Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	believe_v	doctrine_n	faith_n	11,347	5	5.5508	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A15317	A copy of the decree wherein two bookes of Roger Widdrington an English Cathotholick [sic] are condemned, and the author commanded to purge himselfe: and a copy of the purgation which the same Roger Widdrington sent to his Holinesse Pope Paul the fift. Translated out of Latine into English by the author, whereunto he hath also adioined an admonition to the reader concerning the Reply of T.F. &c. and the condemnation of Fa: Suarez booke by a decree of the Parliament of Paris.; Exemplar decreti. English	Preston, Thomas, 1563-1640.	1614 (1614)	STC 25606; ESTC S119081	24,518	68

and of my Countrey and for other more particular reasons which I related in the beginning of those Bookes without any respect of worldly fauour or fear neither with any obstinate mind but onely to finde out the Catholike truth in this most weighty Controuersie which belongeth to the yeelding of obedience due by the Law of Christ to God and Caesar to your Holinesse who is the supreame Pastour in Earth of our soules and to our King his most excellent Maiestie who in temporals is onely inferior to GOD and I did submit most humbly In Apolog. Lect●● in fine whatsoeuer was contained in them to the iudgement and censure of the Catholike Romane Church whose Childe I professed my selfe to be and if perchance any thing through ignorance had escaped me which should not bee approoued by her I did disprooue it damne it and would haue it for not written In Disp in ●e 5 Besides I did professe In Dispu● Cap. 6. ● 3. Num. ● seq that with all due honour and respect I did reuerence all the Canons of the Catholike Church although I did freely confesse that betwixt the Catholike Church and the Pope who is onely the first and principall member thereof betwixt some Chapters or Decrees of the Cannon Law and betwixt others a great distinction was to be made and neuerthelesse I sincerely affirmed that to euery one in his degree and place I gaue dutifull but not equall credit For in the vast Corps of the Canon Law and in the Volumes of the Councels are contained eyther sayings or assertions of the Ancient Fathers or Decrees or sentences of Popes and Councels and these are either doctrinall and which are propounded as things to be beleeued by the faithfull or else morall and which in the external discipline of the Church are commanded to be obserued 6 And first I did acknowledge that the doctrine which the Ancient Fathers either in expounding the Holy Scriptures or in Questions belonging to Faith haue with vniforme consent deliuered I did also vndoubtedly beleeue as being certainly perswaded that it was inspired by the Holie Ghost 7 Secondly I also with Melchior Canus and other Diuines affirmed that the doctrine also of all the holie Fathers in thinges which do not appertaine to Faith may piously and probably be beleeued by Catholikes yet that it ought not of necessity to be followed as certaine and infallible 8 Thirdly I did professe that the definitions of Generall Councels lawfully assembled and confirmed by the Pope wherein any doctrine is propounded to the whole Church to be beleeued of al men as of Faith are to bee receiued by Catholikes as infallible rules of Faith Neuerthelesse I did freely affirme with the aforesaid Melchior Canus and Card. Bellarmine that those opini ns which in the said Councels are defined or else supposed onely as probable and those assertions which either incidently and by the way are inserted or for better declaration or proofe of their decisions bee produced are sometimes subiect to error and may be Catholikes without any wrong to the Catholike Faith bee reiected This withall obseruing of which also in other places I haue admonished the Reader that although I professing my selfe to be a childe of the Catholike Romane Church doe most willingly embrace whatsoeuer General Councel confirmed by the Pope which doe represent the Catholike Church doe propound to the faithful as necessarily to be beleeued of faith and which certainely and euidently is knowne to bee the true sense and meaning of the Councels neuerthelesse I do not vndoubtedly beleeue euery doctrine which either Card. Bellarmine speaking with due reuerence or any other Doctour seeing they are not appointed by God to be an vndoubted rule of the Catholike Faith doe cry out to bee Catholike doctrine to be the voyce of the Catholike Church to bee the meaning of the Scriptures and Councels if especially some Catholike Doctours doe hold the contrary Then truely as it is meete I doe reuerence with all dutifull respect and I doe much