out of the Apostle S. Paul A text for its Clearnes able to Comment its Comment to witt that Christ hath placed in his Church Pastors and Doctors to the Consummation of Saints till wee all meet in the vnitie of the fayth That is as Doctor Fulke à ProtestaÌ„t divine expounds for ever Calvin himselfe expowndinge it thus Concluds in these words The Church cannot at any tyme want Postors and Doctors Now that these Pastors and Doctors must not at any tyme in their office and dutyes be sylent It is not onely witnessed by the Holy Ghost I saye 62. but allsoe besydes the nature of their function requiringe it acknowledged by Protestants And therfore Doctor Fulke sayth well Truth cannot be continued in the world but by the Ministry of the Pastors and Doctors In lyke sort touchinge the administration of the Sacraments the same is more particulerly evicted from the cleare words of our Saviour and S. Paul seinge by the help of them wee shall Shew the Lords death till he come 1. Cor. 11. A point soe evydent that it lyeth out of the way of all contradiction And therfore Willett à Protestante in playne words mayntaineh that the absence of the Sacraments makes à nullity of the Church And againe in Doctor Whittakres phrase That The administration of the word and Sacraments being present Constitute à Church beinge absent doe subuert it And againe as the some Doctor styleth them they are Ecclesiae essentiales proprietates Thus doth Protestants ioyntly with Catholiques teach that not at same tymes onely the Church of Christ beinge his insepable and immaculate Spouse with whom he isto the Consummation of the world is to enioy Pastors and Doctors for the vse of the word and Sacraments at other tymes to be wholly destitute of them ague lyke havinge their accesses and remissions but that at all tymes and in all ages in all seasons the Church without any interruption is to Continew in his full Orbe by ever inioyinge the aforesayd meanes of salvation Hence it is that the Fathers to confound hereticall congregations presse heretickes to shew their contynuall succession of Pastors and professors of their doctrine because if they go to scriptures interpretating it according to their owne iudgement there can be noe determination or end Thus S. Ireneus confounded Valentinus Cedron and Marcion By this ordynation of succession sayth he the tradition which is from the Apostles received into the Church and the publishinge of fayth hath come even vnto vs wee beinge able to shew wee put all those to confusion that through vayne glory ond ignorance broach new doctrines in the Church l. 3. c. 3. 4. 5. For none of these Heretickes can deryue their succession from the Apostles nor shew how their doctrine was received by tradition from thence Thus Turtullian de praes. c. 11. confoundeth Valétinus Apelleus and other heretickes Lett them publishe the Origens of their Church sayth hee let them vnfould the order of their Bishopps soe proceedinge by successions from the begininge so that the first Bishopps haue predecessors some Apostle or Apostolicall man perseveringe with the Apostles in that manner they produce the sence of the Apostolicall Church In this sort doth S. Cyprian confound Novatian because he cannot proue his suâ—cession accordinge to Apostolicall tradition Novatian sayth he l. 1. Ep. 7. is neyther Bishopp nor member of the Church who Contemninge Evangelicall and Apostolicall tradition succeeding noe man is ordayned of himselfe Thus doth S. Augustin l. 2. cont. Retil c. 51. confound the Donatists and Sectaryes of his tyme Number sayth he Your Preists even from the seate of Peter and observe that order of fathers who succeeded one another and the Successions of Bishopps was one thinge amongst others that kept the same S. Augustin gloryous Doctor of the Church from departinge out of the bosome of the Catholique Church for thus he sayth in his Epistle to the Manicheans Many things most iustly retayneinge me in the bosome of the Church the succession of Preists from Peters seate to this present Bishopp keepes me in the Church the name Catholique keepes me c. Fynally hence it is that S. Ierome thus Counselleth In that Church wee ought to abyde which founded by the Apostles to this very day lasteth yea such an evydent veritie it is that Christ true Church shall never want at any tyme Professors and members therof as that it extorts this testimony from her aduersarie D. Whitakre Not without great ioy of mynde wee doe beleive that Christ Church hitherto hath endured neyther shall it perish soe longe as the world stands and the Contrary opinion wee esteeme as à prophane heresie From this established foundation is erected this discourse for my purpose Note The true Church of Christ which is but one shall in all ages ever inioye à succession of Pastors and Doctors for the administration of the worde and Sacraments Therfore the true Church of Christ hath ever remayned without interruption of such Pastors and Teachers from the Apostles tyme even vntill this daye But noe Church extant in the world can be assigned to haue remayned without interruption of