works which he hath done and suffered noe doubt but they shall see and confesse that which his very enemys confessed who hauing seene the passages of his death went away Mat. 27. saying Indeede this was the Sonne of God Let them beleeue and professe this in the true Church of Christ and let neither life nor death nor the loue of any creature euer be able to separate them from it But there remaineth yet to shew which of all christian Churches is the true Church of Christ This by Gods grace I shall shew in the exposition of the ninth article where I shall destinguish the Catholike Church from all false Churches Now we will goe on to THE THIRD ARTICLE WHO was conceiued by the Holy Ghost The attributes of the B. Trinity borne of the Virgin Mary Although the mystery of the Incarnation be attributed here onely to the Holy Ghost as though Christ were conceiued by his onely power yet we are not to thinke that it was done by him onely without the Father and the Sonne For this is a rule without exception in the mystery of the blessed Trinity that all the externall works of God to wit those which he doth in respect of creatures are done indiuisibly by all the Persons of the B. Trinity because their power is all one indiuisible power in them and soe the Conception of our Sauiour was done by the same power of the Father and of the Sonne and of the Holy Ghost And to say here that Christ was conceiued by the Holy Ghost is the same as to say that his conception was by the power and speciall gift of God after a supernaturall and not after a natural manner It is here attributed particularly to the holy ghost by reason of the great loue and bounty of God which he shewed in it For although all the diuine perfections be equally commune to all the Persons of the B. Trinity yet some certaine titles or attributes there are which are vsed as propper and particular to them seuerally Soe we attribute power to God the Father because the Sonne and the Holy Ghost proceede from him We attribute wisdome to the Sonne because he proceedeth from the Father by way of vnderstanding We attribute goodnesse loue bounty and the like to the Holy Ghost because the Holy Ghost proceedeth from the Father and the Sonne by the operation of the will which loueth nothing but that which either is good or at least is apprehended then as good And soe those works of God in which his power is most manifested are attributed to the Father those which declare most his wisdome are attributed to the Sonne and those which shew most his goodnes loue bounty and the like are attributed to the Holy Ghost Neither was it an inuention of men by these termes and attributes to destinguish the diuine Persons but it was an inuention of God himselfe The Apostles were inspired to attribute power particularly to the Father saying I beleeue in God the Father Almighty S. Iohn was inspired to attribute wisdome to the Sonne calling him the Word of God which was from the beginning And Christ himselfe attributed goodnes in particular to the Holy Ghost Luc. 11. saying your father from heauen will giue the Good Spirit to those that aske him Soe although all the diuine persons be equall in power wisdome goodnes and in all perfections the same according to S. Iohn These three be one and soe all of them concurre equally to the Conception of Christ yet here it is attributed particularly to the Holy Ghost because the loue of God is soe eminently manifested in it For the same reason we paint the Father as an auncient man because the Sonne and the Holy Ghost proceede from him we paint the Sonne in humane nature an intellectuall creature because his procession is by way of vnderstanding we paint the Holy Ghost as a done because the done is a bird that sheweth most loue and loue as I haue said is the property of the Holy Ghost Neither can it be displeasing to God that we expresse him by these corporal shapes and species of visible things which are naturall and necessary for our vnderstandings And to shew this he would expresse himselfe soe appearing in those very shapes by which we expresse him He appeared vnto Daniel like an old man Dan. 7. I beheld saith he till the thrones were set and the auncient of dayes sate his vesture white as now and the haire of his head life cleane wooll The Second Person was not onely made into the similitude of men but appeared in the true nature of man in Iesus Christ our Sauiour Phil. 2. The Holy Ghost at the baptisme of Christ was seene as a done ouer him S. Iohn testifying I saw the Spirit descending as a done from heauen Io. 1. and he remained vpon him Thus would God represent himselfe to vs and we can not represent him better then as he hath represented himselfe Borne of the Virgin Mary By this article the Apostles professe the procession of Christ according to his humane nature For hauing in the first article professed the Father who is the first Person and in the second the Second Person in Iesus Christ his onely Sonne now they goe on to speake of him as man according to the nature which he assumed of the Virgin Mary his mother For where as other children proceede both of father and mother he by the operation of the Holy Ghost was conceiued of his mothers nature onely she remaining allwais a Virgin S. Ioseph as the husband of our blessed lady was taken for the father of Christ And when they heard him with that knowledge and wisdome disputing in the temple Mat. 13. admiring they said is not this the carpenters sonne noe he was the sonne of the blessed Virgin and assumed humane nature of her nature and of her Virginal body but of noe man And this was a mystery which God would reueale and foretell by his Prophet long before Esa 7. saying behold a Virgin shall conceiue and beare a sonne For as soone as the Angel had deliuered his message to her and she had answered Behold the handmaid of our Lord Luc. 1. be it done to mee according to thy word consenting to the mystery propounded by him the sacred body of our Lord was of the Virgins body presently formed and his soule was infused into it and they being vnited to the diuine Person there was then in one person the vnion of two natures and Christ who was the eternall sonne of God was also the sonne of man as he proceeded of the Virgin Mary both natures in that admirable coniunction keeping their perfections that as S. Leo saith the glorification neither consuming the inferiour nor the assumption deminishing from the superiour This is a mystery incomprehensible by vs and therefor the omnipotency of God was propounded by the Angell to our blessed lady as to be considered
the mysterious vnion of our nature vnto God in Christ that the Apostle might wel say we are made the consorts of the diuine nature for as man and woman are made consorts by holy marriage Petr 2 1. their mindes bodys and temporal riches becomming common and as it were all one betwixt them soe the Sonne of God vniting mans nature vnto his they were then two natures in one person and man was made coÌ„sort to the diuine nature and endowed withall the titles and riches of God that according to S. Athâ—nasius his Creede as man consisteth of a spiritual and corporal nature soe that of soule and body is constituted an intire man soe doth Christ consist of two natures diuine and humane There is noe good thinge which we can desire but we haue it in this mystery For our soules being sanctifyed by the passion of Christ they are made also the consorts of the diuine nature by grace and God comming to them as to his spouses bringeth with him all good thinges to them and in the end will carry them into his glorious kingdome These two mysterys of the Blessed Trinity and and of the Incarnation are as I haue said the two cheife mysterys of the christian faith propper onely to christians and destinguishing them from all other people and therefor the signe of the Cros which conteineth them is vsed in the Catholike Church as a breife and ready profession of the faith of Christ that as nations commonwealths and noble familys haue their armes and cognisants by which they are knowne and destinguished and in which they honour themselues soe christians haue the signe of the Cros as their propper armes by which they are knowne and professe themselues to be the children and disciples of Christ and therefor we haue great reason to glory in it and to thinke it our cheife honour and security to haue the armes of such a king and father Hauing declared the sense and signification of the figne of the Cros now we wil speake OF THE WORSHIP WHICH good Christians ought to giue to the Cros of Christ BY that which hath bene said it doth easily appeare that all Christians haue reason to honour the Cros. Infidels Iewes and Turks haue allwais opposed the honour of it pulling downe breaking and defacing of crosses pretending that which is true indeede that the dishonour which they doe to the Cros is done to Christ whose enemys they professe themselues to be Heretiks agree with Infidels Iewes and Turks when they pull downe chrosses and yet wil pretende themselues to be the freinds of Christ and his faithfull seruants hauing wilfully blinded themselues not to see that which the others by nature see that the iniurys which are done vnto the Cros fall voon Christ for whose sake we honour it Heretiks as you see agree here in their actions with Infidels Iewes and Turks and differ onely in pretence from them and natural reason sheweth that Infidels Iewes and Turks say truely in that which they pretende and that such haeretiks haue both euill actions and af alse pretence also and soe they haue in this lesse verity then the former But the Catholike Church hath neuer consented to the iniurys of the Cros because we know that such iniurys fall vpon Christ crucyfied and therefor as fast as they pull downe crosses we labour to set them vp and as they striue to dishonour the Cros we striue against them to honour it We blesse ourselues with the signe of the Cros bow to Crosses kisse and reuerence them we institute holy dayes in honour of it and in all thinges we glory in the Cros of our Lord Iesus Christ as the cheife instrument of his passion and therefor we thinke it a sitte signe to putte vs in minde of it and that we may aptly vnderstande his passion by it Thus hath the Church of God in the Apostles times and euer since vsed the Cros to signify the passion of Christ and honored it in that signification Thus did S. Phil. 3. Paul vnderstande by the enemys of the Cros the enemys of Christs Passion and thus doe Infidels Iewes and Turkes thinke that shewing themselues to be enemys of Crosses they shew themselues to be enemys of the Passion of Christ and haeretiks who professe themselues the Disciples of Christ should by reason conceiue as without doubt they doe a feare and horrour when they abuse Crosses and cannot by reason but thinke themselues enemys of the Passion of Christ when reason telleth them the relation which Crosses haue to it and therefor we rightly honour and worship them What did S. Paul but that which we doe when he said God forbidde that I should glory sauing in the Cros of our Lord Iesus Christ Gal 6. did not he vse here the Cros to signify the Passion of Christ and honour it in that signification in the very same sense doth the Catholike Church vse it and doth nothing but that which S. Paul here did and we may very well make this argument S. Paul vsed the Cros to signify the Passion of Christ and then honoured it in that signification therefor we may lawfully doe soe he gloried inwardly in his hart in the Cros and his tongue and lipps moued corporally in honour of it meaning still to honour the Passion of Christ by it and this is that which good Catholikes doe honouring with their harts and their whole bodys mouing in honour of the Cros vnderstanding by it the Passion of Christ Aug. tract 43. in lo. S. Augustine sayeth that Christ choosing the death of the Cros hath fixed the signe of the Cros in our foreheades that we might say God forbidde that I should glory sauing in the Cros of our Lord Iesus Christ The Cros is the cheife instrument and weapon with which our Sauiour fought and obtained that glorious victory by which he saued vs and therefor we ought to glory in it and to keepe it in great reuerence Dauid fighting for the people of God ouercame the Philistaean gyant and with a sword cut of his head and it pleased God that his sword should afterwards be honored by the people being carefully lapt vp and kept in the temple as a memoriall of their champions victory This is very propper to our purpose Dauid may represent Christ who is our champion but infinitly more glorious and therefor more worthy to be honored by vs. But as the sword was to Dauid soe was the Cros in respect of Christ the instrument of his victory and if it were the will of God to haue Dauid honored afterwards in his sword because the honour of it redounded to him shall not we honour Christ in his Cros and thinke that the honour of the Cros redoundeth vnto Christ If some euill minded man had entred into the Temple and taking downe king Dauids sword from behind the Ephod had abused and broken it would not this man haue bene iust y thought to haue dishonored king Dauid himselfe and
