not disposed of their maintenance Though perhaps the advantage of fingring money was it that made them take so much upon them in his time whereof he complaineth Nay it is plain this must rest in the power of Bishop and Presbyters by the portions and divisions thereof wherein each of them had interesse as his maintenance whereof we find remembrance in S. Cyprians Epistles In the last Canon of the Councel of Antiochia is provided that the Bishop shall not alienate the Church-goods which though immovable were given for the same purpose without consent of his Presbyters And in those which are called the Canons of the Apostles which the world knoweth are not theirs but yet do expresse very ancient customes of the Church Can. iii. iv having ordered what sorts of first-fruits should be sent to the Church what home to the Bishop and Presbyters it followeth Now it is manifest that they are to be divided by them among the Deacons and Clergy to the Deacons for the maintenance of the poore to the Clergy for their own Where you see the interesse of the Presbyters in disposing of such oblations CHAP. XI Of the discipline of Penance Those that have the Keyes remit sinnes by prescribing Penance The intercession of the Church Particular persons excommunicated among the Jews Our Lord prohibiteth their course among his Disciples Two degrees of Excommunication as well in the Church as in the Synagogue The Keyes are given to Bishop and Presbyters The interesse of the people and what is required at the hands of the Common-wealth THere remaineth now two particulars of the office common to Bishop and Presbyters wherein the people also claim their interesse the one is the discipline of Penance the other the making of Ministers The due course whereof assigned by our Lord and his Apostles will best be discovered laying together first what we find of them in Scripture and then comparing of it with the proceeding of the Primitive time which we shall perceive the right to go along with The Keyes of the Kingdome of heaven are given by our Lord to the first of his Disciples in those words Matth. xvi 19. And I will give thee the keyes of the Kingdome of Heaven and whatsoever thou bindest on earth shall be bound in Heaven whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven If mens minds were not possessed with prejudice it would soon appear to be the same power that is given to all the Apostles John xx 24. Whosesoever sinnes ye remit they are remitted unto them and whosesoever sinnes ye retein they are reteined But Matt. xviii 17 18. to the same purpose though more at large And if he shall neglect to heare them tell it unto the Church But if he neglect to heare the Church let him be unto thee as a heathen man and as a publican Verily I say unto you whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever ye loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven To this must be added the proceeding of the Apostle in delivering to Satan the incestuous person at Corinth 1. Cor. v. 3 4 5. which he also did to Hymeneus and Alexander 1. Tim. i. 20. Now in the practice of the Primitive Church those that exercised this power were in part Judges Censours you may call them if you please and in part Physicians Both parts comprised in S. Cyprians words Ep. 51. Vbi lapsis nec censura deest quae increpet nec medicina quae sanet Judges they are in shutting Gods house upon offenders and binding their sins upon their consciences And the effect of this censure such supposing the proceeding of it to be due that as the disease of sin is not to be cured without the medicine of repentance no more can this knot wherewith sinnes notorious of themselves or otherwise known are tyed to mens consciences be undone without known repentance For since the worst of the souls sicknesse consisteth in not acknowledging her disease it pleased God to give his Church power and charge to constrain offenders to take their Physick which the grief of bodily diseases is able to do alone Physicians they are then in prescribing the medicine of Repentance and in that respect alone are truly said to remit sinnes God himself saith not to the Soul I absolve thee from thine offenses but upon supposition of the means his own gift of repentance that worketh the cure so farre it is from the power of his creature to pronounce forgivenesse without knowledge of the effect which the medicine of repentance hath wrought But if we say true when a Physician is said to cure a mans disease though all the world know he doth no more but prescribe the medicine or at the most see it applyed with as good right is it to be said that mens sinnes are cured by them that prescribe the course by which they are cured Onely whereas he that is cured of a bodily disease is able to tell himself when he is well he that is once sensible of the maladies of his soul is not easily satisfied when the cure is done It hath therefore pleased the goodnesse of God to provide an office and charge in his Church to assure men of forgivenesse of sinnes upon due knowledge of repentance by taking away that knot wherewith they remained tied upon their consciences Firmilianus Bishop of Caesarea Cappadociae in his Epistle to S. Cyprian the lxxvth in number of his Epistles thus writeth Lapsis quoque fratribus per poenitentiam medela quaeratur Non quasi à nobis remissionem peccatorum consequantur sed ut per nos ad intelligentiam delictorum suorum convertantur Domino pleniùs satisfacere cogantur To this purpose was the time and order and fashion of Penance regulated in the ancient Church that the diseases of the soul might receive every one their competent cure and therefore it is plain that among them it was a favour to be admitted to Penance in opposition to Novatianus Qui nemini dandam poenitentiam putavit saith Saint Ambrose De Poenit. 