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A53499
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An answer to the challenge of Mr. Henry Jennings (Protestant Arch-Deacon of Dromore) which evidently makes-out the present Church of Romes doctrine to have been maintain'd in the first five ages, & the adversarys principles to be only a heap of heresies lawfully condemn'd by the primitive Church. To which is annexed An answer to one Whealy. Set forth by James O Shiell reader of Divinity.
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O'Sheill, James.
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1699
(1699)
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Wing O530A; ESTC R214539
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82,791
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345
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golden censer there was given unto him much incense that he shou'd offer it with the prayers of all Saints upon the golden Altar which was before the throne the smoake of the incense which came with the prayers of the Saints ascended up before God out of the Angels hands we read in the 2. book of the Maccabees c. 15. that Judas Machabeus had seen Onias the high Priest and Jeremiah the Prophet after their death interceding to God for the people of Israel and that this book is Canonical I will prove in my answer to the next point we read also in the 15 c. v. â of Jeremiah that the Lord spoke unto him saying thus Tho' Moses and Samuel stood before me yet my minde cou'd not be towords this people cast them out of my sight and let thââ go forth which words our Lorâ wou'd not have said If Moses â Samuel tho' dead were not woââ to interced for the Jewes whiââ may be confirm'd out of Exodâ c. 32 v. 13. where we read thââ Moses himself beg'd of the Lorâ to shew his mercy to the peoplâ for the sake of Abraham Isaac aââ Israel his own servants for as Theodoret q. 67. on Exod sayeâ Moses thinking himself so ââ insufficient to pacifie the Lordâ he sets down not only his oââ promise but also the aforsaiâ Patriarchs merits that the rebâ the Lord might be more williââ to have commisseration upon thâ people and pardon them whicâ then he did as is manifest by the 14 v. of the same chap. Moses also endeavour'd an other time to pacifie the Lord's fury thro' the aforsaid Patriarchs merits assistance as is evident out of Deut. c. 9. v. 27 wherre he sayes thus remember they servaÌts Abraham Isaac and Jacob looke not unto the stoubbornness of this people nor to their wickedness nor to their sinne Was it not for the sake of Abraham tho' dead his son Isaac obtain'd several requests favours from the Lord Genesis c. 26. v. 3. 4 5. 24. wou'd not the Lord divide Salomon's Kindom give it to his servants If it had not been for the sake of David as may be seen ïn the 3 book of Kings c. 11. v. 11. 12. was it not for the sake of David Aby as obtain'd that his son Asa reign'd in Jerusalem as may be seen in the same book c. 15. v. 4. was it not also for the sake of David tho' dead the Lord sav'd the city of Jerusalem from being destroy'd by the Assyrians as is evident out of the 4th book of Kingâ c. 19. v. 32 3â â 20. v. 6. when Salomon beg'd any great request from the Lord was not he wont to set down the merits of David that thereby he might the sooner obtain his request as may be seen in the 131. Psalm v. 1. 10. which is in the Protestant bible the 132. Psalm Now let the reader consider what a great happiness it is to have a faithfull friend and Patron in great honour and request with God almighty thro' whoâe merits and intercission one may obtain several benefits which otherwise wou'd not be granted as the premisses do evidently make-out for as God almighty was graciously pleas'd thro' the bountifullnesse of his infinite mercy to grant for the merits and intercession of these Patriarches who then were but in Limbo Patrum so many benefits and requests to those whom they protected in this world why also now in the law of grace wou'd not the same God most mercyfully grant us any lawfull request for the intercession and great merits of his holy Mother beloved Apostles faithfull Martyres and true Confessors who are in great honour and request residing with himself in âeaven Especially being this dose not derogate to the honour of Christ as I will prove by the following passage If it be unlawfull to invocate Angel Saints either it is because they kânown not what we say or because it wou'd derogate to the honour of Christ who is said to be the mediator betwen God