whereof the Lord himselfe pronounceth in the sixth of Iohn Ioh. 8.32 51. The bread that I will giue is my flesh which I will giue for the life of the world And to shew that by partaking of this bread that wonderfull vnion we speake of is effected Hee that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood Ioh. 6.56 dwelleth in me and I in him It is a lamentable thing to behold how this holy Sacrament which was ordained by Christ to be a bond whereby wee should be knit together in vnity is by Satans malice and the corruption of mans disposition so strangely peruerted the contrary way that it is made the principall occasion of that wofull distraction which wee see amongst Christians at this day and the very fuell of endlesse strifes and implacable contentions And for as much as these mischiefes haue proceeded from the inconsiderate confounding of those things which in their owne nature are as different as may be for the cleerer distinguishing of matters we are in the first place to consider that a Sacrament taken in his full extent comprehendeth two things in it that which is outward and visible which the Schooles call properly Sacramentum in a more strict acception of the word and that which is inward and inuisible which they tearme rem Sacramenti the principall thing exhibited in the Sacrament Thus in the Lords Supper the outward thing which we see with our eyes is bread and wine the inward thing which wee apprehend by faith is the body and blood of Christ in the outward part of this mysticall action which reacheth to that which is Sacramentum onely we receiue this body and blood but sacramentally in the inward which containeth rem the thing it selfe in it wee receiue them really and consequently the presence of these in the one is relatiue and symbolicall in the other reall and substantiall To begin then with that which is symbolicall and relatiue we may obserue out of the Scripture which saith that Abraham receiued the signe of Circumcision Rom. 〈…〉 a seale of the righteousnesse of the faith which hee had being vncircumcised that Sacraments haue a twofold relation to the things whereof they be Sacraments the one of a signe the other of a seale Signes wee knovv are relatiuely vnited vnto the things which they doe signifie and in this respect are so neerly conioyned together that the name of the one is vsually communicated vnto the other This cup is the new Testament or the new Couenant saith our Sauiour in the institution of the holy Supper Luk. 22.20 This is my Couenant saith God in the institution of Circumcision in the old Testament Gen. 17.10 but how it was his Couenant hee explaneth in the verse immediatly following Ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskinne and it shall be a SIGNE of the Couenant betwixt me and you So words being the signes of things no sooner is the sound of the word conueyed to our eares but the notion of the thing signified thereby is presented vnto our minde and thereupon in the speech of the Scripture nothing is more ordinary then by the terme of * So the ten Commandements are 〈…〉 Exod. 24.28 〈…〉 no thing Luk. 1.37 c. Word to note a thing We reade in the fourth of the first of Samuel that the Philistims were afraid and said God is come into the Campe vers 7. when the Israelites brought thither the Arke of the Couenant of the Lord of hosts which dwelleth betweene the Cherubims vers 4. and yet was that no other but this relatiue kinde of presence wherof now we speake in respect whereof also the shewbread is in the Hebrew named 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the bread of faces or the presence bread Wee see with vs the roome wherein the Kings chaire and other ensignes of State are placed is called the Chamber of presence although the King himselfe bee not there personally present and as the rude and vndutifull behauiour of any in that place or the offering of any dis-respect to the Kings pourtraicture or to the Armes Royall or to any other thing that hath relation to his Maiesty is taken as a dishonour done vnto the King himselfe so heere hee that eateth the bread and drinketh the cup of the Lord vnworthily is accounted guilty of offering indignity to the body and blood of the Lord. 1. Cor. 11.27 In this sort wee acknowledge Sacraments to be signes but bare signes we denie them to bee seales they are as vvell as signes of the Couenant of grace As it vvas therefore said of Iohn the Baptist that he vvas a Prophet Math. 11.9 and more then a Prophet so must vve say of Sacraments that they be signes and more then signes euen pledges and assurances of the interest vvhich vvee haue in the heauenly things that are represented by them He that hath in his chamber the picture of the French King hath but a bare signe vvhich possibly may make him thinke of that King vvhen hee looketh on it but shevveth not that hee hath any manner of interest in him It is othervvise vvith him that hath the Kings great Seale for the confirmation of the title that hee hath vnto all the lands and liuelihood which he doth inioy And as heere the waxe that is affixed to those letters Patents howsoeuer for substance it bee the very same with that which is to be found euery where yet being applyed to this vse is of more worth to the Patentee then all the waxe in the country beside so standeth it with the outward elements in the matter of the Sacrament The bread and wine are not changed in substance from being the same with that which is serued at ordinary tables but in respect of the sacred vse whereunto they are consecrated such a change is made that now they differ as much from common bread and wine as heauen from earth Neither are they to be accounted barely significatiue but truly exhibitiue