particularly in this worke Luc. 1. when he said the Holy Ghost shall come vpon thee and the power of the most high shall ouer shaddow thee For as the loue and goodnes of God towards vs appeareth here most illustrious soe was it most congruous that his power should appeare aboue our vnderstandings most miraculous The conception of Christ surpassed all ordinary conceptions not onely in that he was conceiued of a Virgin mother but also in the circumstances of it For where as the space of some dayes is required for the framing of our bodys and to dispose them for our soules the sacred body and soule of our Lord were both vnited together in the first instant of his conception and the diuine nature vnto them by which his humanity was enriched with diuine gifts and was in eminency of dignity and sanctity aboue all all others being by adoption onely and Christ by nature the sonne of God This is not vnderstoode by vs but beleeued yet it was as easy to God that by his high power a Virgin should conceiue and bring forth without the concurse of man as it was for the rodd of Aaron to conceiue nourishing moysture and to putt forth budds leaues flowers Nu. 17. and almonds by the same power of God without the natural concourse of the earth And it is indeede as easy to God to make a Virgin to conceiue as the blessed Virgin did of her owne nature onely with out the helpe of man and to frame a body in an instant as our blessed Sauiours was as it was for him to make all other women to conceiue with the helpe of man and to frame the body by litle and litle with fitte dispositions for the soule which he could haue ordained otherwise but would not because he would haue the conception of Christ to be aboue all most pure and miraculous And as the conception of Christ was most misterious soe was it fitting that his birth also should be that she who had conceiued with the priuilege of her Virginity free from corruption should bring him forth in her deliuery free from paine and other myserys which other women are then subiect vnto And that as the ioy with which she conceiued him was not corporal but heauenly and spiritual soe that his birth should be also full of ioy and heauenly consolation to her For if God would send his Angell to the shepheards to comfort their harts and to fill them with ioy for the birth of our Sauiour how great may we thinke the ioy of the B. Virgin then to haue bene who was soe singularly chosen of God to be his mother We can not but with reuerence thinke of those consolations which she had in his birth He came from her sacred wombe as the beames of the sunne pierce through cleare crystal without hurting it and as the same sacred body of our Lord passed through the sepulcher in his resurrection without breaking it soe did he passe out of his mothers wombe without any violence done to her We ought very much to reioyce in the birth of Christ for the reason which the Angell gius because this day is borne to you a Sauiour What greater ioy can prisoners and condemned persons haue then in one that will saue them We haue then great reason to reioyce in that ioy which the Angell brought and to celebrate euery yeare that sacred day And yet soe great is the malice of heresy soe dishonorable to God and peruerting the mindes of men that some in this kingdome who call themselues christians dare venture to worke on Christmas day refusing to giue that honour which all christians haue soe long giuen to the birth day of Christ We reade in holy scriptures that kings in auncient times kept festiuall the yearely day of their birthes soe Pharao Gen. 40. Antiochus Mach. 2.6 and Herod Mat. 14. and can the birth day of any king with iustice be obserued and not the birth day of Christ the king and Sauiour of the world If some courtyer of Pharao had refused to keepe the feast of his birth day opposing the solemnity which the rest did obserue would not he with reason haue iudged it as an affront and punished it as a dishonour done to him How dare then any christian be soe bold and prophane as not to keepe the solemnity of Christs birth knowing that one day he shall iudge him for it It is true authors differ in assigning the day on which he was borne But what then shall we therefor keepe noe day at all in honour of it or shal any one shew himselfe soe singular and prowde as vpon his owne sense and authority to disobey the whole Church of Christ We know not for certaine the time in which the scriptures were written nor the authors that wrote them all shall we therefor reiect them as some haeretiks haue done and haue noe scriptures at all we know not iust the time in which the Sundays Sabaoth was first begunne to be kept shall any one therefor refuse to obserue it but if the Church could change the Sabaoth from the seuenth day on which God had instituted it to the eight day and could binde all soe to obserue it although it were not the day on which God rested from the creation of the world shall not the Church binde all to obserue a day which she determineth in honour of Christs birth although perhaps he was not borne iust on that day Luc. 2. we reioyce in that message which the Angell brought when he said behold I Euangelize to you great ioy which shall be to all the people for to day is borne to you a Sauiour It is fitting that the Church should institute a yearely solemnity of that ioyfull day and it is fitting that we should obey the Church The day which the Church instituteth is Christmas day and therefor we keepe it Besides this is most likely to be the true day of his birth which Aug. l. 1. de Trin. c. 5. according to S. Augustine was on the eight of the Calends of Ianuary Euer blessed and most solemne may that day be in which our Sauiour was borne in which the sonne of God first appeared in the nature of man in which our nature first appeared vnited to God and in which both natures being married together came forth of the Virgins wombe as out of their bride chamber the Angels reioycing and bidding ioy vnto men Luc. 2. Then it was when they were heard to sing Glory in the highest to God and in earth peace to men of good will Let vs with the Angels say those words and doe as we say in all our actions The mystery of the Incarnation often represented This the Catholike Church laboreth to doe in this mystery of the sonne of Gods incarnation representing it vnto her people and stirring them vp to a gratefull remembrance and thanksgiuing for it by many deuour prayers and caeremonys which they often
soe obscured and thy sacred and life giuing face to become pale and void of life as a roote from a thirsty ground that there is noe beauty nor comlinesse in it It was by vs that thou camest into this plight thou didst beare our sinnes and they put thee to paine and disfigured thee Thinke now O Christians of that which you beleeve and confider who he was and what he suffered for you Iesus Christ the onely sonne of God suffereth for man the master for the seruant the Creatour for his creature he that made Angels and men heauen and earth he of whom and by whom and in whom are all thinges he bore our infirmitys our sorrowes he carryed Rom. 11. and became as a lepar strucken of God and humbled Esa 53. He was wounded for our iniquitys and with the waile of his stripe we are healed our sinnes drew blood of his sacred body and crucifyed and killed him Heauen stoode astonished the sunne was ecclypsed a terrible darknesse was spred ouer the earth the earth was shaken graues opened and the bodys of the dead roze vp to life againe at this mystery and shall it make noe impression in vs Behold ô Christians Christ expired on the Cros and say often with your selues who is this that is Crucifyed and dead who is this that is crucifyed and dead It is the onely sonne of God whom the Angles adore the latchet of whose shoe S. Iohn Baptist was not worthy to loose Thinke then againe what he was crucifyed for It was to take away our sinnes and to blesse vs with euerlasting glory O blessed Lord O God our Sauiour how great was thy loue to vs and thy hatred to sinne that could cause the miracle of thy incarnation and death for our redemption I reioyce in thy merits by which I am redeemed and being now at liberty I dedicate my selfe for euer to thy seruice Keepe thou my soule and let it neuer forsake thee The benefit which we haue by the death of Christ was praefigured vnto vs in the law of Moyses where guilty persons that had sled to the cittys of sanctuary were set at liberty and went home pardoned at the death of the high Priest Our high Priest was Iesus Christ heauen is our blessed home sinne banished vs from thence but thither we returne againe by the death of Christ Heb. 10. hauing considence saith the Apostle in the entring of the holys in the blood of Christ Let vs serue him as we ought and then indeede we may haue confidence in him THE FIFTH ARTICLE HE descended into hell the third day he arose againe from death The Apostles hauing in the former article professed the Passion and death of Christ declare now his victory and triumph ouer it That which by this article is proposed to be beleeued is that the soule of Christ departing in death from his body descended truely into hell For as long as his body remained in the sepulcher his soule was separated from it and all that while was descended into hell Some haeretiks haue wickedly denyed this article of Christ his descension into hell ignorantly vnderstanding by hell his sepulcher Not considering that his descending into the sepulcher was professed before in the former article and therefor there needed not another article to repeate it ouer againe and to say that he descended into the sepulcher Neither is it a propper manner of speech in that sense for the body of our Lord was then dead and descended not but was laid by others in the sepulcher This therefor can not be vnderstoode of his