man according to that of John in his first Epist c. 2. v. 1. not for the first as I have already shew'd and shall confirm it by the following examples We read in the 4th book of Kings c. 5. v. 26 that Eliâha knew tho' abâeÌt Gehazie's Simonie and in the c 6th v. 12. that Elisha also knew what was said in the King of Syria's private Chamber in the 15th c. v. 10. of Luke that the Angels of God doth rejoyce at the conversion of a sinner which is the greatest secret that one can have yet it can be known to the Angels and also to the Saints in heaven either by a distinct revelation from the clear vision of God's essence or by the visioÌ of themselves as S. Gregorie in his 2. book of Dialogues c. 3. affirms saying thus what is it that there they know not where they know him who knowes all Neither dose it derogate to the honour of Christ for the Church of Rome certainly believes Christ to be the chief Mediator betwen God and man as St Paul affirms in his Epist to Timothy c. 2. v. 5. therefore she dose not allow to invocate Angels or Saints in order to obtain any request immediatly and directly from themsleves for she acknowledges that to be a folly consequently not to be in their power So that she only allows to beg of them to join their prayers intercessioÌ with those of the faithfull that thereby they might the sooner easier obtain from God their requests thro' the meriââ and inâeâcession of Jesus Christ which is manifest out of St. Leo's 2 Oration de Jejunio and also by the publick Orations of the Church wherein she implores the intercession of Angels and Saints for she wou'd have them to be efficacious thro' the assistance and merits of Christ it is therefore they alwayes end with the following words Per Domiâum nostrum Jesum Christum Filiâm ââum qui tâcum vivit et regnaâ in unitate spiritus sainti Deus per osnnia saecula saeâulorum A men whereby the reader may plainly perceâve that the invocations of Saints dose not derogate to the honour of Christ otherwise St Paul might be accus'd for beseeching the Romans Colossians Hebreâs Theslalonians to assist himself in his prayers and also to pray for him to God as is eâident by St Paul's own Epistles to the Romans c 15 v. 30. to the Hebrews c. 13. v. 18. 19. to the Colossians c. 4. v. 3. in his first and sâcond to the Thessalonians c. 5 v. 25. c 3. v. 1 so that the Adversary must either Confess the invocation of Saints not to derâgate Christ's honour or else to condemn St Paul's Doctrine for I dâfie him ever to make-out that the intercession of those who live in this world is acceptable to God nât the intercession of âhose who are coÌfirm'd in grace glory or that one is prejudice to Christ
mount âalvary which Image in the reign of Tiberius the Emperour was brought to Rome and there honourably reserv'd and shew'd to the people every munday and thursday Several other Images of Christ were made even by those who liv'd in his one time as for example there was one made by the woman whom he heal'd of the bloody flux which was set up in the city Penades where several miracles were wrought upon the account of it as Eusebius in his 7 book c. 14th Sozomenus in his 5th book c. 20 and Damascenus in his first book de Imaginibus do relate for a certain herbe which grew at the foot of that Image when it came to be so high that it cou'd touch the hem of the Image it receiv'd vertue to heal all kind of distempers and as Sozomenus testifies when Juliaâ the Emprour order'd to fall it down and to place his own Image in stead of it his was immediatly consum'd by fire from heaven which miracle the Pagans seeing most impiously by the instinct of the divel brake our Saviours Image not considering that he who caus'd their Emprours Image to be burn'd might by the same power cause also fire to come down from heauen in order to burn both themselves and thier Emprour too only that his divine goodness and clemency had more patience to expect their conversion of which the Emprours Image was uncapable another Image of Christ was made by Nicodemus which a Christian 43. years after it was made carri'd from Jerusalem to Berith a Village in Syria where in deâision of our Saviour's Passion it was by the Jewes crown'd whipp'd pierc'd c vs'd it with all manner of villany as they us'd our Saviour himself but not with out great miracle for as they pierc'd it there issu'd out of it aboundance of water and blood by which divers maladyes were cur'd and several Jewes conver ted seeing these miracles as Athanasius in his book de Passione Imaginis Domini c. 4th and Gregorie of Tours de gloria martyrum