of fayth which are to be beleued concerning him Being not able to preuaile therein he descended to the Article of the holy Ghost and so stirred vp Macedonius to deny the Godhead of the holy Ghost Being not able to preuaile therein he went to the Articles concerning the Church and so in sundrye ages hath gone from one Article to an other vntill he hath gone ouer all the Articles of the Creed Now being disproued in them all he doth not so rest but returneth againe to the first at which he began not to proue a multiplicitie of Gods as he did before endeuour but to proue a nullitie of any God by disprouing the God-head either of the Father or of the Sonne or of the holy Ghost of all three But he goeth to worke with greater violence to chop off all fayth all religion at one blowe by prouing that there is neuer a God and to this purpose hath he armed his Polititians with arguments against the Bible But to them may be applyed the wordes of Policarpus to Marcian the haereticke who being asked of him Agnoscis me ô Policarpe Dost thou acknowledge me ô Policarpus answered him Agnosco te esse primogenitum Satanae I knowe thee very well thou art the sonne and heire of the Deuill The last cause of Atheisme is the lenitye and ouer great mildnes of Princes and Gouernours which doe suffer Atheists to escape vnpunished I may iustly say it is their fault that there are Atheists that will suffer Atheists For so saith the holye Ghost concerning Azariah the King of Iudah He did vprightly in the sight of the Lord according to all that his Father Amaziah did but the high places were not taken away for the people yet offered and burned Incense in the high places And the Lord smote the King he was a leper vnto the day of his death The King him-selfe you see is commaunded to be a godly man not he but his subiects committed idolatrye yet God punisheth him for the idolatrye of his subiects But that could not stand with the iustice of God to punish the King for his subiects offences vnles it were the Kings faulte that the subiects offended Where the Spanish Inquisition is it is a very rare thing to heare of an Atheist which I speake not to that end as if I did wish that Inquisition to be brought into any Christian Kingdome but onely to shewe that it is better to liue where there is too much seueritie rather then too much loosenes and where nothing is lawfull rather then where all things are permitted as if they were lawfull The Lord of his mercy stirre vp the hearts of all his annoynted Princes inflame their Zeale that they may not onely hate Atheisme as I hope they doe with a perfecte hatred but also banish such impietye that heereafter not onely the opinions but also the verye name of Atheist may be as it were buried in hell and no more heard of in their Kingdomes Chapter 3. How Atheisme may be rooted out of all Christian landes AS prosperitie causeth many men to forget God and others to denye God so aduersitie sicknes imprisonment such like chastisements of God for sinne will make wicked men not onely to acknowledge confesse God but also to stoop downe before him and to flye for succour vnto him When Iulian the apostata was deadly wounded by a dart from heauē he could not be silent but that plague extorted out of his mouth a confession of the power of Iesus Christ whome before he had denyed he cryed out Vicisti Galilaee Iesus of Galile the conquest is thine Though Pharao in his prosperitie had said who is the Lord I knowe him not I will not let the people goe yet when his land was plagued with Frogges he called for Moses and Aaron and said Pray ye for me vnto the Lord that he may take away the Frogges from me and from my people and I will let the people goe that they may doe sacrifice to the Lord But as soone as God gaue him a little rest that the plague ceased he was hardned againe When the hand of the Lord was heauye vpon the men of Ashdod and he destroyed them and smote them with Emeroides they remoued the Arke out of the house of Dagon and said Let vs send the Arke of God vnto his owne place that he slay vs not and our people When Nabuchodonozer was depriued of his Kingdome and turned into an Asse to graze in the field for the space of seuen yeares then he began to be humble to vnderstand himselfe better to lift vp his eyes to heauen to giue thankes to the most high to praise and honour him that liueth for euer to confesse that his power is an euerlasting power that his Kingdome indureth from generation to generatiō that all the inhabitānts of the earth are reputed as nothing that according to his will he worketh in the armye of heauen and in the inhabitants of the earth that none can stay his hand nor say vnto him what dost thou Then he could make both an humble a large consession and say I Nabuchodonozer prayse and extoll and magnifie the King of heauen whose workes are all truth and his waies iudgement and those that walke in pride he is able to abase But for as much as now such miracles doe cease and it belongeth to Gods annointed Kings to be ielous of his glory if they wil abanden Atheisme out of their Kingdomes first of all they must withdrawe their countenace from all vngodly liuers For so long as the Prince dooth looke cheerfully vpon them the eyes of the people will be