Pastors for the administration of the worde and Sacraments saue only the Roman Church Therfore irrefragablie it followeth that the Roman Church only and those which haue CoÌ„munyon of fayth with her to be the only true Church of Christ or else which is most absurde and Blasphemous that Christ hath noe Church vpon earth but that the gates of hell to her destruction hath prevayled against her contrary to Christ promyse That there is noe Christian Church extant but the Roman Church that hath withont interruption in all ages enioyed both Pastors and Doctors is esilie demonstrated for neyther the Protestant Church nor the Iewes nor the Arians Donatists Manicheans Pelagians Wicklefians Graecians Mahometans or any other Church can be assigned but the Roman Therfore c. First concerninge the Protestant Church it is but new and began from Luther from whence it is called Lutheran and reformed which is manifest by the restimonies of the learned Protestants and Luther himselfe which I will here inserte Let then first their ChamppoÌ„ of the Englishe Church Iuell speake in the first place he in his Apologie of the Church of EnglaÌ„d in the fowerth parte and fowerth Chapter And in his defence of the Apologie Anno 1571 pag. 426. Truth sayth he was vnknowne all that tyme and vnheard of when Martin Luther and Vldericke Zwinglius first came into the knowledge and preachinge of the Gospell M. Perkins sayth in the exposition of the Creed and in his Reformed Catholicke Wee affirme sayth he that before Luthers dayes for many hundred yeares our Church was not visible to the world an vniversall Apostasie over spredinge the whole face of the earth In soe much as Bucer in his epistle to the Bishopp of Hereford calls Luther The first Apostle of the reformed Gospell whose vocation sayth Conradus Sohlussburg by reason of the
for thee that thy fayth may not faile Allsoe Iesus sayd to Simon ' Peter Simon of Iona lovest thou me more then these he sayd vnto him yea Lorde thou knowest that I loue the c. Hee sayd vnto him feed my sheep 10. 11. 15. To thee will I give the keyes of the Kingdome of heaven Mat. 18. Prostest haue noewhere that vpon S. Peter by grace made à rock the Church was not built nor that he was instituted Pastor to feed the Christian flock and that to him were not given the Keyes of principallitie and that he had not the priviledge after that he was Pastor of not erring in matters of sayth But can ther be à more evidēt argument that the holy Scriptures cōfirme not Protestāt Religion how impudētly soever they pretēd Scriptures then their impious detraction from the authoritie of Moses the Evangelists the Apostles and their writings Wheras Mose was the first that writt any parte of Scriptures and he who writt the Lawe of God or tenne Commaundements Luther thus reiecteth him and his tenn Commaundements Tom. 3. Serm. fo. 40. 41. and in Colloq. Mensal Ser. fol. 152. 153. Wee will neyther he are nor soe Moses for he is given only to the Iewes neyther doth he belonge to vs In Colloq. Menfal C. de lege Evangel I will not receive Moses whith his Lawe for he is the enemy of Christ And ibid. fol. 118. Moyses is the master of all hangmen and in Serm. de Moyse The tenne Cōmaundements belonge not to Christians and in Convin Coloq cyted by Ourifal Cap. de lege let the Commaundements be altogether reiected and all heresies will presently cease for the tenne Commaundements are as it were from whence all heresies springe Islebius Luthers Scholler taught that the decalogue was not to be taught in the Church And from him came the Secte of Antinomans who publikly taught that the Law of God is not worthie to be called the worde of God If thou beest à whoremonger if an adulterer or otherwise à sinner beleive and thou walkest in the way of salvation when thou art drowned in sinne even to the bottome if thou belivest thou art in the middest of happines All that busie themselues about Moses that is the tenne Commaundements belonge to the Divell to the gallowes with Moses Luther doth not belive all things related in the booke of Iob. And with him it is as it were the argument of à fable He sayth of Ecclesiasticus this booke is not prefect manie things are taken away it wanteth bootes and spurres that is it hath noe prefect sentence And in his preface vpon S. Iames Epistle he styles it contentious tumide strawie and vnworthie of an Apostoticall spiritt and againe Luther preposterously comparinge the fower Evangelists among themselues preferreth the Epistles of S. Paul farre before the three former to witt before S. Mat. S. Marke and S. Luke and iudgeth that the onely Gospell of S. Iohn is excelent and true Castalio commaunded the Canticles of Solomon to be thurst out of the Cannon As an impure and obsceane songe Calvin feared not to affirme that S. Iames approved superstitious vowes and brought Paul to consent with him in the same faults in Ca. 21. Act. and vpon the 2. of S. Math. wrights that Mathew did improperly and often cyte the sentences of the ould Prophetts against their true and proper sence See him alsoe vpon the 4. Chap. 13. ve and in 8. C. v. 17. and n. 27. C. v. 9. And in his institutions li. 2. C. 16. 