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A36261
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Two short discourses against the Romanists by Henry Dodwell ...
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Dodwell, Henry, 1641-1711.
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1676
(1676)
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Wing D1825; ESTC R1351
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55,174
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261
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it were impartially Enquired into there would not be greater and better attested Miracles for Invocation of Saints among the Romanists than for the Invocation of Daemons among the Pagans 4. That the same Arguments used by the Scriptures and Primitive Christians against the Heathen Idolatries are applyed by the Protestants to the Image-worship among the Papists now and the same Answers given by the Papists now were then also insisted on by the Pagans 5. That as these are very shrew'd Suspicions of the dangerousness of this Worship so this danger is ventured on without the least necessity there being undeniable Security from the Primitive Records and Revelations of Christianity that God is pleased to accept such Prayers as are addressed to him through the Intercession of Christ alone so that there can be no necessity of having also recourse unto the Saints 6. That Image-worship is not countenanced by as much as any Venerable Authority of truly Primitive Christianity and that the Second Nicaene Council that introduced it was put to very disingenuous Shifts of counterfeit Authorities for it 7. That whatever may be thought of the Worship designed by the Roman Church yet even Mr. Thorndike himself with whose Authority our Adversaries principally urge us in this Dispute does not deny that Idolatry is practiced by the Ignoranter Persons of that Communion which the Gentlewoman may justly fear lest it should prove her own Case 8. That the Roman Church her self cannot be altogether excused from the Idolatry of her Ignorant Communicants seeing she puts unnecessary Scandals in Ignorant Persons way and is guilty of encouraging their Ignorance and Carelessness of Judging in matters of Religion 9. That the Practice of that Communion is generaâ—ly worse and grosser than their Principles as the Gentlewoman may inform her self of in that impartial account which is given of them by Sir Edwyn Sandys in his Speculum Europae which yet is observed and countenanced by their most Eminent Guides so that such as She cannot secure themselves from the danger of it 10. That the Romish Church is by so much the more culpable in this Particular because She has not been content only to countenance and encourage a Practice in so great danger of proving Idolatrous so needless in it self so destitute of all Authority either of Scripture or the Primitive Catholick Church which yet does so extremely stand in need of Authority but She has also imposed it as a Condition of her own Communion which She calls Catholick so that they who are willing to Believe and Practice all that was Believed and Practised in the Primitive Church must now be Anathematized and condemned for Hereticks for refusing to Believe or Practice any more or to condemn those as Hereticks who do refuse it Q. 3. Where was the Church of England before Luthers time THE design of asking this Question is certainly to make our Confession of Novelty in such Cases wherein our Adversaries presume our Novelty so notorious as that we our Selves cannot deny it an Argument against Us yet they themselves are concerned in some Cases to deny its cogency For even they cannot deny that the deprivation of the Laity of the use of the Cup for Example has been lately introduced into their Church by a publick Law If therefore it may appear that our Church is Antient as to all intents and purposes wherein Antiquity may be available but that the Church of Rome is not so and that in the sense wherein the Church of England has begun since Luther there is no reason to expect that She should have been Antienter and that the Justice of her Cause does not require it and that the Antiquity upon these Suppositions confessedly allowed to the Church of Rome is no Argument for the Justice of her Cause these things I think will contain a fully satisfactory Answer to the Gentlewomans Question I shall not at present engage on an accurate Discussion of these Heads but shall only suggest such short Observations as may let her see how unreasonable our Adversaries confidence is in this Argument wherein they do so usually triumph Therefore 1. Antiquity is indeed necessary to be pleaded for Doctrines such especially as are pretended to belong to the Catholick Faith and which are urged as Conditions of Communion This is the Case wherein it is urged by Tertullian and Vincentius Lirinensis in their very rational Discourses on this Argument And for this I think we may challenge the Church of Rome her self to instance in one positive Doctrine imposed by us which She her self thinks not Ancient I am sure the Controversie is so stated commonly that we are blamed not for Believing any thing antient or necessary which is not but for not believing some things which She believes to be so And if She her self believe all our Positives and withal believes that nothing is so to be believed but what is Antient it will clearly follow that She cannot in consistency with her own interests deny the Antiquity of our Positive Doctrines But for the other Doctrines superadded by them and denied by us which are indeed the true occasion of the present Divisions of Communion we charge them with Innovation and are very confident that they will never be able to prove them to the satisfaction of any Impartial Person either from clear Scripture or from genuine Antiquity of the first and purest Ages which are the way wherein we are willing to undertake the proof of our positive Doctrines Nay their greatest Champions decline the tryal and complain of the defectiveness and obscurity of the Primitive Christian Writers which they would not have reason to do if they thought them clear on their side These things therefore being thus supposed That no Doctrines ought to be imposed but what are Ancient That ours are so by our Adversaries own Confession and that our Adversaries Doctrines are not so and that in Judging this the private Judgments of particular Persons are to be trusted as the measures of their own private Practice as it is plain that those Discourses of Tertullian and Vincentius Lirinensis are principally designed for the satisfaction of particular Persons which had been impertinent if the Churches Judgment had been thought Credible in her own Case as a Judge of Controversies besides that even now this Argument from Antiquity is made use of for convincing such as are supposed unsatisfied with her Authority and therefore to whom that Authority can be no Argument which Liberty of private Judgment is then especially most fit to be indulged when the distance is so remote as it is now when no Church has now those Advantages for conveying down Apostolical Tradition in a Historical way as She had then These things I say being thus supposed it will follow that we are wrongfully Excommunicated and therefore that we have no reason to fear that their Censures should be confirmed by God And though I confess every Error in the Cause of the Churches Censures will