body descending into the sepulcher but of his soule descending into hell Aunciently by hell some place in general was vnderstoode where the soules of men resided after death and it was not onely taken for the place of the damned but also for the residence of the iust As when the holy Patriaâ—ke Iacob mourning for the death of his sonne Ioseph said Gen. 37. I will descende vnto my sonne into hell and when the Apostle saith Phil. 2. In the name of Iesus euery knee bow of the caelestials terrestrials and insernals For hell in Latine is as much as to say a place inferiour vnto vs or below vs which is therefor in the earth For the vnderstanding of which we may destinguish fower places in the earth the receptacles of soules departed Fower kinds of hell First there is the lowest hell of euerlasting damnation which is the furthest place from heauen as most suetable to those whose liues and actions were furthest of and most opposite to God and therefor in respect of punishment it is the deepest hell Secondly the next aboue that in paine is Purgatory Thirdly aboue purgatory is the place where the soules of those are detained who dy onely in original sinne Fourthly aboue that there was a place for the soules of the iust that dyed before Christ not hauing the guilt of any sinne or satisfaction to make for it For it was not conuenient that any should enter into heauen before Christ who purchased it for all and therefor those soules remained in an inferiour place vntill the death of Christ and then he descending to them freed them from that place This was some times called the bosome of Abraham because Abraham was the father of the elect and comprized as it were in him all the iust as Christ came of his seede who was the head of all the iust Thither therefor did our blessed Sauiour descende to blesse and to free those holy soules And perhaps he would also shew himselfe to the soules of purgatory for their comfort as also to the damned soules for their terrour and rebuke Christ was buryed on the fryday on which he suffered For the death of the Cros was held in that ignominy that the law commanded those that were Crucifyed to be taken from the Cros on the same day After his buriall he remained in the sepulcher all that day and all Saturday and part of Sunday vntill about breake of day all which time his soule was descended into hell Then he released the iust out of that place in which they were detained and brought them with him to the sepulcher where vniting his soule and body together againe the third day he arose from the dead not as those who haue bene reuiued by the power of others to a second life and to dy a second death but by his owne power he aroze againe to dy noe more For the diuine nature being allwais present with his body and soule as vnited with them in the vnity of person he had power to raise himselfe and by his owne power he tooke life againe and aroze glorious and therefor he said of himselfe Io. 10. I yeeld my life c. I yeeld it of my selfe and I haue power to yeeld it and I haue power to take it againe We reade of diuerse who haue bene raised from death to life both before and since the
sentence which they giue soe priests are made of God the iudges ouer soules they beare his person they forgiue sinnes and whose sinnes they forgiue vpon earth those are forgiuen by him in heauen By sinne we become debtours to God he is the creditour who onely of himselfe can forgiue but he substituting others to forgiue in his name his substitutes can validly forgiue and the substitutes of God are his priests To say that men can not haue power to forgiue sinnes is that which the Iewes obiected against Christ and which he answered and disprooued by a miracle shewing by it that himselfe not onely as he was God but also according to his humanity could forgiue sinnes A lame and impotent man being brought vnto him he said Mat. 9. Thy sinnes are forgiuen thee And when the Iewes heard those words presently they said that he blasphemed as though the power of forgiuing sinnes had bene soe propper to God that he could not haue imparted it to man But they shall see the contrary and that there was noe blasphemy in his words Wherfor thinke you euill in you harts saith Christ whether is easier to say thy sinnes are forgiuen thee or to say arize and walke but that you may know that the Sonne of man hath power on earth to forgiue sinnes Arize take vp thy bedd and goe into thy house And he aroze and went into his house And the multitudes seeing it glorifyed God that had giuen such power to men Now let none euer say that men cannot haue power to forgiue sinnes It is soe farre from being a blasphemy or iniury to God to say that he giueth power to men to forgiue sinnes that to say the contrary is a blasphemy and iniury to him to wit that he can not or doth not giue that power to men For as the honour and power of the king is not diminished but rather his loue and care ouer his subiects is demonstrated in making iudges to conserue iustice and order amongst them and especially in giuing power to his iudges to pardon offences done against him soe is it a special demonstration of the loue of God vnto men to giue power to priests to forgiue sinnes which are committed against him And this is that which the Apostles would haue vs here to professe to wit the forgiuenesse of sinnes by power giuen to the Catholike Church He that considereth the euill of mortall sinne how that it woundeth and quite killeth our soules leauing them depriued of the grace of God and guilty of the paines of hell will esteeme greatly of this power and will thinke that there is nothing in the world which soe much behoueth a sinner as the right application of that power to himselfe Esa 27. This is the end and fruit of all that sinne be taken away Saith the Prophet By this our soules when they are as a dead and filthy carrion in the sight of God are restored to the life of grace made cleane and beautifull and all the happines of future life also becommeth then due to them This we shall learne how it is to be applyed in the Sacrament of Pennance where the benefit of it is obtained THE ELEAVENTH ARTICLE THe Resurrection of the flesh How necessary this article was to the establishing of the christian doctrine it appeareth in this that the holy scriptures doe not onely professe it but also prooue it S. Paul prooueth the resurrection of our bodys by the resurrection of Christ If saith he there be noe resurrection of the dead neither is Christ rizen againe Cor. 1 15. And if Christ be not rizen againe then vaine is our preaching vaine also is your faith And he declareth and confirmeth it by the similitude of corne which corrupting in the seede rizeth vp fresh and faire corne againe With these and the like arguments he disputeth against certaine men that denyed the resurrection Tim. 2.2 as Hymenaeus and Philetus who interpreted the scriptures to be vnderstoode of the resurreation of the soule to the state of grace Christ also himselfe disputed with the Saducaeans about this point and confirmed in fact the truth of it when he raized Lazarus to life who although he had bene fower dayes dead and laid then stinking in the monument yet when Christ called he heard Io. 11. and obeyed comming forth fresh and liuely Holy Iob in the midst of all his assictions comforted himselfe with these words Iob 19. I know that my redeemer liueth and in the last day I shall rize out of the earth And I shall be compassed againe with my skinne and in my flesh I shall see God Thus did this holy man solace himselfe with the thought of the resurrection which he saith he had laid vp in his bosome vsing it as a cordiall and antidore against his great miserys Our soules and bodys desiring by nature to be vnited together for the complete and intire constituting of man it stands with reason that they should once come together againe that the soules of the blessed may enioy their desire and be satiated in the naturall appetite which they haue vnto their bodys And for this reason the immortality of the soule and the resurrection of the body is mentioned in the scriptures and was taken by the auncient Philosophers as it were for the same because such is the connexion betwixt them that by the immortality of the soule the resurrection of the body is inserred for if the soule be immortal and haue a natural appetite to the body as being ereated to constitute man consisting of both soule and body then that appetite must once be satiated by the resurrection of the body after death and revnion of the soule to it againe and soe take away the resurrection of the body and you take away the immortality of the soule and then all grounds of faith and the hopes of future life are taken away with it our soules being mortal with our bodys and therefor S. Paul If I fought with beasts at Ephesus what doth it profit mee Cor. 1.15 if the dead rize not againe let vs eate and drinke for to morrow we shall dy And therefor S. Chrysostome calleth the Saducaeans who denyed the resurrection the most pernicious haeretiks that euer were S. Ambrose hauing prooued it by scriptures and by the examples of those who haue rizen from the dead and by reasons which he calleth euident concludeth all in this plane and certaine truth that the corruptions of seedes and productions which we see of new thinges are vnto God the resurrection of the old That which we beleeue by this article is that the very same bodys which liued before although neuer soe much corrupted shall be vnited to their soules againe and remaine for euer with them for if it were not the same body which was before it were not a resurrection but a production of a new thinge and that this resurrection is general to all Cor. 1.15 according to the
eminently blessed aboue the rest of the Sacraments and infinitly blessed in that it conteineth the authour of all blesse These are the words of S. Denis the disciple of S. Eccl hier c. 3. Paul concerning it for it is saith he according to our renewmed master the Consummation of the Sacraments Neither is it almost lawfull for any of the priestly functions to be exercized but this diuine and high Sacrament of Eucharist must be performed It is the highest indeede and most diuine of all the Sacraments because the rest conteining onely the vertue and power of Christ this truely and really conteineth Christ himselfe And therefor the Apostles called it the Eucharist that is to say a high and blessed grace or gift By it the Church of Christ is placed in a midle ranke of honour aboue the synagogue of the Iewes and vnder the cittizens of heauen we being but a litle lesse exalted then they The Synagogue of the Iewes in the law of Moyses had Christ in sigure onely we in the Eucharist haue him as really as the cittizens of heauen but they haue him in glory In the Eucharist all Christ is conteined for although by vertue of the words This is my body c. his body onely be really present in it yet because all his perfections are allwais accompanying his sacred body and wheresoeuer it is there is all Christ hence it followeth that both his body and soule and all the perfections of his diuine and humane nature and all whatsoeuer is in Christ is really in the Eucharist in company of his body If his body were without his soule then it were dead Rom 6. as it was in the sepulcher but Christ rising againe from the dead now dieth noe more Saith the Apostle Christ therfor being now not dead wheresoeuer his body is there his soule is all ouer vnited to it There is then his intire humane nature