Selected quad for the lemma: saint_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
saint_n	pray_v	prayer_n	supplication_n	1,875	5	11.3215	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A45665	A farewell to popery, in a letter to Dr. Nicholas, vice-chancellor of Oxford, and warden of New-College, from W. H., M. D., lately Fellow of the same college shewing, the true motives that with-drew him to the romish religion, and the reasons of his return to the Church of England : concluding with some short reflections concerning the great duty of charity.	Harris, Walter, 1647-1732.	1679 (1679)	Wing H884; ESTC R9627	22,580	44

was Printed an excellent Book of Devotion called Devotion by way of Offices a Book so full of the Divine Spirit solid sense and good English that I can hardly remember to have seen the like unless it be the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of our late Incomparable Soveraign 'T was a work so free from exception that paring a way the Ave Mary a Hymn to our Lady at the conclusion of the Office and very little or nothing more it might serve as well for the use of Protestants as Papists 'T was writ by a Lay-Gentleman a man of a most exemplary life and so ingenious that all who knew him or heard of him or had any inward respect for true Learning or Virtue coveted his acquaintance so far that they made his House the Center of all their meetings And yet the Jesuits will not bestow one kind word on this Man or Book The Gentleman they condemn for a Blackloist that is as they will have it a worse Heretick than a Protestant though he declar'd himself with never so much submission to the Catholick Church The Book they disswade all People from using for no manner of reason but because it is not stufft with those Litanies and Prayers to Saints the Manual abounds with or that it will do their souls too much real good or because it was written by a Lay-man no ways Jesuited There 's one thing more I can't but observe And that is that all the Convents of Nuns let them be never so Ignorant must be forc'd to say and sing the Office of the Church in Latin for Morning and Evening Prayers and the other Canonical hours So it seems they separate themselves from the World to a good purpose and must needs make strange advancements in Devotion to God when they thus spend their time at Church and in numbring long Catalogues of Ave Maries 'T is much if they don't repent their first Zeal when they have liv'd long enough there to grow sober and consider True Devotion consists in those means that raise the heart to the love of God above all things and which conduce to make us live Honestly and Charitably with all Men and not in a toothless Lip service where the heart is not cannot be concern'd A third thing that must touch sensibly upon the Conscience of any one that was ever a Protestant is the Prayers to Saints and especially those continual Supplications that are made in the highest manner to the Ever-blessed Virgin He may indeed comply a little following the general rule of Believing as the Church Believes and practising as the Church practises but he can never force out of his mind his dependence on God Almighty and heartily quit his natural refuge to God to make Applications to this or that Saint The Worship of Images so flat against the 2d Commandment and the putting out the 2d Commandment so plain against the Worship of Images the Adoration of Reliques Agnus Dei's and other Consecrated Bawbles will make the Conscience of a Protestant grumble somtimes let him do what he will and declare himself never so much for that Church Concerning Reliques I observed that when they were exposed on great days to the view of all comers there was a Priest to gard'em who would take it very unkindly if any body presumed to kiss the Case they were kept in without depositing some Mite into the Dish just by So that poor People must only look on and devoutly admire the Reliques and the rich Case together without profaning it with an empty too near an approach And again some Images and Altars have a much greater virtue in 'em than others His Holiness has bestowed most liberal Indulgences to some above others that is he has favoured more particularly such or such a Monastery and granted them a means to make Fools stocks thither more abundantly and confer their Charity with a freer hand to the disposal of a pack of Covetous Insatiable Wretches Now 't is most certain and plain that the Worship of God without an Image is lawful beyond dispute with an Image 't is dangerous at least to say no worse To Pray to the God that made us is safe beyond scruple Prayers to Saints may make God Jealous of his Honour To say such Prayers as affect the heart cannot but be very acceptable to him but a dry insipid Lip-service ought much to be suspected To Receive the Blessed-Sacrament as our Saviour did himself Institute it cannot but he effectual to a soul duly prepared but the mincing this great Sacrament the taking it by halfs is not what he intended if we will follow his own example or believe his own words In a word to believe the three Creeds the foundation of Christianity and imitate the Primitive the best purest times is very rational for a good Christian but to take in all the idle Superstructures that Politick or Zealous or Ignorant Men have since raised either for self-ends or through weakness or the wilfulness of Opiniators gives too great a Latitude to the Enemy of Man-kind who watches all opportunities to withdraw us from our duty 'T is not the Title and Name of Catholick which Roman Catholicks do so uncharitably appropriate to themselves that should frighten us into a better opinion of them than they deserve I know not why an English Catholick should not sound full as well as a Roman Catholick but in their sense 't is a meer Solecism as much as a Particular-general 'T is not the Name but the Thing that must do our business hereafter And a most uncharitable exclusion of all Man-kind from Salvation besides those that are Cross'd with that Title on their Fore-heads will help but little to forward our future happiness let Zealous fiery Priests urge it till their hearts ake But that nobody may be scar'd from doing their duty in England upon the consideration that no Salvation can be had out of the Roman Catholick Church I shall here declare that I have often talkt with some of the most judicious and knowing Priests among them concerning this point and they have seriously agreed with me that neither they nor the Church do think so Vncharitably Paltry Priests will say so to frighten Women and weak persons but they do not cannot in their Conscience think so if they have but the least grain of wit I could add a great many other things to those already said though for several years I have not so much as lookt into any Book of Controversie having had somthing else to do and being persuaded that Controversie is the Mother of far more Harm than Good as turning Practical Religion out of doors and spending the true spirit of Religion in talk and noise which rather consists in Peace and Action But I must remember I am writing a Letter not a Treatise Do to others as you would be done unto is a greater and more substantial part of Christianity than we are commonly aware And he that would