also of those heauenly things whereto they haue relation as being appoynted by God to bee a meanes of conueying the same vnto vs and putting vs in actuall possession thereof So that in the vse of this holy ordinance as verily as a man with his bodily hand and mouth receiueth the earthly creatures so verily doth he with his spirituall hand and mouth if any such he haue receiue the body and blood of Christ And this is that reall and substantiall presence which wee affirmed to be in the inward part of this sacred action For the better conceiuing of which mystery we are to inquire first what the thing is which wee doe heere receiue secondly how and in what manner we are made partakers of it Touching the first the truth which must be held is this that wee doe not here receiue onely the benefits that flow from Christ but the very body and blood of Christ that is Christ himselfe crucified For as none can bee made partaker of the
THE SVBSTANCE OF THAT WHICH WAS DELIVERED IN A SERmon before the Commons House of Parliament in St. MARGARETS Church at Westminster the 18 of February 1620. By IAMES VSSHER PROFESSOR OF DIVINITY IN THE Vniuersity of DVELIN in Ireland Imprinted at London by Felix Kyngston for Iohn Bartlet and are to be sold at the signe of the gilded Cup in the Goldsmiths Rowe in Cheapside 1621. TO THE HONOVRABLE ASSEMBLY of the Commons House of Parliament IT pleased this Honourable Assembly to require my seruice in preaching at that late religious meeting of yours for the receiuing of the holy Sacrament of the Lords Supper I was afterward also sent vnto by the like authority to publish that which according to my poore ability I then deliuered And although in respect of my selfe and of my want of time to prosecute such a subiect I could wish I had beene spared from such a taske yet rather then the expectation and expresse signification of the desire of the representatiue body of the whole Comminalty of the Kingdome should rest vnsatisfied I haue yeelded to commit this vnto the disposing and direction of them for whose sakes it was at first vndertaken Opprimi enim me onere officij malui quà m id Cic. quod mihi cum fide semel impositum fuit propter infirmitatem animi deponere The very words which then I vttered I am not able to present vnto you the substance of the matter I haue truly laid downe though in some places as it fell out somewhat contracted in others a little more inlarged Whatsoeuer it is I wholly submit it vnto your graue censures and so beseeching the Lord to giue you prosperous successe in all your worthy indeuours for the seruice of God his Maiesty and your Countrey I rest Yours in all Christian duty to be commanded IAMES VSSHER 1. COR. 10. Vers 17. Wee being many are one bread and one body for we are all partakers of that one bread OTher entrance I need not make vnto my speech at this time then that which the Apostle himselfe presenteth vnto mee in the verse next but one going before my Text I speake to wise men The more vnwise might I deeme my selfe to be who being so conscious vnto my selfe of my great weakenesse durst aduenture to discouer the same before so graue and iudicious an Auditory but that this consideration doth somewhat support me that no great blame can light herein vpon mee but some aspersion thereof must reflect vpon your selues who happened to make so euill a choyce the more facile I expect you to bee in a cause wherein you your selues are some wayes interested The speciall cause of your assembling at this time is first that you who professe the same truth may ioyne in one body and partake together of the same blessed Communion and then that such as adhere vnto false worship may bee discouered and auoyded You in your wisedome discerning this holy Sacrament to bee as it were ignis probationis which would both congregare homogenea and segregare heterogenea as in Philosophie wee vse to speake both conioyne those that be of the same and dis-ioyne such as bee of a differing kinde and disposition And to this purpose haue I made choyce of this present Text wherein the Apostle maketh our partaking of the Lords Table to bee a testimony not onely of the vnion and communion which wee haue betwixt our selues and with our Head which he doth in the expresse words which I haue read but also of our dis-vnion and separation from all idolatrous worship as appeareth by the application hereof vnto his maine drift and intendment laid downe in the 14. and 21. verses The effect therfore of that which Saint Paul in expresse termes heere deliuereth is the Communion of Saints which consisteth of two parts the fellowship which they haue with the Body laid downe in the beginning and the fellowship which they haue with the Head laid downe in the end of the verse both which are thus explained by Saint Iohn That which wee haue seene and heard declare we vnto you that ye also may haue fellowship with vs and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Sonne Iesus Christ 1. Ioh. 1.3 Let them therefore that walke in darknesse brag as much as they list of their good-fellowship this blessed Apostle assureth vs that such onely as doe walke in the light 1. Ioh. 1.6 7. haue fellowship one with another euen as they haue fellowship with God and Iesus Christ his Sonne whose blood shall cleanse them from all sinne And to what better company can a man come Heb. 12.23 24. than to the generall Assembly and Church of the first-borne which are inrolled in heauen and to God the Iudge of all and to the spirits of iust men made perfect and to Iesus the Mediator of the new Couenant and to the blood of sprinkling which speaketh better things then that of Abel No fellowship doubtlesse is comparable to this Communion of Saints To begin