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A52720 The Catholick letter to the seeker, or, A reply to the Protestant answer shewing that Catholicks have express Scriptures, for believing the real presence, and that Protestants have none at all, for denying it. N. N. 1688 (1688) Wing N32; ESTC R9655 25,181 42

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of the Church for the true Sense and Meaning thereof But if so as we must go to the Determination of the Church for the Sense of Scripture what then becomes of their Bible-only Rule-of-Faith The Gentleman go's on and Pag. 5. adviseth You to Consult even Those who are most concern'd and particularly says he The Author of your Catholick Answer who has Vndertook what the abovesaid Learned Persons despair'd of to Prove Transubstantiation to the full of your Request by Express and Plain Texts of Scripture And in the same Page tells you Your Catholick Answerer it seems has Read That which Cardinal Bellarmine had not seen and that he had found out a great Part of a Chapter which the Cardinal had Over-look'd But to turn his own Cannon upon Himself I may with more Truth Retort on him That he has Read it seems in my Answer what I never Writ and has found a great part thereof for which You and I are yet to Stek For I do not find the Word Transubstantiation so much as Mentioned in either your Request or my Answer for Justification whereof I refer to Both Wherefore how Sincere the Gentleman has been in this particular let the World Judge Indeed the Title of my Answer says Proving the Real Presence by Scripture only and so doth the Current throughout the whole Discourse but not one Word of Transubstantiation For that the Controversie was not about the Word Transubstantiation but about the Real Presence or Substance Believed and Deny'd in the Sacrament But here you 'll say perhaps What 's this to the Purpose Is not the Real Presence and Transubstantiation all as one No truly they are not so all one as you may think For there is a great deal of difference betwixt a Man and the Name by which he is distinguish'd and the Measures that are taken to prove him a Man are not the same with Those which are us'd to prove his Name is Thomas And so of the LORD's Supper 'T is one thing to prove the Real Presence and Being of CHRIST's Body and Blood in the Sacrament and 't is Another to shew Reasons why this Mysterious Change of Bread and Wine into the Body and Blood of CHRIST is by the Church call'd TRANSVBST ANTIATION though whoever believes the One can't in Truth deny the Other For if what our Saviour said when Matth. 26. Vers 26. JESVS took Bread and blessed it and brake it and gave it to the Disciples and said TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY be true That it was as He said his Body then it implies a Change from its former being Bread to its present being his Body And this Mysterious Change the Holy Catholick Church doth properly call TRANSVBST ANTIATION Not that the Substance of Bread is Changed according to Sensual Taste but according to Divine Faith in JESVS CHRIST Wherefore the Gentleman methinks should not have Banter'd altogether as he doth at the Word TRANSVBST ANTIATION but have spoke to the Substance and have either Confess'd the REAL PRESENCE or have produc'd nothing but SCRIPTVRE to Disprove it as was Requested The Gentleman proceeds notwithstanding and tells you Pag. 6. That this Discourse of our Saviour 's meaning That in the 6th Chapter of St. John had no special Reference to the Sacrament for that the Sacrament was not Instituted till says he above a Year after as the Time of this Discourse shews Vers 4 c. Very well On which please to remark That the Sacrament was not then Instituted I grant as I did before in my Answer Pag. 6. where I said First I prove Christ 's Promise before He Instituted the Sacrament c. and so far the Gentleman might have spar'd his Labour But that the Sacrament was not Instituted till above a Year after is what he can shew no Rule for For the Text which he cites to prove his Assertion is this John 6. Vers 4. And the Passover a Feast of the Jews was nigh Now that this word Nigh should signifie Above a Year after is such a Figure as never was Whereas St. Luke hath the same Word saying Chap. 22. Vers 1. Now the Feast of Vnleaven'd Bread drew Nigh which is called the PASSOVER and immediately the Passover followed as appears by the Chapter And St. Mark treats not of the Passover till within Two Days of it saying Chap. 14. Vers 1. After Two Days was the Feast of the Passover So St. Matth. 