defixed vpon them also they will admire them and think their vices to be vertues You know what Hamon said Thus shall he be honoured whome the King doth honour and againe the argument must followe aswell on the contrary side Thus and thus shall he be dishonoured whome the King doth dishonour You are not ignorant of the saying of Salomon Indignatio Regis est nuncius mortis The displeasure of the King is but a fore-runner of death If the King giue countenance to Atheists the people will respect them by his example if he frowne vpon them the people will trample ouer them The King is like the maior preposition in a Sillogisme the people are like the conclusion But it is a most certaine rule in Logicke Conclusio sequitur deteriorem partem If the maior be negatiue or perticuler the conclusion will bee so if any thing bee worser then other in the King the people wil be sure to followe that Secondly they must be assisting vnto their Ministers For God in the Primitiue Church gaue them the gift of working miracles to credit their office and calling whereby they did chastise Gods enemies So St. Paul stroke Elymas the sorcerer with blindenes for peruerting and seducing the Deputye from the fayth And St. Peter stroke Ananias and
aswell as the other but is not the subiect of my Treatise There are other sortes of men or rather beastes I meane such beasts as S. Paul stroue with at Ephesus in the shape of men farre more abhominable then the other two of which so ofteÌ„ I spake I may iustly say with Eliphas Feare coÌ„meth vpon me dreade which maketh all my bones to tremble and a winde passeth before me which causeth the hayres of my head to stand vp and that I may vse the wordes of the Lord to Samuel such a wickednes as shall not be purged by sacrifice nor offering for euer Such a slaunder to States Kingdomes so offensiue to all chast religious eares that whosoeuer shall heare of it his eares shall tingle These beastes holde there is no God and they are of foure sortes The first saith in broade tearmes without blushing Non est Deus there is no God of that brood were not onely the olde Philosophers Diagoras Lucretius Epicurus and others but also since the Gospell was published to the worlde many of them haue been known of whome Theodoret an ancient Father hath written as also Prateolus and other writers of later times and especially Lilius Grigorius Giraldus Ferrariensis maketh mention of a whole Iland lately inhabited by such as deny God And I wish all Atheists were banished out of Christian States and Kingdomes and sent into that Iland that other places might not be infected by them The second doth scoffe at God and deride him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 his name and make open profession of contempt against him and all Religion Such an Atheist was Holophernes which said vnto Achior Because thou hast prophefied amongst vs to day hast saide that the people of Israel is able to sight because their God will defend them and who is God but Nabuchodonozor he will send his power and destroye the face of the earth and their God shall not deliuer them Such an Atheist was Pharao which said Who is the Lord that I should heare his voyce and let the people goe I know not the Lord neither will I let Israel goe And Senacherib who said by the mouth of Rabshakah Let not Ezekias deceiue you for he shall not be able to deliuer you out of my hand neither let Ezechias make you to trust in the Lord saying The Lord will surely deliuer vs this Land shall not be giuen euer into the hand of the King of Ashur Ezechias doth deceiue you saying The Lord will deliuer vs. Who are they among all the Gods of the nations that haue deliuered their Land out of my hand that the Lord should deliuer Ierusalem out of my hand Such Atheists were Lucian which in his writings that he might be thought to confesse no God mocked all Gods Iulian the Apostata which scoffed at religion Olimpius the Arrian which as he was washing himselfe in his Bath spake blasphemy against the Trinitye Doletus which called Moses Helias and Christ the three deceiuers of the worlde And such Atheists are the swaggerers of our age which are not ashamed to call them selues The damned crue Of the saluation of such there is no hope whose God is their bellye whose glory is their shame and whose end is damnation as the Apostle speaketh Their damnation sleepeth not nay they are condemned alreadye because they speake blasphemye against the Holy Ghost Of such as offend God vpon weakenes there may be some hope that they will come to repentance because their sinne is against the Father which is strength Concerning them which offend him vpon ignorance there is also hope of their conuersion because they sinne against God the Sonne which is wisedome But as for these they mocke God in 〈◊〉 of him they sinne vpon malice therefore their blasâ—â—â—â—â—… against the Holy Ghost which is loue and charitye 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 no hope of their conuersion because our Sauiour hath already pronounced sentence of damnatioÌ„ against them saying Their sinne shall neuer be for giuen neither in this life nor in the life to come The third professe the religion which is professed in the place where they dwell so farre