c. 21. do relate To which examples may be also added those Images of our blessed Lady one made by S. Luke which is to be seen at this very day in the Church of Loretta in Italiâ and an other of hers whâch Eudoxia sent from Jerusalem to Pulcheria which shee plac'd near her own seat in the Church that shee built in Constantinople as Nicepherus writes in his 14th book c. 2. Iâ might Produce several other Images which were made worshipp'd by those of the Primitive Church If I had not suppos'd that any impartial reader might plainly perceive by what I have already produc'd that the vse of Images is no new Doctrine iâ the holy Catholick Church and consequently that their worship and veneration is not prohibited by the second commandment as my adversary and his adherence do falsly teach for that which is prohibited by this commandment and also by the scriâture in several places is to worship or adore any creature with that honour which is due to the Almighty God as formerly the Gentiles did when they made Idols and false Gods which afterwards they worshipp'd and ador'd even as if every one of them had been a true and an Eternal God wherefore they are alwayes believ'd by those of the Church of Rome to have been Idolators impious for soe doing which they wou'd not judge if themselves were guilty of the same crime or of any other of that kind therefore the worship which is peculiar to God is commonly call'd by the divines Cultus âatriae that is to say a soveraign honour and the Church of Rome most strictly forbids all her members to give it to any creature therefore the honour veneration which shee alowes to be given to Images is not that of Latria or severaign as all the Fathers of the 7th General Council do declare in the 7th Action but it is an inferior kind of veneration call'd relative that is to say that they are worshipp'd in as much as they represent unto us Godly thingâ and are instruments apt to move the people to thinke of what our Saviour the Saints have suffer'd done in this world so that they serve in a maÌner as books to those who cannot read excites the people to great devotion pietv which other wise wou'd not have inter'd into their thoughts or imaginations âo that the reader may take notice how uncharitable the pretended reformers do continually preach to their poor ignorant flock that the Papists are Idolators and impious by worshipping graven Images as Gods that thereby they might render the holy Catholick Church odious and abominable to the very simple people fearing that any of theâ wou'd embrace her principles oâ offer to find out the real verity of her uncorrâpted doctrine Chap. 9 Proving the invocation of Angels and Saints to be lawfull â practis'd by those of the Primitive Church The Angels and Saints his a special care of us and we receive several benefits by their assistance and merits therefore it is lawfull to invocate them that they may interced for us to God the antecedent is manifest by the following texâs And the Angââ of God call'd tâ Hagaâ ouâ of heaven and said unto her what aileth thâ Hagaâ fear not for God hath haââ the voice of the child Genesis c. 17. and the Angel of the Lord call'd unto him out of heaven and said Abraham Abraham lay not their hand upon the child neither do thou any thing unto him for I know that thou fearest God Genesis c. 22. v. 11. 12. The Angel which redeem'd me from all evil blesse these boyes Genesis c. 48. v. 16. Then the Angel of the Lord went forth smote in the camp of the Assytian an hundred and fouâ score five thousand Isaiah c. 37. v. 36. Then the Angel of the Lord Answer'd said O Lord of hosts how long will thou not have mercy in Jerusalem and ân the cityes of Juda against which thou hast indignation these three score and ten years Zechariah c. 1. v. 12. Michael one of the Princes come to help me there is none that holdeth with me in these things but Michael Daniel â 10. v 13. 21. But while he thought ââ these things behol'd the Angel of the Lord appear'd unto him in a dream saying Ioseph son of David fear noâ to take unto thee Mary they wife for that which is conceiv'd in her is of the holy Ghost Matt. c. 1. v. 20. Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones for I say unto ye that in heaven their Angels do alwayes behold the face of my Father which is in heaven Matt. c. 18. v. 1â And four twenty elders felldown before the lambe having every one of them harps and golden vials full of odours which are the prayers of the Saints Revelations c. 5 v. 8. and c. 8. v. 3. 4. and an other Angel came stood at the altar having a