8. 10. doubt whether the Apostles Creed were made by the Apostles and in the 15. C. Act. affirmes that S. Marke Was à forsaker of his vocation and an Apostata c. and that he had filthilie through his owne fault fallen from his Chardge Elebitius opposeth the Evangelists one against another for in his victorie of truth and ruine of Poperie he hath these worde Marke and Mathew deliver the Contrarie therfore to Mathew and Marke beinge twoe Witnesses more credit is to be given then to one Luke Swinglius Tom. 2. cont. Anabapt. chardgeth the Anabaptists with ignorance for that they thinke the Commentaries of Evangelists the Epistles of the Apostles to haue been then in authoritie when Paul did wright these things as though Paul did attribute soe much to his Epistles that what soever was contained in them wus sacred c. which thinge sayth Swinglius were to attribute immoderate arrogancie to the Apostle Others as Witakres cont. Bell. Controu. 2. 9. 4. p. Fulk 32. Fulke against the Rem Test in Gal. 2. fo. 322. Condemne S. Peter to haue erred in matters of fayth even after the holie Ghosts descendinge vpon the Apostles Note But these things once admitted how then were the Evangelists and Apostles Scribes of the Holie Ghost and Erred not in their preachings M. Rogers vpon the 6. Article confesseth and nameth sundry of his brethren Protestants reiecting for Apocriphall S. Paules Epistle to the Hobrewes the epist. of S. Iames the 1. 2. and S. Io. of Iude and the revelation of S. Iohn wher by the way yow may observe the Concorde or Communion which Protestants haue even touchinge the Scripture and pretended principales of their fayth finallie doe not our Englishe Protestants discarde as Apocriphall and rase out of the auncient Cannon of the Church Tobie Iudith Esther Baruch the booke of Wisdome the 1. 2. of the Machabees c. here I saye nothinge of the manifould corruptions and erronious interpretations made by Protestants even in these Scriptures which themselues admitt to be Canonicall and how their Apostle Martin Luther whom they soe much magnifie sayth in his 1. Tom. witt fo. 155. In regarde that Christ is the treasure I care not for all the sayings of the scripture Planè nihil curo omnia Scripturae dicta And to omitt allsoe how in his Colloq ad Mensall fo. 286. he calles the Apostles great Knaues these be his wordes Apostoli etiam fuerunt peccatores crassi magni nebulones C. 2. p. 18 Note Here I appeale to the indifferent Iudgment of an impartiall reader whether any men livinge wold ever like vnto the Protestants and reformers soe reiect deride and Censure eyther the Prophetts Apostles Evangelists and the sacred Scriptures if they did favour their cause as they vaynly pretend Now to come to the tryall of the auncient Fathers who interpreted the Scriptures with great fame and prayse in the Church of God and lived within the first sixe hundred yeares which tymes they acknowledg to be pure and therfore appeale vnto them as best able to wittnes the profession of fayth of the primitiue Church as beinge the Pastors and Doctors therof For brevity sake I will forbeare to alledge the Fathers testimonies in prooffe of Catholiques doctrine which I haue reade But I will make evident by the playne Confessions of the best Champions of the reformed Church and greatest aduersaries of Catholiques that the auncient Fathers in
Controversies of Religion are on the Catholiques side for which reason they Censure them For example to begin with S. Peters primatie M. Fulk when the consent of auncient Fathers were alleeged against them to that purpose vpon the words of Christ Then art Peter and vpon thee will I build my Church Answereth it Cannot be denyed but divers of the auncient Fater otherwise goodly and learned were deceived in opinion of Peters prerogatiue And Zantius another great Protestant sayth the Fathers exposition vpon this Rock that is vpon Peter is not admitted And Luther the great Apostle of Protestancie sayth Heare all eyther Fathers or Doctors as manie as hitherto haue interpreted Scriptures haue stumbled as when that of Math 16. Then art Peter c. they interpret of the Pope Kemtius CoÌ„c Tr. p. 3 sayth hat most of the Fathers as NazianzeÌ„ NisseÌ„ Basill Theodorett Ambroi Ierome Augustine did not dispute but avouch the soules of Saints and Martyrs to heare the petitions of those that prayed vnto them they went often to the monuments of Martyrs and invocated Martyrs by name Whitgifte defen. p. 473. All the Bishopps and learned wrighters of the Greek Church and Latins allsoe for the most part wree spotted with doctrines of frewil of merit of invocation of Saints and such lyke Doctor Whitakers de Sac Script p. 655. 678. 