as lawes may not take holde of them but otherwise are of all religions which may bring them profit and are of no religion farther then to serue their turne For example whereof I cannot instance in any man better then in William Rusus King of England which professed him selfe to be a Christian for feare of the Pope the Ecclesiasticall censure because else he could not haue held his Kingdome Of him it is written that the Iewes being many in England one of them was conuerted to be a Christian and the olde Iewe his Father taking the matter greiuously desired the King to interpose his authoritye and to commaund him to renounce his Christian faith againe The King vpon consideration of 80. Markes of siluer before hand payed vnto him vndertooke the conuersion of the young man to the Iewish religion againe Whereupon the partie was conuâ—nted before the King hee gaue him charge to renounce Christ but he answered Sir you professe Christ yourselfe how then can you perswade me to be a Iewe If you be a Christian in deed you will not perswade me to renounce Christ but if your selfe professing Christ will commaund me to denye Christ you are not of any religion but an Atheist and if you be so it is fit the Popes holynes should vnderstand so much The King fearing the Popes displeasure dismissed the man but saide in great furye Get thee out of my presence else by S. Lukes face I will scratch out thine eyes The olde Iewe his Father expostulated with the King because the bargaine was not performed and required restitution of his money But the King answered holde ye contented Sir heere is halfe I will haue the other halfe for my endeauour I did the best I could Of such Atheists we haue many The fourth sorte are they which insinuate them-selues into Noble-mens houses and Princes Courts taking vpon them to be the great Polititians of the worlde and account all men fooles besides themselues They also make open profession of religion but for aduantage I meane them which haue turne 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Machiauel Their Diuinitie is policye their zeale is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and their God is the deuill These English Italiana and 〈◊〉 incarnat doe holde these damnable opinions That there was no creation of the world that there shall be no day of iudgement no resurrection no immortallitye of the soule no hell they dispute against the Bible reckon vp Genealogyes more auncient then Adam alleadge arguments to proue that the story of Noah his Arke and the Deluge were fables Finally they holde that the Scriptures were deuised by men onely for policye sake to maintaine peace in states and Kingdomes to keep subiects in obedience to lawes and loyaltie to Magistrates by thus terrifying them from enormities when their consciences
this tract my sonne in regarde of my loue to vardes man and my dutye towards God Illud vero ex mente lucidum verbīs filius Det that same pure worde which is borne of God is the sonne of God Natura diuina principium entium the diuine nature is the beginning of all thinges Deus et pater bonum eandem habent naturam quid est Deus pater bonum quam omnium esse God the Father and Goodnes haue the same nature what is God the Father and Goodnes but the very essence and being of all thinges Here is a manifest acknowledgement of the Trinitye To leaue particular men what answere the Atheists to the iudgement of the worlde the consent of nations Tully draweth his argument in this manner Deus esse non est dubitandum quoniam corum notitiam omnium animis ipsa impressit natura that there is a God it is without question because all nations doe acknowledge and confesse him by the instinct of nature But in an other place saith he Omnium consensus vox naturae est the consent of all men is the voyce of nature it selfe I haue shewed how all nations imbrace some religion or other haue their Altars their Priests their Gods as the Hebrues from Moses so the Egiptians from Mercury the Cretians from Melissus the Latins frō Ianus the Romans from Numa the Greckes frō Orpheus and Cadmus and all nations from one or other St. Augustin saith concerning miracles Non nunc necessaria sunt vt olim miracula tum facta erant necessario priusquam crederet mundus ad hoc vt crederet mundus quisquis autem adhuc vt credat prodigia requirit magnum est ipse prodigium qui mundo credente non credit Now miracles are not so necessary as in times past they were before they were necessary that so the worlde might beleeue but now he is a miracle his selfe that will not beleeue because the world beleeueth But say I as he is a wonder that will not beleeue that which the worlde beleeueth so he is a monster which will not confesse that which the world confesseth A fourth argument to proue there is a God is the great multitude of miracles which haue beene manifested to the worlde euen such things as are farre aboue the strength of nature therfore needs must proceed from some higher supernaturall cause and who is that metaphysicall cause but euen Natura naturans God him selfe For example slightly to passe ouer so many earthquakes which haue ouerthrowne whole Cityes as Eutropius sheweth how the yeare after St. Pauls death the Citye of Colossus was swallowed vp for despising