Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	authority_n	church_n	tradition_n	14,231	5	9.4820	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33549	A letter from John Cockburn, D.D., to his friend in London giving an account why the other narratives about Bourignianism are not yet publish'd, and answering some reflections pass'd upon the first.	Cockburn, John, 1652-1729.	1698 (1698)	Wing C4814; ESTC R37750	17,307	33

otherwise the Persons are truly irrecoverable no cure can be wrought unless they will think and consider and if once they do it I doubt not the success For as the Devil flees when he is resisted so Errour which comes from him loses ground when it is enquired into neither of them can endure a Tryal this is the peculiar property of Truth I may compare Bourignianism and some other Delusions to Glass-Drops which should be viewed at a distance and very slightly handled because upon the first Experiment they dissipate into Vapours These Reflections and Censures were written to me by a Friend But there is one who has printed his Judgment of this Matter in a Postscript to The State of the Philadelphian Society He is offended with a Passage of my Preface which insinuates That the Refutation of Bourignianism will overturn the Principles and Practices of our Quakers and Philadelphians as well as the Quietists and Pietists abroad because they are of the same kidney and do all stand upon the same foundation And I still think that I had good reason to say so because some Sentiments and Practices are common to all the Enthusiastick Tribe and whatever particular Differences there are amongst them they nevertheless flow all from the same Cause and Source viz. 1. An intolerable Pride That they have the Spirit more than others That all their Fancies and Conceits are of God And 2. Either a total Contempt and Disregard of the Scripture or a levelling it with their own private and particular Sentiments so that it must either speak as they do or have no Force and Authority Now that which is a good Antidote against these two Evils may be esteem'd a Catholicon for all the Distempers of Enthusiasm whatever Names and Distinctions they go under They say Omne simile claudicat and indeed I do not see how his is in anywise pat to the purpose Sure I am saith he That our Church of England-men and Presbyterians as well as the Unitarians and Zwinglians abroad are not so very easily to be wounded all by one Blow though they pretend to stand all upon the same Foundation and do resolve the Principles of their Faith according to the same Rule For as sure as he is I am very much persuaded and I believe so are you that he is mistaken for they do not stand upon the same Foundation nor have they the same Rule for resolving their Faith The Church of England and those of the Episcopal Persuasion you know defend Episcopacy by 1. It s being more proper to preserve the Order and Unity of the Church even in the Judgment of St. Ierom the great Patron of Presbyterians as they imagine 2. The Universal Practice of the Church which was never introduc'd by any Council or Humane Authority 3. The Practice of the Apostles which is above all Humane Authority 4. The Conformity to the Iewish Oeconomy which was established by God himself and which by the Example of Christ and the frequent Reasoning of St. Paul was to be the Rule and measure even under the Gospel as to all things suitable to the Nature and Ends of the same Now how can this Foundation be shaken by the proper Arguments against Presbytery As 1. The Confusion of Parity 2. The Novelty of its Constitution 3. Which was introduc'd and occasion'd by the Necessity of Calvin's Circumstances And 4. The Unsufficiency of his Authority when laid in the balance with that of the Catholick Church and the undeniable Instances of the Apostles Those of the Episcopal Communion cannot fall with the Presbyterian unless the Quaker can effectually prove that there is no setled Ministry and the Libertine that there ought to be no Government and the Erastian that Religion and the Church are and ought to be entirely subjected to the Prince and Civil State that their Will and Humour are as much to be regarded as the Practice of the Apostles the Example of Christ Reason or Divine Institution If Dr. Tillotson's famous Sermon and Dr. Wake 's late Book can be shewed as undoubted Demonstrations both the Church of England and Presbyterians may put up their Papers and lay their Hands upon their Mouths and so may both Protestants and Papists In like manner those who hold a Trinity build their Faith upon the Authority Certainty and Perspicuity of the Revelation of the Scripture constant Tradition which gives this with other Articles as the Faith once delivered to the Saints by Christ and the Apostles the weakness of Humane Reason to comprehend all Mysteries and particularly the Infinite Nature of God and the unreasonableness of refusing an assent to a plain Revelation only because the Subject is above our reach when there are many things in Nature which we are forced to acknowledge though their Consistency is an hidden and unintelligible Mystery But these are things which Unitarians will not yield they refuse this Foundation and build upon a particular one which may be overturned while the other stands sure Indeed both Trinitarians and Unitarians would be thrown to the ground if the Doubts of Deists could be turned into indubitable Proofs that there never was any Revelation at all or the Atheists Quibbles and Witticisms could be changed into solid irrefragrable Demonstrations that there is no God And at this rate there may be with as great likelyhood one Comprehensive Blow given to all the several Disputes amongst Mankind by advancing Sceptical Arguments that there is no Certainty at all that it is doubtful whether Men as well as Brutes may not be meer Automata without Sense Reason or Perception that it cannot be known when they are asleep or when awake whether they do not always dream when they think they see clearly If there be no other Life no State after this we and the Philadelphians both trouble our selves to no purpose And yet he must be very ignorant of our Principles who would say that we resolve our Faith alike or that the proving them guilty of gross Delusions does also prove that we have no sure fixed or sufficient Rule to walk by I cannot chuse but laugh when I see him endeavour to abate Mens Reasonable abhorrency of a private deluding Spirit by calling it the Principle of Internal Light as if soft and new Names could change the nature of old ugly Diseases Nor is it less ridiculous how he shuffles off the Imputation of Enthusiastical Impostures and Delusions from his Party and others of the same kidney by saying That none have written better or with more perspicuity and solidity against these than they who have possessed this Principle as if it was impossible or unheard of for one to be deluded and yet not to be sensible of it or to exclaim against a thing of which he himself is as guilty as any And I do not mean the Exclamations of gross designing Hypocrites as when a Rogue holds up his Hands and cries out Villany Villany or like that notorious Whore Sir Roger L'Estrange