26. Vers 2. Ye know that after Two Days is the Feast of the Passover c. I do not say That the Word Nigh in St. John signifies so near as Two Days nor do I find by express and plain Scripture that it is to be taken for above a Year after But whether what 's said in the 6th Chapter of St. John have any Reference to the Sacrament is the Quaery For though our Saviour did not then Institute the Sacrament yet He says Vers 51. And the Bread which I will give is my Flesh which I Will give for the Life of the World. By which You see that though He did not then give us this Bread yet He promis'd He would give us Bread to Eat which should be the very same Flesh which he would and afterwards did give for the Life of the World. Now Whether this absolute Promise hath any Reference to the ensuing Performance be You the Judge when at his Last Supper He took Bread and blessed it and brake it and gave it to his Disciples and said TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY If therefore this Bread which He here gives us to Eat saying TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY be not that Bread which He promis'd He would give us to Eat which should be his Flesh pray ask your Protetestant Answerer Where When and How did CHRIST give us Bread to Eat which should be his Flesh if This be it not The Gentleman goes on and Pag. 7. tells You These Verses viz. 53 54 55 56 57. do shew where our Saviour saith EXCEPT YE EAT and WHOSO EATEIH c. in all which the Present Time is spoken of But why the Gentleman should begin at Vers 53. and thereby skip Vers 51. I know not where CHRIST told them before That He WOVLD in the Future Tense give them Bread to Eat which should be his Flesh and then tells them That EXCEPT THEY DID EAT and WHOSO EATETH c. Not that He did then GIVE or that they did then EAT his Flesh or DRINK his Blood which they could not do before He took it blessed it brake it and gave it For at that Time when He spake as in the 6th Chapter of St. John He only told Them He WOVLD give it and the Eve before his Passion He PERFORM'D it And from that Time I suppose the Obligation bears force Vers 53. That Except ye EAT the FLESH of the Son of Man and DRINK his BLOOD ye have no Life in you He doth not say Except ye EAT it before I GIVE it but first
said He WOVLD give it and then EXCEPT THEY DID EAT c. The Gentleman however from the above-mention'd Texts insinuates That CHRIST's Flesh and Blood may be Eaten and Drank out of the Sacrament as says he is evident from the Sense and Letter of it If so then continues he it could not be understood of that Flesh and Blood which the Bread and Wine are Converted into in the Sacrament nor adds he of Carnal Eating his Flesh and Drinking his Blood. As to his Carnal Eating We beg his Pardon if he means as we Eat Beef and other Meats For that We Truly and Really Receive the Body and Blood of CHRIST in the Sacrament to use his own Words Pag. 12. after an Heavenly and Spiritual manner And so far We should Agree did We not Differ in This That They Receive it in Figure and Fancy only and We Receive it in Substance and Truth But that 't is evident as he says from the Letter and Sense of it That the Flesh and Blood of CHRIST may be Eaten out of the Sacrament and even Before it was Instituted c. is indeed such a Figure as none but Himself can unriddle For my part I have read St. John on this Occasion and I can't find it so evident as he says it is Pray Sir do you Consult the Words and see whether those Texts do imply the Eating and Drinking the Flesh and Blood of CHRIST Out of the Sacrament as well as In it or in any other manner than under the Forms of Bread and Wine according to both the Promise and Institution Or Whether they could Eat it before He Gave it For in the 6 th Chapter of St. John CHRIST did not give them his Flesh to Eat nor his Blood to Drink But told them He would give them BREAD to Eat which should be his FLESH but before He GAVE it 't was impossible for them to EAT it He further proceeds and tells You Pag. 8. That it must not be Properly and Litterally understood For then says he all that thus Properly Eat and Drink the Flesh and Blood of CHRIST would have Eternal Life according to our Saviour's Assertion Vers 54. Very true The Worthy Receivers who persevere to the End have so but the Vnworthy quite contrary And we can shew You a Rule for it viz. 1 Cor. 11.27,29 Wherefore whosoever shall Eat this BREAD and Drink this CUP of the Lord Vnworthily shall be guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord For he that Eateth and Drinketh UNWORTHILY Eateth and Drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the LORD 's BODY Wherefore the Worthy may receive to Eternal Life and the Vnworthy to Eternal Death And the Words TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY may be properly understood the Protestant Musl-bee's to the contrary notwithstanding The Gentleman tells you further in the same Page That then the Sacrament in both Kinds will be necessary to Salvation c. As to this of Both Kinds it doth not properly Relate either to Your Request or My Answer but is a Controversie deserving to be Argued by it self in convenient Time and Place And besides I do not see where the necessity lies of defining the Sacrament in Both Kinds to One that believes it in Neither not but that I am ready to satisfie You in this particular where and when You please The Gentleman Pag. 8. sharply reflects upon what I said in my Answer p. 8. That if they went to Figures and Parables we knew how to handle them From whence he Insinuates some Extraordinary way of handling For my part I take GOD to Witness I had no other meaning in it than to handle them by the BIBLE as I said to Rule them by their own Rule Wherefore let the Evil be to them that think it As to what he says Pag. 8. Of the Antipathy I should have to Figures and Parables and Cross my Self where-ever they are Named