2. 1. exhorting men to repentance indeed but leaving them for pardon to God who had power to give it as his Disciple Socrates writeth Eccles hist iv 13. That is not imploying the power of the keyes and the benefit of it to the cure of their offenses Whereupon S. Ambrose you see calleth it dare poenitentiam as on the offenders side it was then called petere poenitentiam demanding and granting of Penance For this cause it was that this medicine of repentance was wont to be joyned with the prayers of the Congregation but in the chief place of the Bishop and Presbyters which if repentance be Physick is correspondent to that which is given to make Physick work And this is called in Tertullian Presbyteris advolvi Caris Dei adgeniculari Omnibus fratribus legationes deprecationis suae injungere and in S. Augustine Gemitus columbae the Mourning of the
which is called Anathema With these the proceedings of the Christian Church keep some correspondence according to Scripture For when our Lord saith If he heare not the Church let him be unto thee as a Heathen man and as a Publicane he intimateth withall a course the Church had to take for his correction and amendment that should give car to it Which as it might perhaps end in a verball admonition of the Church and reall amendment of the party yet those that were under the discipline of Penance we know were in a sort excommunicate because they were not admitted to the Communion of the Eucharist besides that as those which were separated among the Jews they put upon them the state and fashion and habit of mourners And I shewed afore what we find in Scripture to argue this course directed by our Lord and practiced by the Apostle But here was a difference that in that state we find not that a man was cut off from the conversation of Christians those which were admitted to Penance being alwaies accounted in the way of salvation supposing the performance of their injoyned Penance That was the effect of that grievous censure whereof our Lord speaketh Let him be unto thee as a Heathen man and as a Publicane Not because he meaneth to forbid Christians to converse with Heathen men and Publicanes who being to be converted from among them must needs be compassed with them on every side And therefore that case the Apostle hath resolved 1. Cor. v. 9 10. where he informeth them that whereas he had written to them not to converse with fornicatours his meaning was not to forbid them to converse with the fornicatours of this world that is Gentiles or with the covetous or extortioners or with idolaters for then must ye go out of the world and as it followeth vers 12. For what have I to do to judge those that are without do not ye judge those that are within But our Lords meaning is that Christians should shew that respect to a brother that should be refractary to the Church as the Jews did then to Gentiles and Publicanes which the Apostle secondeth there vers 11. Now I write to you not to converse if any man that is called a brother be a fornicatour or covetous or an idolater or a railer or a drunkard or an extortioner with such a one no not to eat which is to avoid them as the Jews did him that stood separate And the sentence whereupon this is to be practiced is intimated in the next verse For what have I to do to judge those that are without Do not ye judge those that are within And this censure it seemeth the Apostle presupposeth when he writeth to Titus iii. 11. A man that is an Heretick after the first and second admonition reject For his meaning is not to instruct Titus alone what he in his person should do but in the person of Titus to instruct all the Church to reject and avoid refractary Hereticks and therefore in the consequence of avoyding them it seemeth he intimateth the censure whereupon they are to be avoyded The same censure against the incestuous person at Corinth he intimateth by the same consequence when he saith 1. Cor. v. 13. Therefore put away from you that wicked person which he calleth giving over to Satan in the same case vers 5. afore and in the case of Hymeneus and Alexander 1. Tim. i. 20. and which he signifieth 1. Cor. xvi 22. If any man love not the Lord Jesus let him be anathema Maranatha where anathema is the term that cometh from the Synagogue and so doth the other as some men think So that this censure cutteth men off from the conversation of Christians which forfeit the priviledges to which they pretend and so delivers them to Satan by consequence as those that lodged without the camp of Israel were in danger to be lickt up by the Amalekite Which course neverthelesse as it was preservative in regard of some members that they might not be tainted as the Apostle signifieth when he saith 1. Cor. v. 6. