therefore I have proceeded to enquire after them by knowing what it is that they are obliged by necessary consequence to maintain on account of their being of that Communion so that by finding these we have all their particular Doctrines reduced to their first Principles And the discovery of the weakness of the proofs producible for these upon the former Supposition that they are obliged to prove them is as clear a Discovery of the Justice of the Reformation from the first Principles as the nature of the thing will bear use VI § 28. A sixth and last Usefulness of this Hypothesis above others is that it is capable of a more easie proof and a proof more likely to prevail ad homines For the several Parties among our Adversaries will not only grant us each of the Premises but undertake to prove them for us and an indifferent Person will not be beholden to either of them for the Conclusion That he cannot be true to the Principles of their Communion or to use their language that he can be no sound thorough Catholick who does not hold Infallibility and that confined to that part of the Church which is in their Communion on account of their being virtually Catholick the Jesuites and other high Papalins will affirm and it is that for which they contend To them therefore I shall refer all those of that Communion who shall doubt of the cogency of the proofs here produced for further satisfaction I could heartily wish that the odium of this reference might make them decline the Service and should take it for a highly commendable condescension if such as they who have devoted themselves to the Service of the Catholick Church could be perswaded to declare their dislike of Principles so pernicious to Catholick Peace But I fear it is a favour too great to be expected from them If any therefore doubt of the other Premiss viz. the indefensibleness of this challenge to Infallibility and of this Notion of a Catholick Church virtual on which that challenge must be grounded he may be pleased to consult those of their Writers who defend the Supremacy of General Councils or rather of the Catholick Church diffusive So that this way of proceeding will be most sutable for all sorts of Adversaries If they read it with a desire of satisfaction they will find that more easie when they shall consider that it proceeds only on that which themselves do partly grant true already so that there will only one Premiss remain concerning which they can desire further satisfaction If they read it with a design of confutation they will also find that more difficult when they shall remember that they cannot undertake it without engaging a very considerable Party among themselves in the defence of these Fundamental Principles of their whole Communion § 28. Many great and considerable improvements might have been also made of this difference of their Authors in matters of so great importance to their common Interests which may hereafter be more fully enlarged on as themselves shall administer a further occasion for it This will shew how little reason they have to boast of their Unity when it thus appears that they are so little agreed in these Principles of their Unity So that as it has already appeared that their difference herein must in reason oblige them to separate in their Communion if they act conformably to their Principles so nothing but a provocation like that which was given to Luther and Henry the Eighth can be wanting to them who deny this Monarchy of the Pope to make them do as they did viz. actually to divide their Communion as their Principles already oblige them This will also let them see how little advantage their Laity is like to have above ours in judging of the Controversies which divide our Communions They would have them take the Judge of Controversies's word for the Particulars That may be when they have found him But when there are different Pretenders as there are here the Pope the Council and the Church diffusive how shall they judge who has the justest Claim Must they judge of the reasons at least of Credibility That is it that we would have them do and for which we are blamed as putting them upon a task too difficult for them or encouraging them to entertain too good an Opinion of their own abilities Must they take the Pope's word in the Case But he is yet only a Party and till the Motives of Credibility be tryed can have no advantage above others his Competitors And then why may not They be trusted also If they be all trusted their Pretensions being so inconsistent the Laick who trusts them must still be lest as irresolute as ever Must they therefore follow the judgment of their most Credible Divines concerning it But that will again be as hard a task as the former to be able in so great apparent Equality to distinguish who are the most Credible especially abstracting from the merit of the Cause And what advantage the favourers of the Papacy have in numbers that the others have in disinteressedness which will go very far in recommending the Credibility of an Authority in such a Case as this is Besides the greatest Authority of Divines will not by themselves be allowed for any more than a probable and therefore a very fallible inducement But how much more so when there are other Divines as eminent as themselves of another Judgment And even Infallibility it self if it be received on a Fallible recommendation will still amount to no higher than a Fallible Proof which even themselves cannot judge sufficient for their purpose in such a Case as this is If both Pretenders and Divines be trusted on both sides as far as their Pretensions are not inconsistent with each other this will effectually serve