should not tempt a Painter to draw it and if it must be done it ought to be done Like otherwise there is a Cheat put upon all who see it The Italians are in Love with fine Pictures and are not Curious what resemblance they bear to the Original But here it concerns us to have a true Picture an Exact and Natural Representation of the Person and if such shew any Deformity who can help it The Painter is not to blame I have not given any Instances but such as are true nor shall any Provocation tempt me to do it and if telling the Truth diminish the Character of Antonia Bourignon those who have doted upon her as a most perfect Beauty and who have in all Companies magnified her as incomparable and above any thing in Nature those I say may readily fall under some Censures but I am innocent When vain Women come to have their Pictures drawn they desire the Painter to draw it very like and only to do them Justice which he knows is a plain Insinuation that he should add some stroaks of his Art and Skill and so to order it that their Natural Blemishes may be shadowed They would have me to do so with Madamoiselle Bourignon but I crave their Pardon This doth not answer my Design which is to shew her not according to their Fancy but as she is and their Complaints are only as those against a Painter for coming too near to the Original and for representing Nature a little too much It is strange to see how much some love to be Cheated and how much the Truth offends them As according to the Poets there was once a Contest betwixt Three Goddesses about their Beauty so now there is a Debate whether Antonia Bourignon is to be preferred to all the Learned World to Fathers Prophets and Apostles and we would have this Debate decided not by some partial Paris that is Bribed but by a serious Consideration of the Truth of which every one may be Judge Wherefore the giving Instances which are incompatible with such Pretences as are Pleaded is not Malicious but Just and Necessary That this Woman hath some things good I do not deny She sometimes complains of and exposes the general Corruption of Christians very reasonably and discourses of some Moral Virtues indifferently well and with some heat and fervour This the Publisher of the Light of the World desires to be taken notice of particularly and I know it is that which hath chiefly engaged him and others to her But these things are not singular nor reasons for so high an Esteem of her and her Writings That which is singular and peculiar to Antonia Bourignon is neither good nor true and I have found nothing good but what is common what is handled and recommended in every Practical Treatise better or worse according to the Talents and Gifts of the Author yea what is the Subject of almost daily Sermons so much undervalued by her and her Disciples Deum Testor says Seckendorf me qua potui diligentia imo credas velim non sine praeviis precibus aliquot Antoniae libros egisse sed reperire in illis nihil potuisse quod melius esset orthodoxa usitata doctrina certe nihil tale cujus lectio librorum tot periculosissimis erroribus refertorum vanissimo fastu tumentium simplicioribus commendari possit Will any say That Self-denial Resignation Charity and Divine Love are new Names now seeing many Hundreds of Years before she was Born there have been constant Complaints that these Christian Vertues were not generally observed and practised who can be Ignorant either of the Nature of them or our Obligations to them that ever look'd seriously upon the Scripture will the Authority of Antonia Bourignon have any more Weight and Efficacy than Moses and the Prophets Jesus Christ and the Apostles If she hath other Doctrines than what comes from them must we not inquire into the Certainty of her Mission and why should the Truths which they have long since delivered be now Preached in her Name is her word better or more to be relyed on At first God laid only Twelve Foundations as sufficient for the Wall of the New Jerusalem viz. The Twelve Apostles of the Lamb. How comes a new one to be added in our Days Are the other decayed or did not God foresee what is Necessary will Men offer to mend the Work of God Oh what Insolency and Blasphemy is it to Attempt it The setting up new Names and Authorities and the pressing zealously the particular Opinions of Men whether true or false and the proposing plain Scripture Truths as Private Doctrines is a great Service to the Devil and his Interest For by this Method he does pervert Mens Faith insensibly and he takes off their Minds from a Devout Application unto Jesus Christ who is the Supream Lord and only Law-giver This Consideration made Luther as it is reported by Monsieur d'Espagne hate his own Books and wish that they might be Buried lest Readers should wast that time upon them which ought to be imployed in reading the Scripture They who fall into this Error are more conversant with the particular Authors they are besotted with than with Jesus Christ and their Minds are more intent upon their Writings than upon the Sacred Scripture Whereas we should consider the Truth as it is in Jesus only and not contend for Paul Apollo Cephas or any other so as to dishonour Christ and forget his Authority His Glory is given to others when their Names and Sentiments are made the Standard and Measure of Religion and Truth If we would run the Race that is set before us aright we must Look unto Iesus who only is the Author and Finisher of our Faith so far as others may help us to this we may consider them too but to fix our Eyes wholly upon any other to make them altogether or equally the Subject of our Contemplations is both Evil in it self and of dangerous Consequence for by this we run a hazard either of halting or slipping out of the way And this is the Origo Mali the great Source whence all the Floods of Sects and Heresies have come upon the Church This has destroyed the simplicity of the Christian Religion in the Church of Rome and has revived all the old damnable Doctrines and other Extravagancies since the Reformation Philosophers have often turned their Heads by a too earnest pursuit of new Opinions but the Affecting new Systems of Religion and the having an Appetite to every thing that appears plausible was the old Disease of Mankind and always Fatal Some who now favour Bourignianism I am sure are very capable to discern the Mischief of this and other Errors and I heartily wish that they would set themselves to cure the Inconstancy of our Natures rather than to increase it But to go on with the different Censures of People while I seem to Combate