therefore with the first part thereof as the Apostle in the third to the Galatians maketh our being baptized into Christ Gal. 3.27 28. to bee a testimony that wee are all one in Christ so doth hee heere make our partaking of that one bread to be an euidence that we also are all one bread and one body in him And to the same purpose in the twelfth Chapter following he propoundeth both our Baptisme and our drinking of the Lords Cup as seales of the spirituall coniunction of vs all into one mysticall body 1. Cor. 12.12 13. For as the body is one saith he and hath many members and all the members of that one body being many are one body so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body whether wee bee Iewes or Gentiles whether we be bond or free and haue been all made to drinke into one Spirit Afterwards hee addeth that wee are the body of Christ and members in particular and in another place also Ibid. vers 27. that We being many are one body in Christ Rom. 12.5 and euery one members one of another Now the vse which hee teacheth vs to make of this wonderfull coniunction whereby wee are made members of Christ and members one of another is two-fold 1. That there should be no schisme in the body 2. That the members should haue the same care one for another 1. Cor. 12.25 For preuenting of Schisme hee exhorteth vs in the fourth to the Ephesians Ephes 4 3-6 to keepe the vnity of the Spirit in the bond of peace and to make this bond the firmer hee putteth vs in minde of one Body one Spirit one Hope one Lord one Faith one Baptisme one God and Father of all who is aboue all and through all and in vs all by this multiplication of vnities declaring vnto vs that the knots whereby wee are tyed together are both in number more and of farre
Diuide impera Make a diuision and get the dominion The more neede haue wee to looke herein vnto our selues who cannot bee ignorant how dolorous Solutio continui and how dangerous Ruptures proue to bee vnto our bodies If therefore there be any comfort of loue if any fellowship of the spirit Phil. 2.1 2 3. fulfill our ioy that yee be like-minded hauing the same loue being of one accord of one minde and doing nothing through strife or vaine-glory Remember that as oft as we come vnto the Lords Table so oft doe we enter into new bonds of peace and tye our selues with firmer knots of loue together this blessed Communion being a sacred seale not onely of the vnion which wee haue with our Head by faith but also of our coniunction with the other members of the body by loue Whereby as we are admonished to maintaine vnity among ourselues that there be no schisme or diuision in the body so are we also further put in minde that the members should haue the same care one for another For that is the second vse which Saint Paul teacheth vs to make hereof in 1. Cor. 12.26 which he further amplifieth in the verse next following by the mutuall sympathy and fellow-feeling which the members of the same body haue one with another For whether one member suffer all the members suffer with it or one member be honoured all the members reioyce with it and then he addeth Now ye are the body of Christ and members in particular Shewing vnto vs thereby that as wee are all * Ephes 3.6 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 concorporated as it were and made copartners of the promise in Christ so wee should haue one another in our hearts * 2. Cor. 7.3 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to die and liue together And hereupon is that exhortation in the 13. to the Hebrewes grounded Heb. 13.3 Remember them that are in in bonds as bound with them and them which suffer aduersity as being your selues also in the Body It being a perillous signe that we be no liuely members of that body if we be not sensible of the calamities that lye vpon our afflicted brethren We know the Woe that is pronounced against such as are at ease in Sion Amos 6.1 6 7. and are not grieued for the affliction of Ioseph with the iudgement following Therefore now shall they goe captiue with the first that goe captiue We know the Angels bitter curse against the inhabitants of Meroz Iudg. 5.23 Curse ye Meroz said the Angell of the Lord curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof because they came not to helpe the Lord to helpe the Lord against the mighty Not as if the Lord did stand in need of our helpe or were not able without our assistance to maintaine his owne cause but that hereby he would make triall of our readinesse to doe him seruice and proue the sincerity of our loue If wee hold our peace and sit still at this time Ester 4 14. deliuerance shall arise to Gods Church from another place but let vs looke that the destruction doe not light vpon vs and ours I need not make any application of that which I haue spoken the face of Christendome so miserably rent and torne as it is at this day cannot but present it selfe as a rufull spectacle vnto all our eyes and if there be any bowels in vs stirre vp compassion in our hearts Neither need I to be earnest in exciting you to put your helping hands to the making vp of these breaches your forwardnesse herein hath preuented mee and in stead of petitioning for which I had prepared my selfe hath ministred vnto mee matter of thankesgiuing A good worke is at all times commendable but the doing of it in fit time addeth much to the luster thereof and maketh it yet more goodly The season of the yeere is approching wherein Kings goe forth to battell 2. Sam. 11.1 the present supply and offer of your Subsidie was done in a time most seasonable being so much also the more acceptable as it was granted not grudgingly or of necessity but freely and with a willing minde God loueth a cheerefull