68. besyde that he sayth of Dionisius S. Paules disciple that he was a great patron of traditions and of S. Basill that he beleived Limbus Patrum and vnwritten traditions he confesseth generallie of all the auncient Fathers that they held Limbus Patrum free will merrits of good workes invocation of Saints Single life of Bishopps c. And that the Popish Religion is patched out of the Fathers errors D. Homph in his Iesuitis part 2. p. 930. teacheth that it may not bé denyed but that Ireneus Clement and others called Apostolicall haue in their wrightings the opinions of free will and merrite of workes Lascitius à Protestant of noe meane ranke would haue vs to beleive in his defen. pa. 146. that the Fathers devised Purgatorie that they were of opinion that prayers and Sacrifice of the Masse was to be offered vp for the dead that they bereaved the lay people of the Cupp called vpon dead Saints and brought in such lyke errors Calvin allsoe sayth it was à custome one thowsand three himdred yeares agoe to pray for the dead but all of that tyme I confesse were carried away into errors Those things which occurre here and ther abont satisfaction in the writings of all those in ould tyme moved me little I see indeed some of them I will speake playenly allmost all whose bookes are extant haue eyther slipped in this point or spoken too rigorouslie and too harshly But will yow see how Luther betramples the Fathers in his Colloq. Mensal Cap. de Patribus Eccles. Note In the wrightings of Ierome ther is not à worde of true fayth in Christ and sounde Religion Tertullian is veri superstitious Of Chrysostome I make noe accoumpt Basill is of noe worth he is wholie à Monke I weigh him not à hayre Ciprian is but à weake divine c. Thus your grande Apostle Luther who therfore readeth this lesson to all his followers Lay aside all such weapons as the auncient Orthodoxall Fathers Schooles and Divines authorities of Councells and Popes the consent of soe many ages and of all Christian people doth afforde Note Wee receive nothinge but Scriptures but soe that wee alone may haue the approued authoritie of interpretinge them Note as wee expownd them soe was the meaninge of the holie Ghost what others bringe be they never soe great be they never soe maine it proceedeth from the spiritt of Satan and from à madd and alienated mynde Peter Marter one of the principall of the reformed Church li de votis sayth soe longe as wee doe insist vpon Councâ—lls and Fathers wee shale allwayes be conversant in the same Errors Duditius sayth If that be the truth that the Fathers haue professed with mutuall consent it is altogether on the Papists side Alas what ment M. Iewell then with such deep dissimulation to the preiudice of his owne and others soules by solemne acclamation in à publique Sermon at Paules Crosse to vtter these words Oh Gregoire Oh Augustin Oh Hierome Oh Chrisostome o Leo o Dionisius o Anacletus o Calixtus o Paule o Christ If we be deceived ye haue deceived this yow taught vs had not M. D. Humphrey in the life of Iewell good reason to reprehend his bould appeale affirmeing therin that he granted over much and yelded more then of right vnto the Papists and iniured himselfe over much c. And in à manner spoyled himselfe and the Church c. what haue wee to doe whith the Fathers with fleshe or blood had not D. Steephens his intimate freind better reason to abandon the Protestant Religion when vpon M. Iewells intreatie he had revewed his booke and admonished M. Iewell of his Manifould falsifications of the Fathers he obtained nothinge at his handes but diabolicallie persistinge tould him they would disgrace soe the Papists that they should not be beleived against him though they discovered never soe many of his falsifications Had not allsoe M. Wallsingham iust reason to leaue the Church of England when he fownd soe many corruptions and falsehoods in this their greatest ChaÌ„pion of their Church Soe heighly honored by Protestants as that he hath been kept in diverse Churches as à pullpitt booke Alas what ment M. Doctor Whitaker allsoe with the lyke damnable hipocrisie soe confidently to saie The speech of M. Iewell was most true and Constant when provokinge yow to the Antiquity of the first sixe hundred yeares he offerred That if yow could shew but any one cleare and playne sayinge out of any Father or Councell he would graunt yow the victorie T is the offer of vs all the same doe wee all promise and wee will performe it what ment he I saye seinge he himselfe contrary to himselfe in another place de S. Scrip avoucheth that the Popishe Religion is à patcht coverlett of the Fathers Erros Note For I will demaund of him whether the Popishe Religion be à patcht coverlett of the Fathers Errors in these points of Religion where both Catholiques and Protestats agree or in the other controverted points If he saye the first then is his Religion lykewise the Errors of the Fathers If the second then accordinge to himselfe the Fathers be of the Catholiques syde in the points of Controversie What ment likewise M. Willett in his Antol. pa. 263. diabollicallie against his owne Conscience with such impudence to protest in this manner I take God to witnes before whom I must render an accoumpt that the same fayth and Religion which I defend is taught and Confirmed in the most substantiall points by those histories Councells and Fathers that lived within five or sixe hundred yeares after Christ When as he himselfe in his