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A29212
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The second part of The great question concerning things indifferent in religious vvorship briefly stated, and tendred to the consideration of all conscientious and sober men / by the same author.; Great question concerning things indifferent in religious worship. Part 2
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Bagshaw, Edward, 1629-1671.
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1661
(1661)
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Wing B424; ESTC R22864
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18,059
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26
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sought to bring them into Bondage Paul would not yield to them in the least but constantly opposed the Insinuations of those crafty men with whom no doubt Arguments from Decency and Order were not wanting that so he might transmit the Truth i. e. the Liberty of the Gospel unto his Followers And for his own both Judgment and Practise he gives this General Rule All things i. e. which are not forbidden by God are Lawful but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. I will not be domineer'd over by any 1 Cor. 6.12 or I will not suffer any to exercise Authority over me as that I should upon his Imperious and unlawful Command forbear the free use of that which the Lord hath left free unto me Against this it is Objected Obj. 1 1. That Paul in his Epistle to the Galatians speaks only of Circumcision and Jewish Ceremonies and therefore the Liberty he mentions must only be understood in reference to them which all acknowledge to be abolished and without sin cannot be revived but this doth not concern other Christian Rites which are introduced as by another power so upon another Score sc not as Parts of Religion but as Circumstances of meer Decency and Order But I Answer 1. Answ The Apostle Paul doth not so confine his Discourse to Circumcision but that in other places he extends it to Meats and Drinks to Observation of Dayes and such like which are much more indifferent then those now contested about Concerning which the Apostles Assertion is That he would not be brought into bondage by any but be left as free in the use or forbearance of them as the Laws of Charity would permit And therefore whatever the Apostle saies though properly and immediatly it relates only to Jewish Customs yet since his words are general and indefinite they must be understood equally to concern all things that are of a like and much more those that are of a more doubtful Nature 2. Though the Apostle did speak only of Circumcision and other Legal Rites yet the very same Reason which served to take them away may easily be improved to keep back any other from being either imposed or observed in their room For 1. Since God himself was the immediate Author of all Mosaical Ceremonies And 2. Since they were afterwards abolished not because they were sinful but because they were unprofitable not because they were inconsistent with Salvation but because they did not sufficiently promote it as the Apostle witnesses There is Heb. 7.18 19. saith he a disanulling of the Commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitablenesse thereof for the Law i. e. of Ceremonies made nothing perfect Then it followes that things 1. Which have not the same Divine warrant and Prescription And 2. Which are equally if not more unprofitable as to what concernes the Conscience ought not to be introduced or practised for else we should be very little Gainers if being set free from Gods we might be made subject to mans Law and if in stead of Divine we might own and practise Humane Impositions This would not ease our Yoke but only alter it nay make it much more insupportable then the Jewish Burden was For they in what they did obeyed a Righteous and Infallible God and therefore were sure they could not erre But we must obey the Arbitrary Fancies of Unrighteous and Fallible men concerning whose Authority in imposing or the Usefulnesse of the things which they impose we can never be satisfied since they seem not only to go beyond their bounds but likewise by enjoyning such poor things to play with rather then to adorn Religion and in stead of consulting Gods Honour to provide only Traps and Snares for their Conscientious and soberly dissenting Brethren 2. It is objected again That the Church was not in the same condition in the Apostle Pauls time Obj. 2 that now it is in for then there was no Civil Magistrate that did so far countenance Christian Religion as to interpose and meddle with it and therefore none could enjoyn those things in the use whereof Paul bids them be free but now the state of things is altered For Magistrates have taken upon them the care of Religion unto whose Injunctions we are to yield obedience according to that of the Apostle Let every Soul be Subject to the Higher Powers I Answer Answ 1. It is assumed gratis and without the least pretence of Proof that the Christian Magistrate hath any thing to do to impose in things of Religion For which I might bring many Sentences out of Tertullian and especially Lactantius who affirm the same but the thing is clear For Civil Government is properly and adequately concerned only in Civil things but Religious matters belong only to him that is Inspector and Lord of the Conscience and therefore that Text Let every Soul be subject to the Higher Powers is in this debate impertinently alledged since it is evident that the Apostle wrote it with reference to Nero who