of body and soule and being that his diuine and humane nature are allwais vnited together there is also the diuine word and nature of God All Christ is intirely in the host and all Christ is intirely in the chalice although vnder different signes and species And Christ is not onely all in all the host and chalice but all Christ is in euery part of them soe that he that receiueth onely the host receiueth as much as he that receiueth both host and chalice and he that receiueth the chalice onely receiueth as much as both chalice and host and the least particle of either of them is as much as all The reason of this supposing the truth of Christs words may easily be vnderstoode for that he did not determine any particular quantity to be consecrated which if he had done then a lesser quantity had not bene consecrated but leauing the quantity indifferent and the least part of it being consecrated as well as the whole it is the perfect Eucharist and perfect Christ as well as the whole Christ being shortly to depart this world would leaue vnto vs a great testimony ef his loue and although his passion and death were sufficient to testify it yet besides them he would bestow a gift token and pledge vpon vs which might allwais remaine with vs as a memorial of him He called therfor his disciples to supper and being there all together he made his wil and last testament amongst them bequething vnto them the most pretious gift that was in his hands to giue and in his blessed hands were all thinges It was his owne pretious body which then he bequeathed and gaue to them and with it all the perfections of his diuine and humane nature and he gaue it not in promise onely and for the future but he deliuered it then to them for themselues and for all good christiaÌ„s for euer And that noe haeretike might misconstrue his will and defraude the world of this pretious Isgacy he declared his minde soe planely and in such termes as could not wel be misinterpreted telling them that it was the very body which Was to be deliuered and that blood which was to be shedd Gâ—r 1.11 For the Apostle sayth that whilst they were at supper Iesus tooke bread and blessed and brake and he gaue to his disciples and said take ye and eate THIS IS MY BODY which shall be deliuered for you and taking the chalice he gaue thanks and gaue to them saying drinke ye all of this For this is my blood of the new testament which shall be shed for many vnto remission of sinnes Commanding them to doe the same in commemoration of him If then his true body and blood was deliuered and shedd it was his true body and blood which then he gaue to them And although as there is noe absurdity soe great but haeretiks wil finde out how to mainteine it the Manichees haue conceited that an apparent body onely and not the true body of Christ was deliuered on the Cros for vs yet now that I heare of there are noe such haeretiks in the world All christians then beleeuing that his true body was deliuered on the Cros why shall not all as wel beleeue that his true body is conteined in the Eucharist seeing that we haue the same authority for it After this the Apostles vndertooke to consecrate the Eucharist and honored it as the very true body and blood of our lord Cor. 1.11 Mat. 26. S. Paul whosoeuer shall eate this bread or drinke the chalice of our Lord vnworthily he shall be guilty of the body and blood of our Lord. and that he eateth and drinketh iudgment to him selfe not discerning the body of our Lord. Thus did the Apostles receiue the Eucharist from Christ and honored it as his true body And the primitiue Church that receiued it from them gaue it the same honour as they did and as the Romane Church now doth That the Rom. Church doth now giue it that honour it is well knowne and that the primitiue Church honored it as much it shall appeare by the sentences of those fathers and first by the honorable names which they giue it Hier. Eccl. c. 3. Ignat. ad Ephes Iustin Apoll Cyp. de lapsis S. Denis termeth it hostia saluta ris the sauing host S. Ignatius calleth it medicamentum immortalitatis antidotum non moriendi the medicine of immortality the antidote against death Iustinus Caro sanguis incarnati Iesu the flesh and blood of Iesus incarnated Cyprian de laps Sanctum Domini gratia salutaris sacrificium perpes holecaustum permanens the holy one of our Lord the sauing grace the continual sacâ—ifice an offering allwais remaining Concilium Nicaen Agnus Dei qui tollit peccata mundi the lambe of God that taketh away the sinnes of the world S. Cyr mystag 4. Cyril hath these words of it Vnder the shew of bread the body is giuen to thee and the blood is giuen vnder the shew of wine Doe not consider it as naked bread and wine For it
our Lord is a Sacrifice The Masse is a Sacrifice that is the action of Sacrifizing the body and blood of our Lord is a Sacrifice that is the thinge which is Sacrifized or offered at Masse The worship of Sacrifice hath bene esteemed at all times and by all religions soe necessary to be giuen to God that there neuer was any religion in the world according to Turseline before the Turks soe Barbarous but as they allwais worshipped some God soe they offered some kind of Sacrifice to him in soe much that Plutarch could say that it was easier to finde cittys without temples Plut. aâ— uers Color and coynes of moneys without inscriptions Then temples without altares To wit to Sacrifice vpon For the same natural reason that teacheth all people to defende themselues and to honour their superiors teacheth them also to worship God with some high and soueraigne worship aboue all propper onely to him And therefor it was a good expression of this authour to declare by the foresaid similitudes the nature and necessity of Sacrifice for as cittys are defended by walles and principalitys destinguished and acknowledged by the impressions of their coynes soe the worship of God is mainteined and his supreme principality destinguished and acknowledged by the worship of Sacrifice as due and propper onely to him L. 10. de Ciu. Dei Quis enim Sacrificandum censuit sayeth S. Augustine nisi ei quem Deum aut sciuit aut putauit aut finixit for who euer deemed that Sacrifice was to be offered to any but to him whom he either knew or thought or feigned to be God And therefor saith he the deuill hath labored soe much to haue Sacrifice offered by Infidels vnto him because it is the highest and properly diuine worship And therefor shall Antichrist striue soe much to take away the daily Sacrifice of Masse as Daniel figuratiuely Prophecyed in wicked Antiochus because it is the highest externall act of religion We offer vp to God the acts of our minde as spiritual Sacrifices and we offer vp also some corporall thinge to him to acknowledge him the authour both of our body and soule and of all spiritual and corporal thinges In the Law of nature Sacrifices were offered to God and in the Law of Moyses which was more perfect then that Sacrifices also were offered to him and shall he want his supreme worship in the Law of Christ which they did but praesigure as to be perfected by it Noe The shall haue a much more perfect Sacrifice and that is the sacred body and blood of our Lord offered euery day to him This is our Sacrifice the very same that was offered on the Cros the most noble and pretious of all corporal thinges and therefor most worthy to be the Sacrifice of that Law and Religion which the sonne of God in his owne person was to institute amongst vs. ALL TRVE SACRIFICES BEfore Christ were but Types and Emblemes of honour to setforth the dignity of our Sacrifice THE Sacrifices of the Law of Nature and of the Law of Moyses were good and holy Sacrifices yet as those Lawes did but signify the more perfect Law of Christ which was to come soe their Sacrifices which were the cheife things of those Lawes were but figures of ours Their Sacrifices of Beeues Calues Rammes Lambes Turtles and the like were killed and their blood was shed vpon the Altare to signify the Lambe of God whose blood was to be shed vpon the Altare of the Crosse There were in the Law of Moyses three kindes of Sacrifices the Holocaust the Placable host and the Peaceable host The Holocaust is as much as to say all burnt For it was not offered for any particular end or intention but onely to giue supreme honour to God and therefore it was all totally consumed in honour of him The Placable host was to appease the diuine wrath when by some sinne they had offended him and it was diuided part of it being consumed to God and part giuen to the Priest to signify that the remission of sinnes proceedeth cheifly from God as the principal cause and secondarily from Priests as the instruments and meanes by which his poweris applyed to vs. The Pacifique or Peaceable host was offered for the obtaining of some benefit which they desired or in thanks-giuing for some which they had obtained and it was diuided into three parts the one of which was consumed to God another was giuen to the Priest and another remained to the party that offered it to signify that all benefits proceede from God by the help of Priests and by our owne endeauours concurring with them All these Sacrifices were fullfilled in ours to wit in the sacred Body of Christ our Sauiour He was our Holocaust quite consumed in his death vpon the Crosse he was our Placable host that appeased the wrath of God against vs he our Peaceable host by whom we haue all benefits Their bloody Sacrifices more expresly signifyed his body as it is was offered on the Crosse and their vnbloody Sacrifices of first fruits corne flower bread and the like represented more particularly the same body as it is offered after an vnbloody manner vpon the holy Altare at Masse But the Planest figure of the Sacrifice of Masse was a Lambe with Bread and Wine offered euery day in the Law of Moyses to signify the Lambe of God offered vnder the signes of bread and wine as the daily and continuall Sacrifice of the Law of Christ then to come Our Sacrifice then is the substance of those shaddowes and the glorious mystery which they were to signify This S. Andrew the Apostle of Christ professed as the Priests of Achaia in his Martyrdome rehearse when being vrged by Aegeas to offer Sacrifice to Idols he had this answere ready for him I offer euery day vpon the Altare an immaculate Lambe whose flesh when all the people haue eaten the Lambe that was sacrifyzed remaineth whole and aliue Thus did he glory in our immaculate Lambe which euery day as a Priest he offered and which the people then vsed euery day to receiue And in these words he planely intimateth that the sacrifices of the Law of Nature and of Moyses and especially that of the daily Lambe were but sigures to dicipher shaddows to denote and emblemes of honour to setforth the dignity of ours that was then to come a Sacrifice like them but infinitly more perfect And those Sacrifices being shaddowes of ours then to come they were to vanish away and to be offered noe more when it once came because then they lost their nature which was to signify ours as future But the holy Sacrifice of Masse representing noe other future Sacrifice and being the most perfect of all Sacrifices can neuer be made voide by any nor shall euer haue an end vntill the end of the world But we will shew THAT THE SACRED BODY OF our Lord as it is offered at Masse is a true Sacrifice THE