St. Pauls doctine They are not vnacquainted with the Historiographers which shewe how by an earthquake the Iland of Sicily was made an Iland being before one maine continent with Italy how Europe and Africa were parted when Spaine was deuided from Barbary which before were one land And that I may speak that which mine eyes haue seene Vienna the cheife Citye of Austria is now more subiecte to earthquakes then other places in the worlde besides in so much that there is scarce one house in the Citye which hath not one rent or other in the stone wall which came onely by earthquakes And because that place hath beene more subiecte to earthquakes then other places one of the Bishops of that Sea heretofore deuised a certaine prayer continually to be said in the Churches of Vienna to this effect that God would defend that Citye from earthquakes Let the Atheist satisfie me by a natural reason concerning this poynt else let him confesse that there is a supernatural cause which if they doe that is God What can they saye to so manye strange Eclipses to so manye prodigious raines as when it rayned bloud flesh stones coles of fire of which they may read at large in Liuy Plutarch and other authors what say they to so many comets appearing in the ayre after which stil doe insue the death of so many Princes as namely the Comet which appeared in the yeare 1506. after which ensued the death of Philip King of Spayn sonne and heyre to Maximlian the Emperour Philip Prince Elector of Rhene Albert Duke of Bauaria Pope Iuly the second Iohn King of Suecia and Noruegia Lewis king of France Maximiliā the Emperour the Bish of Spire the Archbishops of Colen Magdeburg the venetiā wars the wars between the Turke and the Persian the King of Denmarke Christian driuen out of his Kingdome Hungary inuaded and Rhodes taken by the Turke Lewis King of Hungary slayne who can giue a naturall reason of this and many other like vnto this But I will stand especially vpon two things which haue troubled the wise men of the world let the Atheists yeild naturall reasons how these things could be else let thē cōfesse there is a God w c is aboue nature First the Starre which apeared at the birth of our Sauiour being neither a fixed starre nor yet a Planet for it was nothing like vnto either of them if we doe respecte the motion of it the place where and the time when it apeared and the vse whervnto it serued For it neither moued as the fixed starres from the Est to the West nor as the Planets from the West to the Est but from the Est to the South the like neuer heard of before nor since When the Sunne shined it also shone when the wise men came to Palestina it went before them when they came to Ierusalem it vanished away when they went to Bethleem it went before them againe as if it were a creature indued with reason and vnderstanding it shewed them the verye house where the Childe did lye whereas a naturall starre by reason of the great distance betweene heauen earth could not discouer vnto them the place and scituation of a great Citye much lesse of a small house when they went forward it went forward whē they stood still it stood still And as St. Augustin saith Quid erat illa stellanisi magnifica lingua coeli quae nec vnquam antea inter sidera apparuit nec postea demonstranda perntansit quid erat nisi magnifica lingua coeli quae gloriam Dei narraret quae inusitatum virginis partum inusitato fulgore clamaret cui non postea apparenti euangelium toto Orbe succederet What starre was that which was neuer seene before nor since but the wonderfull voyce of heauen which should declare the glory of God and publish to the worlde the vnvsuall Child-bearing of a Virgin by an vnvsuall brightnes which should neuer afterward apeare againe but in steed of it should be the glorious Gospell of Iesus Christ If you aske me what proofe I haue besides the Gospell that euer there apeared such a starre witnes Ignatius which sawe our Sauiour in the flesh Prudentius the Poet Macrobius a professed enemye to Christiā religion which testifieth
storye is this that hereafter he doe no more denye the truth of it or make anye question how it might be but rather thus Quotiescunque legit historiam timeas ne ipse flat historia so often as he readeth the storye let him tremble at Gods iudgements leaste he become also an acter of such a Tragedye and the subiecte of the like storye that is leaste he be turned into a stone as Lots wife was or consumed with fire and brimstone as Sodome was Chapter 13. Of Christ I Haue I trust sufficiently proued that there is a God that the Atheists might be conuerted vnto the true God But because this knoweledge of God in his creatures is onely sufficient to giue them occasion to seeke further and no way in it selfe able to saue their soules they must also knowe him in his Sonne by whome onely saluation commeth When the fulnes of time was come saith the Apostle God sent his Sonne made of a womā c That I may therefore proue vnto them God in his Sonne our Sauiour Christ by humane authorityes and reasons because they will not stand to the authoritye of the Scriptures I will not alleage the testimony of the deuils out of the Gospell which sayd Iesus thou Sonne of God what haue we to doe with thee art thou come