I do not see by what I have Writ where the Gentleman can have the least Ground for this Cross and Antipathous Reflection For to the contrary I highly venerate those Discourses wherein our Saviour was often pleased to express himself by way of Parable c. But that which I abhor and which indeed would make a Saint Bless himself is To see Men mould GOD's Word into what Form they please and make every thing a Figure that doth not square with their Fancy Is it because our Saviour spake some things by way of Parable that All he said was such or That he never spake otherwise If so and that the Scriptures are so full of secret Meanings How comes it that mean Capacities are by the Church of St. Martins left to themselves to Judge of the true sence of Scripture according to D. T. who tells you in his True Account of a Conference p. 18. That a Man after using all Christian means and the help of all Ministerial Guides possible must at last Judge for himself A special Assertion indeed which if true What need of Teachers seeing that every Man must teach himself by being a Judge of the Text to himself at last But not to detain you on this particular Let us come to what the Gentleman desires pag. 8. That I should tell him without a Figure what is that Meat which endureth to everlasting Life whereof our Saviour speaks in the Sixth Chapter of St. John vers 27. Labour not for the Meat which Perisheth but for THAT MEAT which endureth unto everlasting Life which the Son of Man shall give unto you for him hath God the Father sealed Why truly for my part I do not see where the difficulty lies in these words of Labouring for that Meat which endureth to everlasting Life which the Son of Man shall give unto you it being but a Preamble to what immediately follows in the same Chapter of Giving us his FLESH to EAT which is the true Meat that endureth unto everlasting Life And besides He tells us That the Meat which endureth unto everlasting Life should be given us by the Son of Man agreeable to what he says vers 51 55. And the BREAD that I will give is my FLESH which I will give for the Life of the World For my FLESH is Meat indeed and my BLOOD is Drink indeed which without a Figure I humbly conceive is that MEAT which endureth unto everlasting Life As to his How the Son was Sealed by the Father and the rest of his How 's they are such Jewish expressions as that all Christian-pretenders ought to be ashamed of them For CHRIST no sooner spake of this Doctrine of giving us his FLESH to Eat but the Jews came up with their How too saying vers 52. How can this Man give us his FLESH to Eat So Jewish it is to question GOD how he could do it how this how that and if How he made the World of Nothing be asked Can we Answer but by his sole Word And shall it not be sufficient for us to
take his Word when he tells us The Son of Man was Sealed of GOD the Father and Believe him without calling of GOD to question How or diving into the secrets of Heaven So How he came down c. and the rest of his How 's if they are not sufficiently plain in the Bible so as to be clearly understood I 'll agree with the Gentleman and submit to the determination of the Church and so must YOV and all the SEEKERS in England if what the Protestant Answerer Insinuates be true For if these express and plain words of Christ be a Figure where he says as plain as plain can be That he would give us BREAD to Eat which should be his FLESH and accordingly He took Bread and Blessed it and Brake it and gave it saying TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY I say if these words are Figurative and must not be properly understood I see no Reason why the whole Bible should not be a Figure too For if ever CHRIST was Plain in any thing 't was in this especially in a Point wherein there was never more occasion to Expound if a Figure than when the Jews to whom He came murmur'd and said How can this Man give us his Flesh to Eat and when some of the Disciples said It was an hard saying who could hear it and thereupon walked no more with Him He that in Cases of less Moment always explain'd his Parables should yet be Dark and Figurative in This of that Importance which occasioned not only the Murmuring of the Jews and Departure of the Disciples Then but also occasions as CHRIST well foresaw our differences at This Day Should He I say explain Himself in matters of less weight and yet be Dark in this great Concern is what would be contrary to his Wisdom and Goodness But so far was CHRIST from meaning otherwise than plainly as he spake that to the murmuring Jews he confirms it vers 53. with a Verily verily I say unto you Except ye EAT the FLESH of the Son of Man and DRINK his BLOOD ye have no Life in you and to the Unbelieving Disciples vers 61 62. with a Doth this offend you What if ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up where he was before Whereas when he spake by Parables He explain'd himself to them as Mat. 13.3 And he spake many things to them in Parables saying Behold a Sower c. or when he spake by way of Similitude as Mat. 18.23 Therefore is the Kingdom of Heaven LIKENED unto a certain King. Mat. 20.1 For the Kingdom of Heaven is LIKE unto a Man that is an Housholder Mat. 22.1,2 And JESUS answered