propper office with such parts and abilitys as are necessary for the dew performance of it some of them incorruptible others corrupting and those after a strange manner concealed from our vnderstandings when they are dead to reuiue againe to life by the corruption of their seede Soe from bodys we come to spirits that gouerne them and amongst spirits to some supreme cause and gouernour of them All which if we will attende vnto we cannot but reflect vpon the workman that made it and admire at his power and greatnesse That meruelous mother worthy of good mens memory seeing all her sonnes but one to haue passed through cruell torments to the crowne of martyrdome and the yongest of seauen to be brought to execution with a manly courageexhorted him Mach. 2.7 saying I beseech thee my sonne that thou looke vp to heauen and earth and to all thinges that are in them and vnderstande that God of nothing made them and mankind And Cicero sayth that there is nothing soe manifest when we looke vp to the heauens Giâ— l. 2. de â—at deer as that there is a diuine power that made and gouerneth them Behold then amongst visible creatures first the heauens see their huge greatnes and capacity conteining not onely a thousand and twenty two starres which astronomers haue mentioned but an innumerable number which they caÌ„not discerne to reckon and some of them may be thought to be a thousand times bigger then the whole globe of the earth how exceeding great then must the capacity of the heauens be to conteine them all Behold them of a nature incorruptible soe solid and strong that with that mighty violent motion which some of them haue they neuer breake nor corrupt nor weare away the least haire bredth See their great brightnes calmenes and quietnes without any noyse at all in that violence of motion Looke vpon the elements the fire next vnto the starry heauens vnder that the ayre and then the waters and the earth all of them of contrary natures yet agreeing together in those admirable effects which we see to result of their concord that all sublunary productions depende not onely of some one of them but of them all Looke now downe vnto the earth and behold there the many kindes of liuing and sensible creatures and amongst them all one onely endowed with reason as the Prince of the rest to order them and he inuested with such power and commande that by nature they feare and tremble at his voyce Behold them more in particular and first thy owne soule a spirituall creature which can moue in an instant to the furthest part of the earth or of the heauens and yet for the present is bounde to an earthly body whether it will or noe Consider then the disposition of thy body prepared as a seate sitte to receiue it and with parts conuenient for its operations and this not by its owne reason for that it hath none Behold the many diuerse natures of sensible creatures that moue themselues some flying some walking some creeping some swimming all liuing by the ayre some on the earth some within the earth some in the fire some in the waters all of them directed by some reason to loue that which is good for them and congruous to their nature Behold those creatures that liue without sense trees plants flowers and herbes producing fruits with admirable variety of tasts smells pleasant colours and profitable effects to delight the senses of higher creatures which are sensible and to serue them And lastly behold the earth with being onely yet susteining all liuing thinges in the life which they haue All these haue their limits set their perfections and operations and are bounde within them whether they will or noe and did not choose for themselues but haue onely that which another would giue them These are the testimonys which God hath left of himselfe and by these testimonys we must confesse the supreme power that caused all this and sett it in that order which we see it to haue And therefor it is natural to man when he looketh vp to the heauens with gladnes of hart to blesse God and if we haue a litle bird fly flower or any creature though neuer soe imperfect in our hands and consider attentiuely the parts and composition of it reason presently telleth vs that it could not make it selfe and by nature we blesse God that made it Say now according to reason and tell vs who it was that made the heauens and gaue them that huge vastnesse and capacity more then we can thinke that brightnes calmenes solidity and incorruptibility who gaue to the elements their mighty power by concorde to produce those great effects who gaue to man the principality ouer other creatures and made them by nature to feare and obey him and who was that superiour of mankind that commanded his spirituall and incorruptible soule to his corporall and corruptible body what reason was it that directed vnreasonable thinges to that which is good for them and made those which are vnsensible to yeeld such pleasure and profit to the senses and who gaue to the earth that hath not life power to conserue the liues of other thinges He that had power to doe all this we will confesse him to be God and we will praise and blesse him For of themselues they could not be at all nor would haue bene with the imperfections which they haue Here now reason is sufficiently satisfyed and the malice of man conuinced that shall deny God For the reason of euery man of it selfe presently consents if by malice and liberty it be not forced to the contrary vnto some superiour power that caused these thinges And that power all though we cannot comprehende it because it is aboue vs and must needes be infinite in perfection but of what nature soeuer that supreme power be meaning the supreme we say God and blesse him All this is breifly formed out of S. Thomas and Aristotle after this manner Wheresoeuer we see motion and alteration in any thinge there we must grant a cause of that motion and alteration but we see motion and alteration in the productions of creatures which beginne to be and before were not therefor we must grant some cause of that motion and alteration by which they are produced and come to be This doth S. Thomas call a demonstration and Aristotle with the rest of Philosophers call it a Metaphysicall Euidence that is to say an euidence which is not onely deduced by Physical principles of nature but that the contrary conteineth repugnance in it selfe and that it is the first euident certainty from which all natural euidences are deduced And to contradict it is either to say that all the world came by chance or els to runne from cause to cause without end into insinites which in substance commeth to be the same noe cause at all being assigned First the alterations which we see can not come by chance for
himselfe signifying his death on the Cros Io. 3. said as Moyses exalted the serpent in the desert soe must the sonne of man be exalted Christ suffered voluntarily of his owne free-will Christ suffered voluntarily and could if it had peased him haue escaped all or any part of his Passion and death This he often shewed in his life time Sometimes when they would haue killed him he became presently inuisible to their sight and walked through the midst of them without being seene Sometimes he preuented them absenting himselfe seeing their inward thoughts and harts to be bent against him Sometimes he shewed that he had power ouer their mindes mouing them as he would and asswaging the malice which was in them vntill the hower of his suffering came and when his hower was come he came forth amongst his enemys and euen then he moued multitudes of people to follow and to glorify him but a few dayes after when they came to apprehende him he would then be taken and would not defende himselfe or be defended by others He would with a word of his mouth strike them downe to the ground to shew that he had them in his power and could haue freed himselfe but he would let them rize againe and would goe away prisoner with them to fullfill the will of his father by suffering and dying for vs. Christ suffered for the redemption of all and redeemed all that is by his Passion he purchased meanes for the saluation of all These meanes are the Sacraments of the Catholike Church Those that are baptized and receiue worthily the rest of the Sacraments as they are necessary for them are saued by the merits of Christ in them Those that are not baptized or receiue not the Sacraments as they are necessary for them perish not through any defect in the Passion of Christ by which they had sufficient meanes to be saued but through their owne sinne because they will not apply those meanes to themselues which Christ by his Passion procured for their saluation The least paine of our Sauiours Passion or the least action which he did in his life time had bene sufficient to haue redeemed the whole world and a thousand worlds if it had bene offered to that end by him as the full price of our redemption because it proceeded from the diuine Person which was of infinite dignity but it was not intended soe by him He ouervalued the purchase of our soules and by a superabundant grace would giue more then he needed when he gaue his life for them and would haue nothing to stande for the price of our redemption without his death This he would doe to testify his loue towards vs and to giue vs an example of many vertues Quest What doe we gett by Christ redeeming vs Answ We gett the forgiunesse of our sinnes and the acceptance of our good works by the merits of Christs Passion applyed vnto vs in the Catholike Church The Sacraments of the Catholike Church haue their vertue and effect by the Passion of Christ Those that worthily receiue them are sanctifyed and haue the remission of their sinnes and being then in the state of grace the good works which in that state are done by them are acceptable to God and haue proportion to supernatural glory The Sacraments therefor hauing by the merits of Christs Passion power and vertue to sanctify vs we haue by his merits the forgiunesse of our sinnes and the acceptance of our good works Man had committed sinne in paradise and all mankind was infected with that sinne and our nature being once tainted it corrupted still more and more and we fall in our life times into many actuall sinnes All the good works which we could doe were of noe value nor could we by any meanes make satisfaction for any sinne either originall or actuall because there is noe condignity in person and works betwixt vs and God that was offended The Sonne of God was therefor incarnated in Christ that the diuine nature vniting to it selfe the nature of man might soe dignify it by that vnion in him that he could make satisfaction for our sinnes and obtaine for vs the remission of them and that our good works being then done in the state of grace might become acceptable to God and proportionable to glory which of themselues they could not be We could haue sinned still more and more heaping sinne vpon sinne and increasing our damnation but we could haue done nothing in that state by which we could rise from any sinne Soe that the remission of our sinnes and the acceptance of our good works to the obtaining of euerlasting glory is to be attributed to the merits and power of Christs Passion which is actually applyed vnto vs by the Sacraments of the Catholike Church The Apostles would particularly professe in the Creede the Passion of Christ and that he dyed to confounde those haeretiks that should deny his death as some haue done These are sufficiently refuted by this article and by all the Euangelists affirming that he gaue vp the ghost That is is to say that his ghost spirit or soule which is all one departed and was separated from his body death being nohting els but the departure or separation of the soule from the body For this reason also the Apostles would declare that Christ was buried to confirme his being dead But although he would haue his body to be buried as the bodys of other men yet he would preserue it from corruption in the earth because it was most decent that that sacred body which was soe miraculously framed by the Holy Ghost without corrupting the Virginity of his mother should after death be free from all corruption according to that which the holy king had prophecyed thou shalt not giue thy holy one to see corruption Ps 15. To conceiue somethinge of the greatnesse of this mystery we may consider who it was that suffered these thinges that it was one whose person infinitly surpassed in power wisdome beauty riches and all kind of dignity and goodnesse the most renowned Prince that euer was in the world And if it be a horrible thinge to thinke of the murthering of any man and much more of some great and gracious Prince and a cruell spectacle to behold it what feeling ought christiins to haue of the Passion of Christ when they consider it But it is but a weake comparison to compare Christ to any earthly Prince Io. 1. S. Iohn saith that he was the Word which was with God and that this Word was God O almighty God what then shall we say or thinke of this mystery thy power and maiesty seemeth here to be lessened thy wisdome is dispised thy goodnes questioned brought to tryall and condemned O blessed Sauiour whom S. Paul describeth to be he whom God hath made the heire of all Heb. 1. the brightnesse of his glory and the figure of his substance how comes thy brightnesse to be