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump So was it medicinall in respect of the sick shame and grief being a good way to the cure which the Apostle seemeth to respect when he directeth 1. Cor. v. 6. to deliver him to Satan for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit might be safe in the day of the Lord Jesus and 1. Tim. i. 20. whom I have delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme This is the correspondence between the proceeding of the Church and Synagogue And therefore as looking backward to the Synagogue whereupon our Lord reflecteth when he saith Dic Ecclesiae we see to whom they had recourse so shall we see looking forwards upon the Church which our Lord pointeth towards in the same words to whom he directeth his followers to have recourse The Keyes of Gods house are given in the Gospel to S. Peter with the effect of binding and loosing and the same power to all the Apostles in equivalent terms of reteining and remitting sinnes For if there were advantage it were an inconvenience that in the third place the power of binding and loosing should be given to the Church which is pretended given to S. Peter for a priviledge beyond the Apostles Well then might S. Cyprian argue Epist 27. that because our Lord promised to S. Peter the keyes of his Church therefore the acts of government of it were to passe through the Bishops hands and without him Apostates could not be reconciled And it is the same which S. Augustine affirmeth so oft as he teacheth which many times he doth that S. Peter in receiving the Keyes represented the Church as Ep. 79. Si hoc in Ecclesiâ fit he speaketh of binding and loosing Petrus quando claves accepit Ecclesiam sanctam significavit For what was promised to S. Peter was given the rest of the Apostles but was to rest in the Church to which it is also given in the same terms as S. Cyprian is willing to acknowledge so oft as he calleth the Presbyters his Colleagues and professeth to do nothing without their advise So that it is not possible to give a more impartiall meaning to the words of our Lord in the Gospel then the practice of those times hath expressed when that power was exercised in common by the Bishop and his Presbyters This it is Tertullian hath shewed us Apolog. c. 39. alledged afore where having commended the gravitie and integritie of Ecclesiasticall censures to shew by whom they were done he addeth as afore Praesident probati quique seniores honorem non pretio sed testimonio adepti And S. Augustines words are plain which we had afore Veniat peccator ad Antistites per quos ipsi in Ecclesia claves ministrantur à praepositis sacrorum accipiat satisfactionis suae modum And in S. Cyprian there is so much mention
of reconcilement by imposition of hands of the Bishop and Clergy that I will say no more of it because this point of all the rest hath continued a chief imployment of Presbyters in the corrupt and pernicious opinions and customes of the Church of Rome Let not any man think now that the Apostle communicateth this power with the Congregation of the Church of Corinth when he writeth to them 1. Cor. v. 4 5. being assembled with his Spirit to deliver the incestuous person to Satan For it is plain that the sentence is given by the Apostle vers 3. where he writeth For I verily as absent in body but present in spirit have judged already as though I were present concerning him that hath so done this deed And to cause this proceeding to be the better digested he hath vouched his power in the end of the chapter afore verse 18. Now some are puffed up as though I would not come unto you but I will come unto you shortly if the Lord will and will know not the speech of them that are puffed up but the power What will you shall I come unto you with a rod or with the spirit of meeknesse Which power otherwhiles he setteth before them in case of their disobedience And therefore it must be acknowledged that he writeth to them to see his sentence published ratified and executed which the Presbyters there had either neglected to do as was touched afore or perhaps were not able to bring the people under the discipline of Christs Kingdome which must needs oblige the Apostle to interpose And therefore the Italian glosse of Diodati which maketh the Apostle in this place speak of assembling the Pastours and Guides of the Church as in Matth. xviii 17. though in effect true because for certain what is to be acted by the Congregation therein the Presbyters are to do their part by the meaning of the Apostle yet must leave us room to think that the words are to be understood of the publick assemblies of the Church there for Divine service seeing we find in Tertullian the place afore quoted that these censures were exercised at and in the assemblies of the Christian people Ibidem etiam exhortationes castigationes censur a divina saith he speaking of their Assemblies And S. Cyprian in the great case of those that fell away in persecution writeth to the Presbyters that he doth not think to do any thing in it without their counsel the consent of the people And this without doubt is the reason why the Apostle writeth in these terms 1. Cor. v. 12. For what have I to do to judge those that are without do not ye judge those that are within speaking to the Church in generall though the sentence passed as hath been said by Bishop and Presbyters because