and spake unto them again by PARABLES and said The Kingdom of Heaven is LIKE unto c. Mat. 23.1 Then shall the Kingdom of Heaven be LIKENED unto Ten Virgins c. See Mark 4.2 Mark 12.1 Luke 12.16 Luke 13.18,19 Luke 15.3 Luke 19.11 Luke 20.9 and you 'll find that in all Cases CHRIST spake not by PARABLES without telling them it was so and Expounding the same unto them But because the Gentleman is more particular pag. 22. upon that of CHRIST's being a Door a Vine a Rock c. let 's see whether the Parity 'twixt I am the DOOR the VINE c. be the same with The BREAD that I will give is my FLESH which I will give for the Life of the World or with what he said at his Last Supper when He took BREAD and Blessed it and Brake it and Gave it and said TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY without ever Explaining a Syllable to the contrary Whereas in that of the DOOR John 10. the Text tells us It was a PARABLE saying Vers 6. This PARABLE spake JESUS unto them c. Wherefore if the Protestant Answerer would be so kind as to produce as plain Scripture for this of the Sacrament's being a Figure as I have done for the Door 's being a Parable he 'll doubtless oblige YOV and certainly gain a Proselyte of ME. And in like manner of the Vine CHRIST saith Joh. 15.1 I am the True VINE and my Father is the Husbandman as before Mat. 20.1 where he likened the Kingdom of Heaven to a Man that is an Housholder and so goes on Explaining the same saying Vers 4. As the Branch cannot bear fruit of it Self except it abide in the VINE no more can ye except ye abide in ME which if you read the Chapter you 'll find to be more plain And in like manner of the ROCK That he was the CORNER STONE upon which the Foundation was laid and no other Foundation can any Man lay than what CHRIST has lay'd for on Him is Built the whole structure of our Salvation Wherefore whether these Parables of the DOOR the VINE c. be as plain as TAKE EAT THIS IS MY BODY be You or any Impartial Soul the Judge in his own Conscience As to what he says Pag. 9. That if the Words are Literally to be understood they would rather Infer the Conversion of Christ's Flesh and Blood into Bread and Wine For Proof whereof let 's go to the Words of Conversion themselves Mat. 26.26,27,28 where it is said Christ took Bread and Blessed it and Brake it and gave it and said Take Eat This is My BODY he doth not say Take Eat my BODY is this BREAD And in like manner of the CVP For this is my Blood which Words This is my BODY This is my BLOOD are the Words of Conversion and do no ways imply a Change of Christ's Flesh into Bread nor of his Blood into Wine but to the contrary they plainly Infer the Conversion of Bread and Wine into both the Body and Blood of Christ As to the Texts he brings from the 6th of St. John there was no Conversion then made nor do They make for him Besides that he who but just now Pag. 6. of his Answer told us That this Discourse in St. John had no special Reference to the Sacrament should now apply them notwithstanding is an odd way of shifting however as 't is these are the Words John 6.48,55 I am that Bread of Life For my Flesh is Meat indeed and my Blood is Drink indeed Had the Words been My Flesh is Bread indeed as the Gentleman would fain have them if you observe it Pag. 6. then indeed he would have had something of his side but as they are they make clear against him As to those Words ver 48. I am that Bread of Life methinks they are sufficiently explained by the following Texts where he says v. 50. This is the Bread which cometh down from Heaven ver 51. I am the Living Bread c. which Bread he tells us plainly is his Flesh saying Ver. 51. And the Bread that I will give is my Flesh and not that the Flesh which He would give was Bread But that That Bread was his Flesh which as said is sufficiently plain if not rather than differ I 'll joyn in Opinion with
THE Catholick Letter TO THE SEEKER OR A REPLY TO THE Protestant Answer SHEWING That CATHOLICKS have Express Scriptures for Believing the Real Presence and That Protestants have none at all for Denying It. St. Mark IV. vers 11 12. To Them that are Without all these Things are done in Parables That they may See and not Perceive Hear and not Vnderstand Published with Allowance LONDON Printed for John Lane at the Golden-Anchor the Corner Shop of Wilde-Street next Duke-Street 1688. THE Catholick Letter TO THE SEEKER c. SIR I Hope These Lines will over-take You e're You proceed to pass Sentence upon what has been said by Either Party in Answer to your Request concerning the Real Presence and the rather for that in my Answer I was as it were Silent because of the Ties You had put upon Us to satisfie your Conscience by the Scripture only for Request P. 4 5 7. That your Design was to see what Scriptures We had for it and what the Others had against it and That nothing but Scripture without troubling our selves to tell You the meaning on 't should satisfie You in the Matter To which I submitted as near as possible I could And I humbly conceived the Protestant Answerer would have done so too but on the contrary he hath not only quitted the Question but has crowded Three Sheets and an half of Paper for the most part with pretended Reasons and Figures without