hither to tormēt vs before y e time but out of prophane historyes which sayd in effect the same thing For being silenced at his comming that their Oracles could giue no more answer and being asked a reason of their silence one of them answered as in the 4. Chapter I haue already shewed vnto you Me puer Hebraeus diuos Deus ipse gubernans Cedere sede iubet tristemque redire sub orcum Aris ergo dehinc tacitus abcedito nostris Vpon which answer by them giuen Augustus the Emperour erected an Altar in the Capitoll of Rome with this inscription ARA PRIMO-GENITI DEI An Altar dedicated to the first begotten Sonne of GOD. I cannot see how any thing can be playner then the deuils confession by the Oracle of Apollo wherein he is called Puer Hebraeus an Hebrue Childe Deus a God A childe there is his birth and humane nature like that of the Prophet Esay Natus est nobis puer a Childe is borne vnto vs and an Hebrue as the Apostle speaketh Hee descended not of Angells but of the seede of Abraham And God there is his Diuine nature God is become a childe there is Christ God and man Our Sauiour shewed himselfe many waies to the Infidels to be God yet to be borne but they vnderstood him not Tully citeth the prophecy of Sybel for proofe y t a King should be borne and that none shold be saued vnles they did imbrace him yet neither he nor the rest of the Romās had the grace to applie it rightly Tully his selfe did onely aleadge it but not beleeue it for hee thought it to be some inuentiō of man tēding to the alteration of the state of Rome Lentulus applyed it vnto himselfe hoping hee should be that King therfore ioyned in conspiracie with Cataline Virgill applyed it to Solonius the Sonne of Pollio because he was his good Patron was desirous to honour magnifie him aboue other men And it is very likely that Virgil had heard something concerning this matter of the Hebrues themselues because as Iosephus writeth when so euer Herod the King of Iudaea came to Rome he lodged at Pollio his house vnto which house Virgill often resorted But afterward Constantine the great did expound that prophecie to bee vnderstood onely of the incarnation of Christ Iosephus writeth that there was an auncient prophecie among the Romans that a King should come out of Iudaea which should be the great man of the worlde But they were so blinde that they could not apply it vnto Christ of whome it was meant but they vnderstood it of Vespacian the Emperour because hee conquered the Iewes Swetonius maketh mention of a strange accident which fell out at Rome before the birth of Christ by which it was publikely acknowledged that Nature did beeede a King which should raigne ouer the people of Rome what that wonder was Dio sheweth In the Capitoll many images were ouerthrowne from heauen writings in grauen in Marble pillers were blotted out But they had not somuch light as to vnderstand that the Kingdome of Christ his Gospell should ouerthrow idolatrie and prescribe new Christian lawes whereby his Church should be gouerned Great was the blindenes of Augustus which could erect an altar to the Sonne of God yet could not acknowledg the Sonne of God whē he was borne and published to the world and being himselfe a tipe figure of Christ yet did not see christ in his selfe of whome hee was a figure And that it may not seeme to any man absurde which I haue said that Augustus was a tipe of Christ wee finde the like in the Prophet Esay concerning Cyrus the King of Persia I haue likened thee to my selfe thogh thou hast not knowne me Cyrus was a tipe of Christ though hee knewe not Christ in that he deliuered Gods people out of Captiuitie by giuing them leaue to returne to their countrie and to builde the Temple So was Augustus a tipe of Christ in his happie peaceable gouernment of the Empire in that hee was saluted first by that name of Augustus the sixt day of Ianuarie and the same day was Christ worshipped as a God King by the wise men which came from the Easte that vnder him were burnt the recordes and specialties of the debts w t were due to the treasure house or chamber of the Empire for so by our Sauiour was cancelled the hand-writing of ordinance which was against vs and it was nayled on the Crosse when our Sauiour was borne greate quantitie of oyle did miraculously issue out of the earth what was that but the birth of the Lords annointed w t was annointed with the oyle of gladnes aboue al his fellowes vpon that miracle Augustus was so astonished y t he made proclamatiō y t after that time no mā shold call him Lord what was that but a manifest acknowledgemēt that a greater Lord was borne then Augustus was To this also I may adde the testimonye of the starces and constellations in heauen to shew the Atheist the birth of the Son of God vpon the earth The wisemen as I haue shewed before sought out our Sauiour Christ by the leading of a Starre which Staire I haue proued to bee miraculous And yet although the birth of the Sonne of God was not subiect to constellations but was farre aboue the capacitie of Astrologers and the course of the heauens yet the verie Astrologicall predictions and Aspects of other naturall Starres were enough to giue occasion to the Gentiles to seeke farther and so to come to the knowledge of the birth