matters were censured in the Congregation and executed by the people And thus the practice of that time giveth a reason without straining why our Lord seemeth to refer these matters to the Congregation when he saith Tell it to the Church because they passed at their assemblies though under censure of Bishop and Presbyters And great reason there is why this regard should be had by the Apostle and by the Church afterwards to the people because the Church being a mere spirituall Commonwealth and not indued with temporall strength so much as to execute those sentences which the power of the keyes given by Christ obligeth it to inflict alwayes setting aside that power of working miracles which was in the Apostle upon which some think he reflecteth in some passages of those Epistles requisite it was then the Congregation should be satisfied of the course of those proceedings which must come into execution and effect by their voluntary submission to the will of God and the office of his Ministers And as the matter is now that things of this nature proceed not upon mens private consciences and judgements in particulars but upon generall rules of common right requisite it is that the Cōmon-wealth have satisfaction of those laws according to which the Church now must proceed in their censures it being acknowledged that they cannot proceed with effect but by virtue of those laws that are put in force by the secular arm But as it is now no longer time to leave matters to the Conscience of mens places which may be regulated by laws which experience maketh commendable so is it no longer time to expect at the peoples hands voluntary submission to the discipline of the Church further then it is inabled by laws of the kingdome to exercise it And therefore it is much to be wished that the laws by which the Ministers of the Church are inabled directed constrained to exercise this prime part of their office may prove so sufficient and that the power of the keyes given it by our Lord in the Gospel may be so strengthened by the secular arm and rules put in force by it that it may be able to reduce all hainous and notorious offenses under the discipline of Penance and to cut them off from the Church that refuse it Is it to be believed that our Lords intent was in settling such a power as this is that it should take hold of sinnes of incontinence or the like letting all others of as deep a stain and as well known escape uncensured Or could any man devise a more puissant means to discountenance malefactours in a Christian Common-wealth then that which our Lord hath appointed by making them know that when they have satisfied the laws of the kingdome with losse of goods or fame or have escaped with life by the gentlenesse of them the fact being proved neverthelesse they can not communicate with the people of God till the Church be satisfied of their correction and amendment Nay shall we imagine that the institution of our Lord Christ is satisfied and in force in a Christian Common-wealth so long as the case of particular offenses upon occasion whereof it is settled by him in the Gospel is scarce understood among us because it is so farre from common practice by the law of the kingdome whereas it might easily appear what an excellent and charitable course our Saviour hath chalked out to us if a good Christian heart desirous rather of his brothers amendment then of his own satisfaction and able to make an appearance of such an offense as our Lord intended by witnesses the Church inabled by rules of law established by the secular arm should call the person offending to the acknowledgement of wrong on his side cutting him off in case he refused amendment Thus much for certain if the zeal of well-affected Christians towards the state of this Church did not mistake the true mark the discipline of Penance must needs be thought one of the first points to be reformed in it And then the rest of that satisfaction which the people can demand of the Church will consist in not releasing the correction inflicted
Of the GOVERNMENT OF CHURCHES A discourse Pointing at the Primitive Form Printed by Roger Daniel Printer to the Universitie of Cambridge 1641. To the most Gracious JAMES Duke of Lennox Earl of March c. L. Warden of the Cinque Ports Knight of the most Noble Order of the Garter and one of his Majesties most Honourable Privie Counsel his very good LORD MAy it please your Grace The advantage this slight worthlesse piece aimeth at in this addresse is of great consequence but of a civil and moderate nature It is no marvel if it desire to go forth under so great a Name that is not like to appear considerable to the world otherwise But the Countenance it demandeth is according as the cause may deserve more it must not expect from your Justice lesse it cannot expect from your Goodnesse If it fail of the Truth it is a Child rebellious to the Fathers intentions and according to the Law of Moses here he bringeth him forth to receive his doom If it have any thing considerable in a Cause wherein the world is so well informed long since my suit is that from your Graces hands it may be derived to the publick The Lord of Heaven and Earth blesse your Grace with happinesse of this life and of that which is to come So prayes Your Graces most humble Chaplain HERBERT THORNDIKE