giuer 2. Cor. 9.7 8. and he is able to make all grace abound towards you that ye alwayes hauing all sufficiency in all things may abound to euery good worke And thus being by your goodnesse so happily abridged of that which I intended further to haue vrged from the coniunction which we haue with the Body I passe now vnto the second part of the Communion of Saints which consisteth in the vnion which we all haue with one Head For Christ our Head is the maine foundation of this heauenly vnion Out of him there is nothing but confusion without him we are nothing but disordered heapes of rubbish but in him all the building fitly framed together groweth vnto an holy Temple in the Lord and in him are we builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit Ephes 2.21 22. Of our selues wee are but lost sheepe scattered and wandring vpon euery Mountaine From him it is that there is one fold and one shepheard Ioh. 10.16 God hauing purposed in himselfe to gather together in one all things in Christ both which are in heauen and which are on earth euen in him Ephes 1.10 This is the effect of our Sauiours prayer Ioh. 17.21 That they all may be one as thou Father art in me I in thee that they also may be one in vs c. I in them and thou in me that they may be made perfect in one And this is it which we finde so oft repeated by Saint Paul We being many are one body in Christ Rom. 12.5 Ye are all one in Christ Iesus Gal. 3.28 And in the Text wee haue in hand Wee being many are one bread and one body Why because we are all partakers of that one bread namely of that bread whereof he had said in the words immediately going before The bread which we breake 1. Cer. 10.16 is it not the communion of the body of Christ Vnder the name of Bread therefore heere is comprehended both Panis Domini and Panis Dominus not onely the bread of the Lord but also the Lord himselfe who is that liuing Bread which came downe from heauen Ioh. 6.51 For as Saint Peter 1. Pet 3.21 saying that Baptisme doth saue vs vnderstandeth thereby both the outward part of that Sacrament for he expressely calleth it a figure and more then that too as appeareth by the explication presently adioyned not the putting away of the filth of the flesh euen the inward purging of our consciences by vertue of the death and resurrection of Iesus Christ so Saint Paul heere making the reason of our vnion to bee our partaking all of this one bread hath not so much respect vnto the externall bread in the Sacrament though he exclude not that neither as vnto the true and heauenly Bread figured thereby
in the continuity of the parts though that also be requisite to the vnity of a naturall body but in the animation thereof by one and the same spirit If we should suppose a body to be as high as the heauens that the head thereof should be where Christ our Head is and the feet where we his members are no sooner could that head thinke of mouing one of the toes but instantly the thing would be done without any impediment giuen by that huge distance of the one from the other And why because the same soule that is in the head as in the fountaine of sence and motion is present likewise in the lowest member of the body But if it should so fall out that this or any other member proued to be mortified it presently would cease to bee a member of that body the corporall coniunction and continuity with the other parts notwithstanding And euen thus is it in Christ although in regard of his corporall presence the heauen must receiue him vntill the times of the restitution of all things Act. 3.21 yet is he here with vs alway euen vnto the end of the world in respect of the presence of his Spirit Math. 28.20 by the vitall influence whereof from him as from the Head the whole body is fitly ioyned together Ephes 4.16 and compacted by that which euery ioynt supplieth according to the effectuall working in the measure of euery part Which quickening Spirit if it be wanting in any no externall communion with Christ or his Church can make him a true member of this mysticall body this being a most sure principle that He which hath not the Spirit of Christ is none of his Rom. 8.9 Now among all the graces that are wrought in vs by the Spirit of Christ the soule as it were of all the rest and that whereby a Habak 2.4 Rom. 1.17 Gal. 3.11 Heb. 10.38 the iust doth liue is Faith b Gal. 5.5 For we through the Spirit waite for the hope of righteousnesse by faith saith S. Paul to the Galatians And againe c Gal. 2.20 I liue yet not I but Christ liueth in me and the life which I now liue in the flesh I liue by the faith of the Sonne of God who loued me and gaue himselfe for me By faith it is that wee doe d Ioh. 1.12 receiue Christ and so likewise e Ephes 3.17 Christ dwelleth in our hearts by faith Faith therefore is that spirituall mouth in vs whereby wee eate the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his blood that is as the Apostle expresseth it without the trope f Heb. 3.14 are made partakers of Christ he being by this meanes as truly and euery wayes as effectually made ours as the meate and drinke which we receiue into our naturall bodies But you will say If this be all the matter what doe we get by comming to the Sacrament seeing we haue faith and the quickening Spirit of Christ before wee come thither To this I answere that the Spirit is receiued in diuers measures and faith bestowed vpon vs in different degrees by reason whereof our coniunction with Christ may euery day bee made straiter and the hold which we take of him firmer To receiue the Spirit g Ioh. 3.34 not by measure is the priuiledge of our Head we that h Ioh. 1.16 receiue out of his fulnesse haue not our portion of grace deliuered vnto vs all at