is the body and blood of Christ according to the words of our Lord. and although thy sense doth suggest this faith doth confirme thee Iudge not by tast but beleeue by faith for most certaine without doubt Hil. l. 8. de Trin. that the body and blood is then giuen to thee S. Hilarius Of the verity of flesh and blood there is noe place of doubt left By the profession of our Lord himselfe and by our faith it is flesh and blood indeede Amb. l. 4. c. 4. Is nothis the truth let it be vntrue to them who deny Iesus Christ to be true God S. Ambrose This is bread before the sacramental words but the consecration being done of bread it is made the flesh of Christ S. Chrysostome Chrysos ho. 24. in cor 1. l. 3. de Sacerd ho. 2. ad pop Antioch We adore him on the altare as the sages did in the manger and againe O miracle he that sitteth with the father in heauen at the very same time is handled of men beneath Christ ascending to heauen both hath his flesh with him and left it beneath Elias left his cloke to his disciple Aug. inps 33. but the sonne of man ascending left his owne flesh S. Augustine vpon the 33. Psalme admiring how Dauid could carry himselfe in his owne hands concludeth that it is to be vnderstoode of Christ when at the last supper he tooke himselfe literally into his owne hands Thus did the fathers of the primitiue Church beleeue of the Eucharist acknowledging allwais the omnipotent power of God to be miraculous in it This beleefe continued in the world for a thousand yeares or there abouts before any haeretike opposed it and when it beganne to be opposed the Church in seueral general Councels declared the truth of it and condemned the contrary as heresy Conc. Lateran sub Innocen 5. Conc. Rom. ex Cocleo l. 1. hist Hussit Conc. Constantien sess 8. Conc. Trid. sess 13. cap. 1. can 1. Berengarius was the first that publikly denyed the real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist who reiecting the commune and receiued doctrine of the Church denyed that to be the body of Christ which Christ affirmed to be his body interpreting his words as he liked himselfe contrary to all authority in an illiteral and vnpropper sense That which he gott for his paines was to haue his doctrine condemned in seueral Councels But at last being touched inwardly with remorse of conscience he recanted And although he fell into heresys againe yet he had soe much feeling of the auctority of the Church and of a General Councel as that he recanted againe and which is very rare in such men he remained repentant vnto his death and being then affrighted at the thought of his former errors he is recorded to haue confessed the horrour of his conscience saying for my repentance I hope for glory but because I haue seduced others I feare torments Zuinglius and Caluin haue lately renewed his doctrine againe but we haue for the Catholike faith the words of Christ in the Scriptures the scriptures interpreted by the holy fathers and their interpretations approued of by the authority of the whole Church in general Councels Now that the Eucharist is a Sacrament I doe not perceiue that any haeretike doth deny it who alloweth of Sacraments Io. 6. for those that hold but two or three Sacramēts haue the Eucharist for one of them And it appeareth to be an outward signe which causeth grace in vs in that Christ promised if anyman eate of this bread he shall liue for euer OF TRANSVBSTANTIATION Quaest Is there any bread or wine in the Eucharist ANS Noe it seemeth but soe The bread and wine are conuerted by the words of consecration in to the true body and blood of our Lord. AFTER that Berengarius had recanted his first errour in which he denyed the true and real presence of Christ in the Eucharist he fell into a second in which he affirmed that the substance of bread and wine still remaine after consecration soe that there was noe transubstantiation that is to say conuersion or change of one substance into another but this was also condemned as an heresy and he in the end abiured it We beleeue then that in the consecration the substance of bread and wine are destroyed and changed by the power of God into another substance The holy fathers haue allwais acknowledged this conuersion of substance to be in the Eucharist and haue applyed diuerse figures out of the old testament and other similitudes to declare the Catholike doctrine in this The rodd of Moyses was transubstantiated that is conuerted into the substance of a Serpent The waters of Aegypt were turned into blood Water at the feast of Cana was changed by our sauiour into very good wine Soe by the omnipotency of God the substance of bread and wine is conuerted into the body of our Lord. And these very similitudes are vsed by the fathers to this purpose Iren. l 3. cont haereses c. 2. Amb. l. 4. de Sacram. c. 4. lib. de his qui initiantur myst S. Irenaeus declareth it by the water turned into wine S. Ambrose by the rod of Moyses and the waters of Aegypt Moyses his rod saith he was turned into a serpent and from a serpent into a rod againe The riuers of Aegypt were running with water and their fountaines on a suddaine brokeforth with blood and at the prayers of the Prophet the blood is turned into water againe If humane blessing haue such power what shall we say of the diuine consecration where the words of our Lord and Sauiour doe operate If at the words of Elias fire descended from heauen shall not the words of Christ haue power to change the kinds of elements Thou hast read of the creation of the world he said and it was done And could the word of Christ create of nothing that which before was not and could he not change that which was into another thinge which was also What more could we haue desired S. Ambrose to say All things are possible and easy to God and nothing more easy then another to him Yet to our vnderstandings it is easier to conuert somethinge that is all ready into some other thinge that is also then to create some thinge of iust nothing What difficulty is there then that God who with a word of his power created heauen and earth and made all things of nothing should change the substances of bread and wine into the substance of his sacred body which he would leaue with vs It is a miracle which God would worke and the fathers of the Catholike Church haue allwaies acknowledged it soe and that there is here a change of natures but if there were onely a change in the signification as the Zuinglians and Caluinists say or onely in the real presence as the Lutherans say then there were noe miraculous change of that which were
to 8. That saith he the sacred body of which Christ tooke flesh and vnited together the diuine and humane nature should be giuen to the wormes to eate I dare not say it nor can I thinke it Thus much out of saint Iames saint Denis and saint Ignatius for the first age In the second age liued S. Irenaeus and Tertullian both of them haue set forth her ample prayses comparing her by contrarys to Eue Iren. l. 5. Tertl l. de Incarnat Christi who was our mother that caused our fall hurt and losse of Heauen but the B. Virgin is our Mother by whom wee are raised cured and restored to heauen againe And in respect of the power which her prayers haue with God S. Irenaeus calleth her the Virgin Aduocate of Eue the Virgin In the third age liued Origen a man of such parts to 3. ho. 1. and so well deseruing in his former yeares that he had a chaire of publike lecture of diuinity in the Schooles of Alexandria when he was but eighteene yeares of age he speaking of Christ and his Mother hath these words His Mother mother immaculate mother incorrupted mother vntouched His mother whose mother the mother of the onely begotten Sonne of God O great Sacrament the same a virgin and the mother of our Lord and a little after of this onely begotten Sonne of God this is the mother the Virgin Mary The worthy of the worthy one the vndesiled of the holy one the freind of the only one Tertullian liued in this age although he seemeth to haue flourished most in the former Saint Athanasius also liued in this age but flourished most in the next where I goe to cite him In the fourth age S. Athanasius flourished who opposing himselfe against the Arian haeretiks for forty six yeares in which he was Bishop was the prime pillar of the Catholik Church in the easterne parts of the world In these words he soundeth the blessed Virgins prayses and prayeth to her It becometh vs to call thee the regenerating mother Mistres and Lady for that our King Lord and God sprang forth of thee Athan in euang deip The Archangell gathered the first fruits of thy prayses when he spoke that glorious hymne Haile full of grace c. So doth the first front of Thrones Cherubims and Seraphims salute thee and so doth the second Hierarchy of Dominations Vertues and Powers and so doth the third of Angels and we the terrestriall hierarchy admonished by them extoll thee with a lowd and cleere voyce saying Haile full of grace our Lord is with thee Pray for vs ô Lady ô Mistres ô Queene ô Mother of God In the same age liued S. Ephrem who calleth her Holier then the Seraphims with out comparison more glorious then the supernall hosts The hope of the Fathers the glory of the Prophets the prayse of the Apostles Virgin before her child bearing and after it In this age also liue Saint Hierome S Chrysostome Saint Ambrose and Saint Augustine whom God raised as glorious lights to illustrate his Church in those blind and obstinate times of the Arian herely being at the hight And they haue said so much in deuotion to our blessed Lady that I know not where to beginne their Sentences You may read in S. Hier. ep de Nat. Mar. ad Crom. Heliod to 9. Hierome the miraculous manner of her Conception of S. Anne an aged and barren woman and how the name of MARY which in Hebrew is to say MISTRES or LADY was brought