was then Emperour and certainly did very little trouble himself with things of Religion except it were to persecute it and even then when the Magistrate doth so I acknowledge that we are to be subject to i. e. not to resist him Nay further it followes from the Text that should our Magistrates become what they then were Heathen and Infidels yet in all Civil Matters we were bound to obey them which I am ready to assert against all whether Papal or other Encroachments But that the Magistrate either hath power to prescribe Religious Rites or that if he doth prescribe we ought to submit to him neither that nor any other Text of Scripture doth evince as I have already demonstrated 2. I deny that any upon Earth now hath greater power to impose upon the Church then those had in the Apostle Paul's time For I take it for granted that Peter was if not the greatest yet one of the greatest Persons that ever was since our Saviours time and yet when he by his suspitious and inconstant carriage gave occasion to the Gentiles to think Gal. 2. that the Jewish Rites ought still to be continued Paul openly reproves him in these words Why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews i. e. Why dost thou seem to lay a constraint upon them and by the Authority of thy example induce them to believe that those Ceremonies are still to be practised From whence I infer that if in one who was so great an Apostle Paul would not brook the least scruple of carriage which might seem to abate and lessen the extent of Christian Liberty then it follows 1. That no Magistrate can lawfully take upon him that power since the greatest Magistrate on Earth in things appertaining to Divine Worship is much inferiour to Peter both for Knowledge and Authority 2. That if the Magistrate doth take upon himself that power we are to be so far from complying as rather by Pauls example openly
to lie at the bottom and make him stoop to so mean a Bondage Some object That it is true by doing these things we offend our Brother Obj. but then by refusing we should offend the Magistrate who is somthing more then our Brother to whom we owe not only the duty of Love but likewise of Subjection and therefore the less Offence must give place to the greater But I answer 1. Answ That if the Magistrate hath no power to impose as I have already proved then he hath no reason to be offended at my refusal to obey him since eatenus jus non habet and therefore I should more scandalize i. e. give him a greater occasion of sinning by submitting to then by quiet disowning of his Authority For by submitting I shall beget this Opinion in him that he doth well to impose which is undoubtedly sinful whereas by disowning his Authority I only make my self liable to suffering which every good Christian ought at all times to be prepared for 2. Our Saviour hath already taught us how little we are to care for the offence which men take at that sober and just use which we make of our Liberty For when he refused to wash his hands before meat which by the way was a Rite much more innocent then those I now dispute of and gave this for his ground that it was a plant not of his Fathers planting his Disciples seem to importune him to condescend unto the Pharisees who were his lawful Governours by urging that they were offended at his Saying But our Saviour in stead of assenting cries out let them alone they are Blind Guides with other words shewing that while they made use of their Authority to press such needless Toyes it was his duty to disobey them Which carriage of our Saviour is so much the more remarkable in that when they came to demand Tribute-money though he alledged that by his Birthright he was free from any such Tax yet saith he rather then offend them let us pay it plainly implying that in Civil things not to stand too nicely upon our terms but for peace sake even to part with some of our Right is honest and commendable but in Religious things we must not yield a tittle because in them the honour of God is immediatly concerned For as being Lord of the Conscience and sole Dictator of what way he will be served in he expects we should upon all occasions openly assert his Right and neither teach for Doctrine nor solemnize for Worship the Commandments of men For that I may obviate an Exception of some who alledge that these things are not imposed as Doctrines When a Ceremony comes to be urged and pressed beyond the bounds of a thing Indifferent here though no Doctrine be mentioned yet there is a Doctrine couched under it and that is this which I have been all this while speaking against That the Magistrate hath power to impose in Religious Worship So that when things doubtful come upon that score to be obtruded we must resolutely refuse to do them lest we should seem to own and assent unto the Doctrine To conclude therefore Since the things in question are so pressed as if the Imposers thought them necessary 2. Since many of them are very disputable 3. Since most of them are very scandalous and offensive to our weaker Brethren it followes that they are not in their own nature Indifferent and therefore it cannot be lawful to practise them And so much for the Third Argument The Fourth and last Argument shall be taken from the Resemblance and Correspondency which these things have to others which we have already renounced in the Popish worship as likewise from the impossibility that any rational or sober account can be given why we dissent from those if we assent to these For I would fain know wherein lies the true ground of our separation from the Church of Rome if not in this because they obtrude such conditions