once but must daily looke for i Phil. 1.19 supply of the Spirit of Iesus Christ So also while we are in this world k Rom. 1.17 the righteousnesse of God is reuealed vnto vs from faith to faith that is from one degree and measure of it to another and consequently we must still labour to l 1. Thes 3.10 perfect that which is lacking in our faith and euermore pray with the Apostles m Luk. 17.5 Lord increase our faith n Colos 2.6 7. As wee haue therefore receiued Christ Iesus the Lord so must wee walke in him rooted and built vp in him and stablished in the faith that wee o Ephes 4.15 may grow vp into him in all things which is the Head And to this end God hath ordained publike officers in his Church p Eph. 4.12 13. for the perfecting of the Saints for the worke of the ministery for the edifying of the body of Christ till we all come in the vnity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Sonne of God vnto a perfect man vnto the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ and hath accordingly q 2. Cor. 3.6 made them able Ministers of the Spirit that quickeneth and r 1. Cor. 3.5 Ministers by whom we should beleeue euen as the Lord shall giue to euery man When wee haue therefore receiued Å¿ Gal. 3.2 the Spirit and t Ioh. 17.20 Faith and so spirituall life by their ministery we are not there to rest but u 1. Pet. 2.2 as new borne babes we must desire the sincere milke of the Word that we may grow thereby and as growne men too wee must desire to be fed at the Lords Table that by the strength of that spirituall reâ—â—â—â— we may be inabled to doe the Lords worke 〈◊〉 may continually be nourished vp thereby in the life of grace vnto the life of glory Neither must we heere with a fleshly eye looke vpon the meanenesse of the outward elements and haue this faithlesse thought in our hearts that there is no likelihood a bit of bread and a draught of wine should be able to produce such heauenly effects as these For so we should prooue our selues to be no wiser than Naaman the Syrian was 2 King 5.12 13. who hauing receiued direction from the man of God that he should wash in Iordan seuen times to be cleansed of his Leprosie replied with indignation Are not Abana and Pharpar riuers of Damascus better then all the waters of Israel May I not wash in them and be cleane But as his seruaÌ„ts did soberly aduise him then If the Prophet had bid thee doe some great thing wouldest thou not haue done it How much rather then when hee saith to thee Wash and be cleane So giue mee leaue to say vnto you now If the Lord had commanded vs to doe some great thing for the attaining of so high a good should not we willingly haue done it How much rather then when hee biddeth vs to eate the bread and drinke the wine that he hath prouided for vs at his owne Table that by his blessing thereupon wee may grow in grace and be preserued both in body and soule vnto euerlasting life True it is indeed these outward creatures haue no naturall power in them to effect so great a worke as this is no more then the water of Iordan had to recouer the Leper but the worke wrought by these meanes is supernaturall and God hath been pleased
in the dispensation both of the Word and of the Sacraments so to ordaine it that these heauenly treasures should bee presented vnto vs in earthen vessels 2. Cor. 4.7 that the excellency of the power might be of God As therefore in the preaching of the Gospell the Minister doth not dare verba and beate the aire with a fruitlesse sound but the words that hee speaketh vnto vs are Spirit and life 1. Cor. 1.21 God being pleased by the foolishnesse of preaching to saue them that beleeue so likewise in the administration of the Lords Supper he doth not feed vs with bare bread and wine but if we haue the life of faith in vs for still we must remember that this Table is prouided not for the dead but for the liuing and come worthily 1. Cor. 10.16 the Cup of blessing which he blesseth will be vnto vs the communion of the blood of Christ and the bread which hee breaketh the communion of the body of Christ of which precious body and blood wee being really made partakers that is in truth and indeed and not in imagination onely although in a spirituall and not a corporall manner the Lord doth grant vs Ephes 3.16 19. according to the riches of his glory to bee strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man that we may bee filled with all the fulnesse of God For the Sacraments as well as the Word be a part of that ministration of the Spirit 2. Cor. 3.6 8. which is committed to the Ministers of the New Testament for as much as by one Spirit as before we haue heard from the Apostle wee haue been all baptized into one body 1. Cor. 12.13 and haue been all made to drinke into one Spirit And thus haue I finished the first part of my taske my Congregatio homogeneorum as I call it the knitting together of those that appertaine to the same body both with their fellovv-members and vvith their Head vvhich is the thing laid dovvne in the expresse vvords of my Text. It remaineth novv that I proceed to the Apostles application hereof vnto the argument hee hath in hand vvhich is Segregatio heterogeneorum a disseuering of those that bee not of the same communion that the faithfull may not partake vvith Idolaters by countenancing or any vvay ioyning vvith them in their vngodly courses For that this is the maine scope at vvhich S. Paul aimeth in his treating here of the Sacrament is euident both by that vvhich goeth before in the 19. vers Wherefore my dearely beloued flee from Idolatry and that vvhich follovveth in the 21. Yee cannot drinke the Cup of the Lord and the cup of diuels ye cannot be partakers of the Lords Table and of the table of diuels Whereby