for her by an Angell from Heauen Who also foretold to Ioakim her father that she should bee blessedamong women and how she was consecrated to the seruice of God at three yeares old in the Temple and attended their being gouerned by priests Esa 11. and how that the Prophecy of Esay was litterally denoted in S. Ioseps rod which miraculously flouriâ—hed to assigne him as a worthy husband for her And in another place hee calleth her the life Epist ad Paul Enstoc rule and discipline of all and saith that as there is none Holy to compare with God so there is none perfect in comparison of her Saint Chrysostome Truely this Virgin is the miracle of the world Chry. in hypa dom She alone surpasseth in greatnes both Heauen and Earth For what is there holier then her not the Prophets not the Apostles not Martyrs not Patriarks not the Angels not the Thrones not the Dominations not the Cherubims not the Seraphims nor any other thing is there to bee founde greater or more excellent then her either amongst visible or inuisible creatures You may see in the second book which S. Ambrose wrote of Virgins and in S. Augustins sermons of her Natiuity and Assumption the deuotion which they bore to her In the next age beganne Nestorius his heresy the professed enemy of Christ and of our blessed Lady so farre as to deny vnto him one onely person of God and by consequence to robbe her of her prime title and honour of the Mother of God Many holy men beganne then to bestirre themselues for the honour of Christ Cyr. cont Nestor and his Mother but Saint Cyrill of Alexandria was his prime Antagonist and next vnder God the prime defendour of the Catholike cause who thus expresseth his deuotion to her Praise be to thee ô Holy Trinity to thee also be praise Holy Mother of God Thou art the pretious pearle of the world Thou art the candlestike of vnquenchable light Orat. de dorm deip the Crowne of virginity the Scepter of the Catholike Faith In the sixt age liued Andreas Hierosolymitanus Bishop of Crete who calleth our blessed Lady a saint holier then the Saints the most holy treasure of all sanctity Eusebius Emissenus liued in the same age who speaking of our B Lady was strucken with astonishmeÌ„t that he knew not what to thinke of the greatnes of her graces For saith he if she were full of grace before she conceiued what shall we thinke her to haue bene after it But what what then shall we thinke her to haue bene after so many yeares of continuall and such intimate conuersation with Christ she being his mother and he her master Thus you haue the deuotion of the auncient Fathers to our blessed Lady for the fist six hundred years of the Faith of Christ declaring a farre different spirit in them from those who wickedly blaspheme her or derogate from her praises or but any way sleight them as the moderne enemys of the Catholike Church commonly doe I might produce the Sentences of holy men in following ages vnto our dayes to shew the contiruance of that first and auncient denotion to her to haue bene at all times in the Catholik Church I might alleadge the words of S. Anselme Auth. Protest relig l. 1. c. 6. § 3. Saint Bernard Saint Bonauenture Saint Thomas of Aquine the denotion of S. Dominike S. Francis and of many other Saints some of whom
her and and to make them virgins and therefore those words of the Scriptures are well applyed vnto her by the Church I am exalted as a Cedar in Libanus Eccli 24. I as a vine haue fructifyed sweetnesse of odour Christ would bee botne of a Virgin for the honour of virginity and to condemne Iovinian and other licentious haeretiks that were to condemne it And therefore hee would obserue it himselfe and haue his mother to obserue it by vow Neither was her marriage opposite to this vow for as it was reuealed vnto her that without detriment of her virginity she should conceiue so without doubt her integrity in marriage which was lesse was also by diuine reuelation made knowne to her Christ would also be borne of a married woman for the honour of marriage and to refute the Encratites and such like phantasticall haeretiks that were to condemne it and also to cōserue her honour that she might not be suspected tohaue conceiued vnlawfully and as such to be subiect to the penalty of the law S. Ignat. Martyr and S. Iohn Damascen adde also a third reason to wit to conceale the manner of her conception from the deuill that he might not striue to hinder in any thing the more perfect working of that mystery which was fullfilled in her and therefore they seeme to thinke that God would binde and limit his vnderstanding so that seeing her to be married he should not attende to the manner of her conceiuing but that she conceiued as a married woman In briefe the summe of her prayses out of the Sentences of the Fathers alleadged is That she excelleth in dignity sanctity and glory all men and Angells euen the highest Seraphims that she is the miracle of the world that she is our Lady our Mistres our Queen the Mother of God the Treasure of Sanctity that she was vndefiled and vntouched with sinne that her life is the rule and discipline of ours that she was a perpetuall Virgin and the crowne of virginity that she is the Mistres and Scepter of the Catholike Faith and that she is our Aduocate These are the praises which you haue seene giuen aunciently by the holy Fathers to her and which all Catholickes will euer giue her Well might the Angell salute her full of grace whom God had filled with such graces With what reuerence may we thinke he comported himselfe to her he named her not at first hy her proper name as we doe when we say Haile Mary full of grace with more hopes and confidence to require her intercession which the Angell required not but afterwards seeing her troubled at his speech to comfort her he presently called her by her name saying Feare not Mary it being then nececessary to condescende to a more familiar manner of speaking then at first he would vse of due submission vnto her Out of all which we may gather what obligation we haue to be deuoted to our blessed Lady and how pleasing that deuotion is to God OVR LORD IS WITH THEE SVCH words are often read in the Scriptures to haue bene vsed by way of saluation So did the Angell salute Gedeon Iud. 6. saying Dominus tecum our Lord be with thee So said Booz to his reapers of corne Ruth 2. Our Lord be with you But in these places it is rather vnderstoode optatiuely wishing and praying that God might bee with them then as the Angell spoke to our blessed Lady indicatiuely declaring that God was then actually with her saying Our Lord is with thee and in the Greeke the article is here added to shew that God was after a singular manner with her to wit disposing and preparing her by a more eminent degree of grace presently to bee incarnated in her BLESSED ART THOV AMONG WOMEN THESE words were first spoken by the Angell and afterwards by S. Elizabeth who when the Mother of God came to visit her was inspired to repeate them ouer againe and to cry them out with a lowd voice as it were to proclaime her blessed in that house of Prophets where Christ our B. Lady S. Iohn Baptist saint Elizabeth and Zachary then were altogether reioicing in Christ and in her blessednesse all of them either Prophets or more then Prophets She is called blessed by contrarys to Eue who by her sinne prouoked our curse and our blessed Lady by her sanctity was the meanes of our blesse and therefore as it was threatned to the serpent Gen. 3. when he seduced Eue accursed art thou among all catle so an Angell was sent to the B. Virgin to say Blessed art thou among women and saint Elizabeth was inspired torepeate it ouer againe Shee was indeed that blessed Mother who by her Sonne bruised the serpents head and tooke away the curse of our first mother from vs. Apply here the words of the holy Ghost Eccl. 33. Against euill is good and against death is life so also against a iust man a sinner And so looke vpon all the workes of the highest two against two and one against one Against the euill of Eue is the good of Mary against death by Eue life by Mary against Eue a sinner wee haue Mary a iust woman without sinne Christ and Mary against the serpent and Eue Christ against the serpent and Mary against Eue and so two against two and one against one Eue brought sinne by yeelding to the serpent the blessed Virgin brought Christ to sight against him and to free vs. Euer blessedmay he be and blessed that woman by whom wee are all blessed Let now noe haeretike dare to blaspheme against her whom the Angell first saluted full of grace and then stiled blessed among women and whom S. Elizabeth also declared and proclaimed blessed Who dare calumniate her whom God hath soe honored We detest the rotten breasts and stinking mouths of those who shall dare to detract from any of the Saints of God and much more from the blessed among women The Angell hauing deliuered his embassage to her expected her answere the which she gaue in these humble words Behold the handmaid of our Lord be it done to mee according to thy word Where she consenteth to the will of God giuing her virginal body for his Sonne to be incarnated in Presently at these words a marriage was contracted betwixt the diuine and humane nature and they being instantly vnited together in the wombe of the B. Virgin THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH Let euery Christians knee bend at these words and doe homage in his hart to the Word Incarnated and let him honour the Virgin chosen of God to be the meanes of fullfilling that high mystery For the greater honour of which wee will declare sometihing of the circumstances of it Angell Gabriel First for the Angels name that brought the message he is called by the Euangelist Gabriel not that the Angels haue any proper names but that they are assumed or attributed to them in respect of some mystery to which those Angels