Liber cui Titulus Two Discourses against the Romanists c. Authore H. Dodwell IMPRIMATUR Geo. Hooper R mo D n◠Archiepiscopo Cantuar. à Sacris Domest Junui 8. 1676. TWO SHORT DISCOURSES Against the ROMANISTS 1. An Account of the Fundamental Principle of Popery and of the insufficiency of the Proofs which they have for it 2. An Answer to Six Queries proposed to a Gentlewoman of the Church of England by an Emissary of the Church of Rome By HENRY DODWELL M. A. and sometimes Fellow of Trinity Colledge near DVBLIN LONDON Printed for Benj Tooke and are to be sold at the Ship in St. Paul's Church-yard 1676. AN ACCOUNT OF THE Fundamental Principle OF POPERY As it is a Distinct Communion AND Of the insufficiency of the Proofs which they have for it WITH A PREFACE concerning the Vsefulness of this Undertaking By HENRY DODWELL LONDON Printed for Benjamin Tooke 1676. A PREFACE Concerning the USEFULNESS Of the following HYPOTHESIS § 1. THough I cannot undertake for what is mine in the management of the following Discourse yet as to the design for which I am wholly beholden to the Goodness of my Cause and the intrinsick reasonableness of the Evidences which prove it good I think I may without Immodesty affirm that if it hold it must be of universal use with them of the Roman Communion use I § 2. For 1. it must be of great use for the Laity and the Vulgar who either have not the Abilities or cannot spare the time which would be requisite for Enquiring into the particular Disputes to have the Controversies reduced into a narrow compass And especially if these few things to which they are reduced may suffice for securing the Duty incumbent on such Persons as well as if the Enquiry had been more minute and when withal the Evidence on which their Resolution depends is suited to the capacity of that sort of persons Now all these things are provided for by the following Hypothesis § 3. All the Disputes between us are reduced to this one of the Popes Supremacy over the Catholick Church diffusive As for our Differences in Other Particulars it is here proved that if we be not mistaken in This themselves either cannot charge us with Errour or not with any Errour of that consequence as may excuse them either for Separating from our Communion or for that rigorous Imposing their own Opinions which are contrary to it § 4. And this does indeed effectually secure the Duty of Ordinary Laicks in this whole affair For the Obligation incumbent at least on such Persons who are not by their particular Calling obliged to Enquire can only be to know so much as may secure their Christian Practice and that is sufficiently secured by due adhering to that Communion where they may reasonably expect the performance of those Divine Promises which are conveyed in the use of the Sacraments and the other Ordinary Means of Grace so that the main concernment of such Persons is this to know where such a Communion is to be had Now the solving of this Question appears from the Principles here laid down sufficient to decide the whole Dispute concerning the true Communion If it should prove true that the Pope has this Authority over the Catholick Church diffusive it would follow that his particular Church must be the Catholick Church virtual and so must have a Title to all those Promises made to the Catholick Church in the Scriptures thus much at least will follow even according to their Hypothesis who do not pretend that these Promises reach so high as Infallibility and therefore that they were obliged to submit to Active Obedience to all Lawful Impositions and Passive even in Unlawful ones so that in all Cases it would be Unlawful to joyn with any other Communion in opposition to it And on the other side if it prove false it will plainly follow that it is unlawful either for those who are already in that Communion to continue in it seeing they cannot continue in it without being accessary to the Divisions of Christendom by abetting a Tyrannical Power over it or for others to desert their own Communion to come to the Roman which cannot on those Principles be done with any such pretence of Necessity as may excuse their Separation from being Schismatical § 5. The Evidence also into which this Dispute is ultimately resolved must needs be such as must be suitable to the meanest capacity that is capable of acting prudently in this great affair and certainly every one is in Interest as well as Duty obliged to make use of his utmost Prudence in a matter wherein his greatest Interests are so nearly concerned For the meanest Prudence that is will require that where they cannot choose their way there at least they should choose their Guide And it is only the Authority of the Pope as a Principle of Unity and of the Church adhering to him as a Guide in Controversies of which this Hypothesis allows them a Liberty to judge in order to their own private satisfaction And as the matter is such concerning which the meanest Prudence that can deserve the name of Prudence is obliged to judge so the Evidence is such as every one must be capable of judging who is capable of being Prudently and Rationally a Christian. For the very Truth of Christianity it self in reference to us in this Age must be proved by Historical Testimonies of the Miracles by which it was attested from the beginning and the Canon of the Scripture must be proved by the Testimonies of those by whom the Scriptures were delivered And it is the same Historical Testimony whether of express Scripture or of express Tradition to which they are here referred for the proof of this Supremacy of the Pope and the Subject concerning which this Testimony was to be given could not but have had so general an influence on their Practice if they had acknowledged any dependence on this Supremacy as that it must have been as notorious to them who gave it as those Miracles or that Canon and therefore their Testimony must have been as Credible in one Case as in the other § 6. Besides that the Negative Argument which I here make use of is much less Questionable than the Affirmative That is there is much more reason to doubt of a pretended Tradition if it be not expresly mentioned in the Primitive Authors and doubting is sufficient for my purpose to overthrow the Credit of that which pretends to be an Article of Faith than to believe a thing to have descended from the Apostles because those Authors pretend it did so For in their Affirmations they many times deliver what they think on their own Conjectural Reasonings wherein they are as Fallible as others But what they have not mentioned if it be not allowed to conclude that they knew it not and that therefore there was then no Historical Evidence for it seeing that could not have escaped their knowledge