vve may collect thus much that as the Lords Supper is a seale of our coniunction one vvith another and vvith Christ our Head so is it an euidence of our dis-iunction from Idolaters binding vs to dis-auovv all communion vvith them in their false vvorship And indeed the one must necessarily follovv vpon the other considering the nature of this hainous sinne of Idolatry is such that it can no wayes stand with the fellowship which a Christian man ought to haue both with the Head and with the body of the Church To this purpose in the sixth of the second to the Corinthians we reade thus What agreement hath the Temple of God with Idols 2. Cor. 6.16 17 for ye are the Temple of the liuing God as God hath said I will dwell in them and walke in them and I will bee their God and they shall be my people Wherefore come out from among thē be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the vncleane thing and I will receiue you And in the 2. Chap. of the Epistle to the Colossians Let no man beguile you of your reward Col. 2 1◠19. in a voluntary humility and worshipping of Angels intruding into those things which he hath not seene vainely puft vp by his fleshly minde and not holding the head from which all the body by ioynts and bands hauing nourishment ministred and knit together increaseth with the increase of God In which words the Apostle sheweth vnto vs that such as vnder pretence of humility were drawne to the worshipping of Angels did not hold the Head and consequently could not retaine communion with the body which receiueth his whole growth from thence Answerably whereunto the Fathers assembled out of diuers prouinces of Asia in the Synode held at Laodicea not farre from the Colossians did solemnely conclude that a Concil Laodicen Can. 35. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Theodoret expoundeth these words of the Canon in 2. 3. cap. epist ad Coloss Christians ought not to forsake the Church of God and goe and inuocate Angels and pronounced an anathema against any that should bee found to doe so b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because say they he hath forsaken our Lord Iesus Christ the Sonne of God and giuen himselfe to Idolatry declaring plainly that by this idolatrous inuocation of Angels a discession was made both from the Church of God as they note in the beginning and from Christ the Head of the Church as they obserue in the end of their Canon For the further vnderstanding of this particular it will not be amisse to consider what Theodoret a famous Bishop of the ancient Church hath written of this matter in his Commentary vpon the second to the Colossians They that defended the Law saith he induced thē also to worship the Angels saying that the Law was giuen by them And this vice continued in Phrygia and Pisidia for a long time for which cause also the Synod assembled in Laodicea the chiefe City of Phrygia forbad them by a Law to pray vnto Angels And euen to this day among them and their borderers there are Oratories of Saint Michael to be seene This therefore did they counsell should be done vsing humility and saying that the God of all was inuisible and inaccessible and incomprehensible and that it was fit men should get Gods fauour by the meanes of Angels And this is it which the Apostle saith In humility and worshipping of Angels Thus farre Theodoret whom Cardinall Baronius discerning to come somwhat close vnto him and to touch the Idolatry of the Popish crue a little to the quicke leaueth the poore shifts wherewith his companions labour to obscure the light of this testimony and telleth vs plainely that c Ex his videas quod necessariò dicendum est Theodoretum haud satis seliciter eius pace sit dictum assecutum esse Pauli verborum sensum Baron Annal tom 1. ann 60. sect 20. Theodoret by his leaue did not well vnderstand the meaning of Pauls words and d Incautè nimis quae à Catholicis essent antiquitùs instituta haereticis quorum nulla esset memoria tribuens Id. ibid.
say for that is S. Peters word some worship of Images is lawfull Iohn Monceye the Frenchman in his Aaron Purgatus dedicated to the late Pope Paul the fifth and in his twenty questions propounded to Visorius stretcheth yet a straine higher For howsoeuer hee cannot away with the name of Idols and Idolatry yet he liketh the thing it selfe so well that he vndertaketh to cleare Aaron from committing any error in setting vp the golden Calfe and laboureth to purge Laban and Micha and Ieroboam too from the imputation of Idolatry hauing found indeed that nothing had beene done by them in this kinde which is not agreeable to the practice of the Romane Church at this day And lest the poore people whom they haue so miserably abused should finde how farre they haue beene misled wee see that the masters of that Church doe in the Seruice books and Catechismes which come vnto the haÌ„ds of the vulgar generally leaue out the words of the second Commandement that make against the adoration of Images fearing lest by the light thereof the mystery of their iniquity should be discouered They pretend indeed that this Commandement is not excluded by them but included onely in the first whereas in truth they doe but craftily conceale it from the peoples eyes because they would not haue them to be ruled by it Nay Gab. Vasquez lib. 2. do Ador. disput 4. c. 3. §. 