Temple to receiue him in his armes and full of toy to blesse him Anne a Prophetesse was then also sent vnto the Temple to speake of him to all that expected the redemption of Israel and the Priest to represent this great ioy spreadeth his armes prayseth blesseth adoreth glorifyeth and giueth thanks to God for it Then he turneth about to the people Dominus vobiscum and he turneth to the right hand both for more decency and also because it is more mysterious the right hand in the Scriptures signifying power glory and dignity and the left hand on the contrary signifying imperfection weakenesse and ignobility Psal 117. The right hand of our Lord hath wrought strength saith the Psalmist the right hand of God hath exalied mee and the Apostle saith On the right hand and on the left by honour and dishonour At Orate fratres he turneth round about on the left hand to the Altare in token of his sinnes and imperfections for which he desireth the people to pray Then he saith Dominus vobiscum our Lord be with you Which is both a prayer that God will eleuate their spirits to him and a salutation inciting them to eleuate their spirits to God by a seruerous attention tothose misterys So the Angell saluted Gedeon Iud 6. Ruâ—h Our Lord be â—ith thee ô most valiant of men So Booz saluted his haruest men praying for them and inciting them to worke as we doe when we say God be with you or God speede your worke and therefor the Priest turneth often to the people with those words They answere cum spiritu tuo praying also for him that God may be with his Spirit Then he turneth to the Altare againe The Collect. and going to the booke he sayeth Oremus Let vs pray because he prayeth in the name of all and gathereth together the prayers of all all praying with him and therefore the prayer is called a Collect as the prayer of many to wit of the whole Church he lifteth vp his hands at prayer to signify the eleuation of the hart Exod. 16. It is likely that our Sauiour prayed so on Mount Oliuet for it was the custome of holy men so to pray Moyses prayed so lifting vp his hands whilest the Israelits fought and as long as he lifted vp his hands they preuailed Reg. 3.8 but his hands failing their enemys preuailed against them So also Salomon prayed lifting vp his hands and blessing the people with much deuotion And these two were the especiall figures of our Sauiour Moyses as the Redeemer of the Israelits and Salomon by his infused wisedome I will sayth the Apostle that men pray in ewery place lifting vp pure hands Tim. 1.2 he prayeth with his hands open as requiring of benefits At the end of the prayer he ioyneth them to shew the vnity of nature in the blessed Trinity to whom we pray as to one diuine power and also to signify the vnion of our harts and of the Catholik Church All prayers are concluded through our Lord Iesus-Christ because all benefits are granted through him Io. 16. who said If you aske the Father any thing in my name he will giue it you The people answere Amen Amen to ioyne prayer with the Priest as when Gabelus at the sight of yong Toby wept for ioy kissed him and prayed hartily for him all that were present answered Amen After the Collects the Epistle is read The Epistle which is taken out of the Apostles Epistles or of some of the Prophets and signifyeth the preaching and writings of the Prophets and of S. Iohn Baptist before the Ghospell of Christ and that by the Apostles labors we receiue the light of the Ghospel After the Epistle followeth the Gradual or Responsory Graduall which is a deuout Canticle corresponding to the Epistle as the last preparation or stepp to the Ghospell and therefore it is called the Gradual and signifyeth the preaching of Saint Iohn Baptist as the last stepp or degree of preparation to the Ghospell of Christ And because Saint Iohn preached pennance to the people saying Doe pennance for the kingdome of Heauen is at hand Therefore the Gradual which intimateth lamentation and mourning of pennance is not said in the dayes of Pentecost which is a time of ioy We are admonished by it that as by the Prophete from time to time succeeding one another and lastly by Saint Iohn Baptist the world was prepared for the comming of Christ so we may ascende from vertue to vettue and attaine to the perfection of good Christians Alleluya Alleluyn is added to signify that after the mourning of pennance commeth ioy and glory for Alleluya The tract is a word of reioycing as much as to say Praise our Lord. The Tract which is a graue and dolesull mourning is said in times of sorrow and austerity Ghospell Then the Ghospell is read the booke being turned to the left hand to signify the receiuing of the Ghospell by the Gentils who are denoted by the left side of the Altare as being in insidelity vntill the light of Christs Ghospell shined to them Act. 13. To you said S. Paul and S. Barnaby speaking â—o the Iewes it behoued vs first to speake the word of God but because you repell it and iudge yourselues vnworthy of eternall lise â—â—hold we turne to the Gentils and therefore the booke of the Ghospell is turned from the right hand which signifyeth the Iewes to the left which signifyeth the Gentils The people stande at the Ghospell as also at the Creede to signify the hearing of the Faith of Christ then preached When Verbum caro factum est or Homo factus est is said wee kneele downe in reuerence to the mystery of the Incarnation The signe of the Crosse is made vpon the Ghospel because the doctrine of our Redemption is conteined in it And the Priest signeth his forhead mouth and heart with that figâ—â— of our Redemption that his thoughts words and deeds may allwayes redounde to the honour of Christ crucifyed He kisseth the booke in the end as the booke of life and of all happinesse to vs. Then the people answere The Creede laus tibi Christe giuing prayse to Christ The Creede is said alowd to shew that we must not be affraid but boldly and cheerfully make profession of our Faith when neede requireth for if we be ashamed of Christ now he will be ashamed of vs afterwards and with shame we shall be damned The Creede being said the first part of Masse is ended then Ite missa est vsed to be sung to dismisse the Catechumeni who not being yet Christians by Baptisme where not to be present at the Christian Sacrifice but were to depart now that the cheife parts of Masse beganne and therefore this part of Masse vntill the Offertory was commonly called Missa Catcchumenorum The Masse of the Cathecumens At the Offertory beginneth the second part in
it must of necessity be subiect to all those alterations and corruptions which all vulgar tongues are subiect vnto and which the Latine tongue was subiect vnto as long as it was vulgarly spoken vntill in the end it banished it selfe quite out of the world and was left as the common speech of noe place and then was kept in its integrity and auncient purity by being kept from the vulgar and cheifly as we may well thinke by hauing the Masse soe continually said in Laaine Where as our aduersarys obiect the authority of S. Paul Cor. 1.14 who seemeth as they pretende to require that the Church seruice be in euery commune tongue that all the people vnderstanding it may answere Amen the Apostle neuer soe much as mentioneth the Church seruice in that place nor medleth with the language of it but speaketh there of quite another thinge to wit the gift of strange tongues and of the interpreting of them which interpretation was a different gift and which the speaker himselfe sometimes had not These and other like graces being giuen to some in those times the people mette together to heare them exercised But by litle and litle they beganne to be abused and fell into disorders in soe much that some would speake that which could be interpreted by none soe that it had noe sense that could require Amen to be answered to but was as not spoken at all none being inspired to interprete it Now what connexion hath this with the publike seruice of the Church which is without any disorder at all and in noe such strange tongue but in a knowne and the most honored of all tongues which is intelligible in it selfe and most vniuersally vnderstood and interpreted by thousands and which hath not onely the authority of the Church allowing of it but also commanding it and therfor with all reason shall be answered with Amen Which the other being fallen into disorders could not in reason be answered with it being to the edification of none as being vnderstoode by none when the miracle should haue consisted in vnderstanding and interpreting of it I haue heard of some who haue bene soe bold as to say that the Priest praying in a tongue which the people vnderstande not may curse them for any thinge they know as well as blesse them But this is a bold and irreuerent speech For if it were an irreuerence to the Law and to lawyers to talke of their cursing of their ignorant clients when they pleade for them in termes which they vnderstande not much more is it an irreuerence to the Law of God and to Priests that haue the keeping of it to talke of their cursing of the people when they pray for them in the language of the Church Besides it is a very weake speech and vnworthy of a wise man for it is impossible to accommodate euery word to the vnderstanding of all men And what should they say when they vnderstoode not and what should deafe men say that heard nor it were to banish all order quite out of the world and the being of a Church to make it subiect to euery particular mans censure The Priest if he change nothing but sayeth what the Church commandeth can enrse none and we cannot in reason and charity suspect him of changing any thinge except he be such an one as Luther or Caluin that durst take vpon them to change what they listed in the Church and to beginne new Churches Besiâ—â—â—s it is not such a rare thinge in Catholike countreys as it is here for lay people to vnderstande Latine I remember that I haue mette with a plowman holding his plow who directed mee in my way describing it in very elegant Latine and with poore beggars who haue bene very ready in the Latine tongue Mechanike men in some places vnderstande it soe frequently that Masse can hardly be said amongst an indifferent number of people but some that are present will vnderstande Latine Finally experience will answere all obiections in that the Masse being as it is in a high and honorable language and with those deuout caeremonys is full of edification and much more mouing to deuotion then any thinge which our enemys haue This those that are conuerted to the Catholike faith doe presently finde in themselues and those that are peruerted from it commonly shew in the loosnesse of their liues that there is noe comparison betwixt the deuotion and edification of the Masse and the prayers of Protestants but onely such as is betwixt true and painted fire the one of which warmeth indeede the other warmeth not at all but rather cooleth as one should grow colder by holding his hands to a painted fire Now it is fitting that we speake a word or two OF THE FRVITS AND BENEFITS which are gained by the denout hearing of Masse THERE is not any meanes in the world soe efficacious for the obtaining of benefits at the hands of God as the Masse is both as it is a Sacrifice the highest act of worship that can be giuen to God and also as it is a Sacrifice soe eminent and excelling all other Sacrifices that the dignity efficacy and value of it can not be expressed all benefits being infinitly more worthy to be granted for it then for any thinge that we can doe But to speake more in particular first our faith is confirmed and our mindes are eleuated to a feruerous zeale of that which all Christians professe when we commemorate the Passion of Christ in that deuout and mysterious manner as by the principall and most expresse commemoration which the Church hath of it And we are excited to a firme and constant beleefe of that sacred verity which the Catholike Church hath allwais beleeued of the true reall and substantiall presence of the sacred body and blood of our Lord and of his whole humane nature vnited to the diuine word in the B. Sacrament of Eucharist Which as it is a mystery aboue the vnderstanding of man and not effected by any power of nature but by the omnipotency of God soe by it we yeeld our vnderstandings captius as we ought vnto the diuine power to the word of God and to the doctrine of the Church And by hearing of Masse we are not onely confirmed in this mystery but in all other points of the Christian faith For what is the whole Masse but a daily exercizing and training vp of christians in the mysterys of Christ and in all those things which he did and suffered for vs there is nothing there to be seene or heard but the cheife mysterys of our faith represented the diuine praises celebrated his benefits acknowledged and his goodnes and mercy deuoutly implored all with relation to some passage of his life or death Secondly at Masse we are comforted and encouraged to hope confiding in God that hauing left vnto the world soe deere a pledge as his onely Sonne he will grant vs the remission of our sinnes and will giue vs in