To the Lovers of Peace and Truth THat style must serve me for a Preface to this short discourse The love of Peace and Truth my hope is hath made some Impression in the reasons whereupon it proceedeth And it were a wrong to the world to think that those marks can be offensive My purpose was to contribute towards the true meaning of the Scripture in these matters If I have failed of it the attempt will deserve your excuse But my heart telleth me not that I have set any Text on the rack to make it confesse more then it means Ecclesiasticall writers I have for the most part stripped of the authoritie which their years merits in the Church have wonne and produced them as witnesses at the Bar of common sense to make evidence from the Historicall truth of their sayings The meaning of them is for the most part either translated by their words or expressed in the current of my discourse Sometimes it is left to every mans apprehension to value for when all is done men must and will be judges for themselves H. T. Faults escaped Pag. 16. line 18. ac providè reade ac proinde p. 34. l. 5. expressed r. expresseth p. 58. l. 3. because r. became p. 62. l. 19. these r. those l. 21. these r. those p. 83. l. 20. Synagogues r. Synagogue p. 85. l. 14. after else adde And the chief causes in Religion brought to no Court but this p. 87. l. 19. after writeth adde In Hilcoth Sanedrin cap. 1. p. 102. l. 9. those r. these p. 114. l. 10. Baptist r. Baptismo p. 119. l. 5. dispersing r. dispensing p. 129. l. 1. Tertullian r. Tertullian p. 131. l. 13. Toreh r. Joreh p. 140. l. 22. some r. sound p. 147. l. 24. alwayes r. alwayes p. 151. l. 5. after heart adde being p. 183. l. 11. and r. of CHAP. I. The Apostles eye-witnesses of our Lord and eare-witnesses of his doctrine S. Paul an Apostle Many personall qualities in them They were Governours of Churches HE that desireth to espie light at a narrow hole must lay his eye near if he mean to discover at large So must he be curious in considering the Scriptures that meaneth to discern those things that are not declared there at large but are collected by circumstance or consequence especially in matters which we view at this distance of time which representeth to us things done then through a mist of succeeding custome Those that seek for mines have their virgula divina a rod which they hold even-balanced over the place where they hope for a vein which if it hit right the rod of it self bendeth towards the earth Our Lord in the Gospel commandeth us to search the Scriptures as men would seek for mines or treasure let us keep an even balance of judgement not bowing but as the vein of truth swayeth it for if we put the grains of affection and prejudice into the gold-scales which we weigh nice truths with no marvel if the lighter go down Now because the question concerneth the Apostles time and the next to it and the purpose is to represent the form pointed at in Scripture by comparing it with such passages of historicall truth and primitive practice as shall seem best to expresse it let us in the first place consider the nature of their charge that it may appear how farre the Church reteineth a succession of it For true it is divers personall qualities are requisite in an Apostle because they were to preach the Gospel to all Nations They must be men to witnesse those things they had seen our Lord do those words they had heard him speak upon their own knowledge and therefore men that had conversed with him from the beginning of his doctrine It is that S. Peter required at the choice of Matthias Acts i. 21. Of these men that have companied with us all the while that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us must one be ordained for a witnesse of his resurrection with us It is that the same Apostle challengeth 1. Pet. v. 1. The elders which are among you I exhort who am also an elder and a witnesse of the sufferings of Christ He condescendeth to the rank of Presbyters when he saith who am also an Elder but he voucheth the priviledge of an Apostle when he addeth and a witnesse of the sufferings of Christ And his fellow-Apostle of the Gentiles to the same purpose 1. Corinth ix 1. Am I not an Apostle am I not free have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord as if to be an Apostle required one that had seen the Lord which was supplyed to him by his raptures and visions as the hearing his doctrine was supplyed unto him by that revelation by which he avoucheth to have received his Gospel in the beginning of his Epistle to the Galatians This is that God had provided for satisfaction of common sense men that could witnesse upon the credit of their eyes and eares what they published But it required greater matters to convince the world of those things which reason could not evidence The gifts of the holy Ghost for knowledge for language for miracles for all the like were requisite in a marvellous nature for those that undertook to preach the Gospel to all nations This was the Apostles charge and the power this charge importeth the indowments it requireth are personall wherein no man pretendeth to succeed the Apostles But the execution of this charge reason telleth us must needs proceed and experience of that which is written telleth us it did proceed according to the exigence of their severall