74.75 Vasquez the Iesuite doth boldly acknowledge that it plainely appeareth by comparing the words of this Commandement with the place which hath beene alledged out of the 4. of Deuteronomy that the Scripture did not onely forbid the worshipping of an Image for God but also the adoration of the true God himselfe in an Image He confesseth further that he and his fellow Catholikes doe otherwise What saith hee then to the Commandement thinke you Because it will not be obeyed it must be repealed and not admitted to haue any place among the morall precepts of God * Cùm suerit iuris positiui et Caeremonialis illa leges Mosaicae prohibitio tempore legis Euangelicae debuit cessare atque id quod aliâs iure natu rali licitum et honestum est vt imagines depingere et illis etiaÌ„ vti ad adoratio nem in lege Euangelie â locum habere debet Vasques ibid. c. 4 §. 84. It was saith he a positiue and ceremoniall Law and therefore ought to cease in the time of the Gospell And as if it had not beene enough for him to match the Scribes and Pharises in impiety who made the Commandement of God of none effect that they might keepe their owne tradition that he might fulfill the measure of his fathers and shew himselfe to be a true childe of her who beareth the name of being the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth Reu. 17.5 he is yet more mad Vasquez de Adorat lib. 3. disput 1. Cap. 2 § 5.8.10 and sticketh not to maintaine that not onely a paynted Image but any other thing of the world whether it be without life and reason or whether it be a reasonable creature may in the nature of the thing and if the matter bee discreetly handled be adored vvith God as his Image yea and counteth it no absurdity at all that a very vvispe of stravv should be thus vvorshipped But let vs turne yet againe Eâ—â—â— 8.15 and vve shall see greater abominations then these We heard hovv this blessed Sacrament vvhich is here propounded by the Apostle as a bond to vnite Christians together in one body hath beene made the apple of strife and the occasion of most bitter breaches in the Church we may now obserue againe that the same holy Sacrament which by the same Apostle is here brought in as a principall inducement to make men stee from Idolatry is by our Aduersaries made the obiect of the grossest Idolatry that euer hath been practised by any For their constant doctrine is that in worshipping the Sacrament they should giue vnto it latriae cultum qui vero Deo debetur Coâ—â—il Trident. â—ess 13. 〈◊〉 1.5 as the Councell of Trent hath determined that kinde of seruice which is due to the true God determining their worship in that very thing which the Priest doth hold betwixt his hands Their practice also runs accordingly for an instance whereof we neede goe no further then to Sanders booke of the Lords Supper before which he hath perfixed an Epistle Dedicatory superscribed in this manner To the Body and Blood of our Sauiour Iesus Christ vnder the formes of Bread and Wine all honour praise and thankes be giuen for euer Adding further in the processe of that blockish Epistle Howsoeuer it be with other men I adore thee my God and Lord really present vnder the formes of Bread and Wine after consecration denly made Beseeching thee of pardon for my sinnes c. Now if the conceite which these men haue concerning the Sacrament should proue to bee false as indeed we know it to be most absurd and monstrous their owne Iesuite Coster doth freely confesse that they should be in such an error and Idolatry qualis in orbe terrarum nunquam vel visus vel auditus fuit as neuer was seene or heard of in this world * Tolerabilior est enim error eorum qui pro Deo colunt StatuaÌ„ auream aut argenteam aut alterius materiae imaginem quo modo Gentiles deos suos venerabantur vel pannum rubrum in hastam eleuatum quod narratur de Lappis vel viua animalia vt quondam Egyptij quà m eoruÌ„ qui frustuÌ„ panis Coster Enchirid ca. 12. For the error of them is more tolerable saith he who worship for God a Statue of gold or siluer or an Image of any other matter as the Gentiles adored their gods or a red cloth lifted vp vpon a speare as it is reported of the Lappians or liuing creatures as did sometime the Egyptians then of those that worship a piece of bread We therefore who are verily perswaded that the Papists doe thus must of force if we follow their Iesuites direction iudge them to be the most intolerable Idolaters that euer were Nay according to their owne principles how is it possible that any of themselues should certainly know that the host which they worship should be any other thing but bread seeing the change doth wholy depend vpon consecration duly made as Sanders speaketh and that dependeth vpon the intention of the Priest which no man but himselfe can haue notice of Bellarmine disputing against Ambrosius Catharinus one of his owne brethren that a man hath no certaine knowledge of his owne iustification can take aduantage of this and alledge for himselfe that one * Neque potest certus esse certitudine sidei se percipere verum Sacramentum cum Sacramen tum sine inten tione ministri non conficiatur intentionem alterius nemo â—idere possit Bellarmin de
Iustificat lib. 3. cap. 8. cannot be certaine by the certainty of faith that hee doth receiue a true Sacrament forasmuch as the Sacrament cannot be made without the intention of the Minister and none can see another mans intention Apply this now to the matter we haue in hand and see into what intricate Labyrinths these men haue brought themselues Admit the Priests intention stood right at the time of consecration yet if he that baptized him failed in his intention when he administred that Sacrament he remaineth still vnbaptized and so becommeth vncapable of Priesthood and consequently whatsoeuer he consecrateth is but bread still Yea admit hee were rightly baptized too if either the Bishop that conferred vpon him the Sacrament of Orders for so they hold it to be or those that baptized or ordained that Bishop missed their right intention neither will the one proue Bishop nor the other Priest and so with what intention soeuer