of Communion which Gods Word doth not warrant us to assent to For let men speak as much as they please against Images Crucifixes Praying to Saints or for the Dead c. at last it will be found that the only firm and solid Argument to overthrow all these things is this They are not written God hath no where in his Word commanded such things and therefore we may safely reject them But on the same score the Cross the Surplice Bowing Kneeling and the rest must be rejected too as being equally uncommanded For how can we satisfie any inquisitive man why in Baptism we have cast off Oyle and retain the Cross why in the other Sacrament we retain Kneeling and refuse Adoration Why we bow to the Name of Jesus and yet are offended at a Crucifix In short why we have pared away some Rites either as Idolatrous or else as superfluous and yet have retained others that are equally scandalous equally indefensible If we answer that we did it because every National Church hath power to judge of Ceremonies and to impose upon her Subjects as few or as many as she thinks fit Will it not inevitably follow that our Church may when she pleases bring in all those exploded Rites upon us and when she doth so we are bound to submit unto her Authority So that all the advantage we have got by our Reformation which at the beginning of it was the best and the most stupendious that ever the world saw is only this that we have lopt off some Branches of Popery but left the Root untouched as owning that Doctrine of Impositions which may whenever the Magistrate pleases bring in the outward practise of that Religion again upon us I do not speak this as if I did in the least imagine that our Governours do so much as dream of any such thing but I argue meerly as a rational man and considering the nature of things for since every man then acts rationally when he acts conformably to the Principle he holds therefore he that first mistakes things doubtful for things Indifferent and then maintains that the Magistrate hath power to make even things Doubtful Necessary when he imposes them he leaves the Magistrate free to bring in as much of the Popish Worship as he is pleased to think is either decent or convenient Since then the Crosse the Surplice c. are all of the same Idolatrous Nature and Original with other parts of Romish Worship which we have worthily rejected as being coyned in the unlicensed Mint of mens Brain without the stamp of Divine Authority it followes that either we must not use them or else we must acknowledge that if Oyl for Infants Holy Vnction for the sick Exorcismes c. were enjoyned we could lawfully submit to them too and so never fix our selves a certain point of Religious Practise but depend altogether upon the Beck and Pleasure of our Magistrate Against this I know not what can be objected except as some affirm that the Pope is not Antichrist so others will take upon them to prove that Popery is not Idolatry If any Protestant be of that mind I hope he thinks of returning speedily to their Communion but till I understand how Pictures may be made and placed if not as Objects yet as Helps of Devotion how Saints can first be Canonized and then prayed to how the Bread can be confined to a place and yet adored as god how the Virgin Mary besides being prayed to can be entreated to command her Son till I say I understand how these and many more such things can be done and no Idolatry committed I must take leave to affirm that if that Church be not Idolatrous there never was nor can be such a thing as Idolatry in the World To conclude therefore I will acknowledge that using the Cross though not in Baptism is very ancient and mentioned more then once by Tertullian a Apolog. that a peculiar Reverence to the Name of Jesus is asserted by Origen b Lib. adv Cels that the Worship of Angels or somthing very like it is maintained by Justin Martyr c Apolog. 2. Prayer for the Dead as I remember by Cyprian I am sure by Tertullian d Apolog. Purgatory by Arnobius c. But yet these Opinions which in those Excellent Writers who were newly recovered out of Gentilisme were very tolerable Mistakes and Errours did neither hurt them nor the Church of Christ till the world was grown lazy enough to believe and the Bishop of Rome had force enough to impose them as Necessary Doctrines This is that which not only diffused but so far fixed the fatal Poyson of Errour that the world can never expect to be freed till it pleases God to raise up some generous and truly Heroick Prince who may be convinced of the truth of Christian Religion not by hear-say from others but by a through search and enquiry into the Causes of it himself and growing from thence assured that nothing can more hinder the Progress of the Gospel then to disguise and alter its simplicity for a strange dress must needs render it suspected will resolve to give it a free and undisturbed Passage and never draw his Sword but when Malice and Ignorance do joyn together not only to oppose but to persecute it how will Truth then being unfettered and set free from the Clogges of pretended Decency but indeed Antichristian Tyranny run through this Nation and chase Errour before it as the Light doth Darkness This Great and Glorious work I dare almost prophecy that his Majesty is reserved for whose pious and unequalled Declaration hath already indulged as much Liberty as any sober-minded Christian can pretend to and which will then undoubtedly be made a Law when by our constant and chearful Sufferings for this Doctrine of Liberty we have expiated and washed away those Scandals which our many odious and unparallel'd Abuses have cast upon it FINIS