producing so much as One Text pertinent to disprove the Real Presence or to prove any One Text by me alledged to be either Figuratively or Parabolically spoken or that for Such they must be understood But says by no Authority but his own Protest Ans Pag. 7 8 10. That the Sense of Eating the Flesh and Drinking the Blood Must be Figurative and right or wrong they are Figurative and must not be properly and litterally understood For I am says he as 〈◊〉 as 〈…〉 Words that the Doctrine of Transubstantiation is 〈…〉 Literal th●n it 〈◊〉 be the Rational Meaning of them c. But to have made You as sure as himself methinks he should have proved by express Scripture that those Texts which I produced were Figurative or Parabolical and that they are not to be understood in the plain and proper Sense wherein they were spoken otherwise how doth he think we shall take his bare Word or that his private Meaning of the Text shall pass upon us for Gospel But not to delay on this particular pray observe how the Gentleman has evaded the Question which was of the Real and Immediate Presence of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Sacrament Whether we believed it or not if We believed it We were to produce what Scripture We could to justifie Our said Belief and if They deny'd it They were to produce what Scripture They could to prove That their Negative But instead of speaking to the Real Persence he has betaken himself to Transubstantiation a Word devised by the Church to express the Conversion that 's made in the Sacrament by the Divine Word as the Word Consubstantial or Consubstantiate was devised against the Arians to express the Substance of the Son 's being Coequal the same with the Substance of the Father and if the Request had been of the Consubstantiality of the Son the Arians with as much Reason might have Answered That 't was enough for them to shew that Consubstantiality is not Taught in Scripture as the Protestant Answerer has done where Pag. 3. he says That 't is enough for them to shew that Transubstantiation is not taught in Scripture tho' the Being of Christ 's Body and Blood in the Sacrament is At which rate if permitted he 'll Sham off the rest of their Negative Doctrines insomuch that when you come to the Infallibility of the Church Invocation of Saints Purgatory c. and require him to shew Express Scripture to prove That the Church is not Infallible That we must not Invocate the Saints to Pray for us That there is no Third Place in the other Life besides Heaven and Hell he 'll think to stop your Mouth with his 'T is enough for them to shew that Infallibility is not Taught in Scripture tho' That the Church can never Err be That Invocation of Saints is not Taught in Scripture tho' Prayer to Saints and that they do Pray for us be That Purgatory is not Taught in Scripture tho' a Third Place in the other Life be whereby he quits the Substance to wrangle at the Word by which the Substance is express'd He might as well say The Trinity and Incarnation are not Taught in Scripture the Words being no more there than Transubstantiation Purgatory or the rest But how far this way of Answering will take with You I know not For My part I humbly conceived your Meaning was purely to be satisfied in the Substance of what We believed of the Real Presence and to shew You what Authorities We had from Scripture for such Our Belief not doubtings if We agreed in the Substance of the Thing Believed that ever We should differ about a Word sufficiently proper to express it The Gentleman proceeds and tells you Pag. 3. That You are but lately engaged in this Employment or else You would never says he think it reasonable to oppose the Authority of One Vnknown Answerer of that Communion to the profess'd Opinion of so Many great Divines of that Church c. And from thence infers a Concurrence of some of our Divines with him in this particular to wit Pag. 4. That there was not One place of Scripture so Express that without the determination of the Church it would evidently compel a Man to receive Transubstantiation And the same might as well be said of the Consubstantiality of the Son That there is no Scripture so Express as without out the determination of the Church it would evidently compel a Man to receive it But what is this to the Being or not Being of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Sacrament Had he produced Scotus Bellarmine or any of the Holy Fathers to disprove the Real Presence it had been something tho not to your purpose for the Request was Pag. 4. To satisfie You by the Scripture only and not by citing of our Modern Divines or Ancient Greek and Latin Fathers but by the Express Text and plain Word of God as Written and set forth in our English Bibles and no otherwise And this was the Rule that I walk'd by in my Answer not that I thereby Renounced the Determination of the Church in this or any other point of Faith God forbid but that I should always prefer their Vniversal Consent to my Private Opinion Wherefore if what Scotus and Bellarmine have said in that Matter will do the Gentleman a Kindness he shall have it not only from them but from all the Faithful that altho' the Scripture were never so plain we would yet submit to the Determination