either the one or the other doth consecrate there remaineth but bread still Neither doth the inconuenience stay heere but ascendeth vpward to all their predecessors in any one of whom if there fall out to bee a nullity of Priesthood for want of intention either in the baptizer or in the ordainer all the generation following according to their principles goe without their Priesthood too and so deliuer but bread to the people in stead of the body of Christ The Papists themselues therefore if they stand vnto their owne grounds must needs confesse that they are in no better case heere then the Samaritans were in of whom our Sauiour saith Ioh. 4.22 Yee worship yee know not what but we know that what they worship bee the condition or intention of their Priest what it will be is bread indeed which while they take to be their God we must still account them guilty of spirituall fornication and such fornication as is not so much as named amongst the Gentiles These then being the Idolaters with whom we haue to deale let vs learne first how dangerous a thing it is to communicate with them in their false worship For if we will be partakers of Babylons sinnes Reuel 18.4 wee must looke to receiue of her plagues Secondly wee are to be admonished that it is not sufficient that in our owne persons we refraine worshipping of Idols but it is further required that we restraine as much as in vs lyeth the practice thereof in others lest by suffering God to be dishonoured in so high a manner when wee may by our calling hinder it wee make our selues partakers of other mens sinnes Eli the high Priest was a good man and gaue excellent counsell vnto his lewd sonnes yet wee know what iudgement fell vpon him 1. Sam. 3.13 because his sonnes made themselues vile and he frowned not vpon them that is restrained them not which God doth interpret to be a kinde of Idolatry 1. Sam. 2.29 in honouring of his sonnes aboue him The Church of Pergamus did for her owne part hold fast Christs name and denyed not his faith yet had the Lord something against her Reuel 2.14 because she had there them that held the doctrine of Balaam who taught Balac to cast a stumbling blocke before the children of Israel to eate things sacrificed vnto Idols and to commit fornication So we see what speciall notice our Sauiour taketh of the workes and charity and seruice and faith patience of the Church of Thyatira Reuel 2.20 and yet for all this he addeth Notwithstanding I haue a few things against thee because thou sufferest that woman Iezebel which calleth herselfe a Prophetesse to teach and to seduce my seruants to commit fornication and to eate things sacrisiced vnto Idols In the second of Iudges God telleth the childrē of Israel what mischiefe should come vnto them by tolerating the Canaanitish Idolaters in their Land Iudg. 2.3 They shall be thornes in your sides saith he and their gods shall be a snare vnto you Which words containe in them the intimation of a double danger the one respecting the soule the other the body That which concerneth the soule is that their Idols should be a snare vnto them For God well knew that mans nature is as prone to spirituall fornication as it is to corporall As therefore for the preuenting of the one he would not haue a common harlot tolerated in Israel Lest the Land should fall to whoredome and become full of wickednesse Leuit. 19.29 so for the keeping out of the other he would haue prouocations taken away and all occasions whereby a man might be tempted to commit so vile a sinne The bodily danger that followeth vpon the toleration of Idolaters is that they should be in their sides that is as in another place it is more fully expressed they should be prickes in their eyes Numb 33.55 and thornes in their sides and should vexe them in the Land wherein they dwelled Now in both these respects it is certaine that the toleration of the Idolaters with whom we haue to doe is farre more perillous than of any other In regard of the spirituall danger wherewith simple soules are more like to bee insnared because this kinde of Idolatry is not brought in with an open shew of impiety as that of the Pagans but is a mystery of iniquity a wickednesse couered with the vaile of piety and the harlot which maketh the inhabitants of the earth drunke with the wine of this fornication is both gilded her selfe and presenteth also her abominations vnto her followers in a cup of gold Reuel 17.2.4 If we looke to outward perill we are like to find these men not thornes in our sides to vexe vs but daggers in our hearts to destroy vs. Not that I take all of them to be of this furious disposition mistake me not I know a number my selfe of a farre different temper but because there are neuer wanting among them some turbulent humours so inflamed with the spirit of fornication that they runne mad with it and are transported so farre that no tolerable termes can content them vntill they haue attained to the vtmost pitch of their vnbridled desires For compassing whereof there is no trechery nor rebellion nor murther nor desperate course whatsoeuer that without all remorse of conscience they dare not aduenture vpon Neither doe they thus only but they teach men also so to doe arming both Pope and Bishops and People and priuate persons with power to cast downe euen Kings themselues from their Thrones if they stand in their way and giue any impediment to their designes Touching the Popes power herein there is no disputing one of them telleth vs that a Dubium non est quin Papa possit omnes Reges cùm subest causa rationabilis deponere Augustin Triumphus de Potest Ecclesiast quaest 46. artic 2. there is no doubt but the Pope may depose all Kings when there is a reasonable cause so to doe For