attribute to their authority but that all those collections which they in their iudgements doe imagine to be euidently concluded out of holy Scriptures or Councels considering that oftentimes they are deceiued and do deceiue and what they haue written when they were younger they may recall when they grow elder e For Car● Bell. himselfe in his old age ha● recalled many thinges which he wrote wh●● he was yonger p●● chance h● now being elder will recall mo●● are to bee accounted for vndoubted assertions of faith and the contrary opinion of other Catholikes to be rather esteemed an heresie then an opinion this truly I cannot take in good part 9 Fourthly concerning the Canons or Decrees of Generall Councels belonging to manners and to the externall gouernment of the Church I promised to bee most ready to receiue willingly all those Decrees which in places where I shall liue shal be generally receiued for these are properlie called the Decrees or Canons of the Catholike or Vniuersall Church which are by common consent admitted by the Vniuersall Church Neither doubtlesse is any man bound to admit those Lawes and precepts which in the Country where he liueth are not obserued by the people as according to the receiued opinion of Deuines and Lawyers I there affirmed And the same I there auouched was to be vnderstood proportionally of the decrees of Popes and Prouinciall Councels For as concerning the Popes definitions belonging to faith if he define without a Generall Councell I confesse that I haue oftentimes auerred that very many especially Ancient Diuines of the Vniuersity of Paris whose names I there related Cap. 10. sec ● num 27. are of opinion that such Definitions vnlesse they bee receiued by the Catholike Church a● definitions of the Catholike Faith are subiect to errour whose opinion both for the authority of so famous men and also for the reasons and grounds whereon that opinion is founded I with later Deuines to whose opinion also Card. Bellarmine himselfe doth plainly enough incline Lib. 2. de ●oncil cap. ● howsoeuer he would seeme to auerre the contrary Lib. 4. de ●om Pont. ●p 2 lib. de concil ●p 17. haue also oftentimes affirmed is not to be condemned of heresie errour or temerity which also now againe speaking with all dutiful submission I feare not to confirme 10 Lastly concerning my Disputation of the Oath and the Dedication therof which seemeth to be that stone of offence and rocke of scandall to some Deuines especially of the Society of Iesus and to those Catholikes who adhere to them I cannot to speake vnfaignedly in any wise vnderstand what can iustly bee obiected against it or what fault I haue committed either in making it or else in dedicating it to your Holinesse of which I should purge my selfe For first of all I the Authour of that Disputation and Dedication haue therein professed That I did not write it with any obstinate

plaintiffe Seeing therefore that from the very first beginning of this Controuersie concerning the authority of Popes and immunity of Kings that is from the time of Gregory the seuenth who was the first Pope that challenged vnto him this temporall power ouer Kinges this authority of the Pope to depose Kinges call it temporall or spirituall as you please hath beene vncertaine disputable and euer contradicted by Catholikes both Kinges and Subiects and therefore it cannot be said that the Pope was euer in possession of this authority although we should grant that power right or authority may be said to be possessed in that sense as possession is taken in Law whereof in my Answere to this Authors Reply I wil more at large discourse it consequently followeth that what opinion soeuer any Catholike follow speculatiuely concerning the Popes power to depose yet in practise vntill this Controuersie concerning the Popes authority to depose Kings and the immunity of Kings not to be deposed shall be decided as yet it is not he cannot with a good conscience endeuour to thrust out a King so deposed from the Kingdome or Dominions which he lawfully possesseth Wherfore in the end of my Apologie I wrote these expresse words of which also in my Epistle Dedicatory to his Holinesse I made mentiō And therfore if eyther Pope Prince or any other forainer should attempt to thrust an hereticall Prince out of the Kingdome which he possesseth this Controuersie concerning the deposition of Princes being vndecided he should contrary to the rules of Iustice do himselfe most manifest wrong And much more a Subiect cannot be excused from manifest treason what opinion so uer hee doth speculatiuely maintain concerning the Popes temporall power who practically vnder colour perchance of deuotion to the See Apostolike not duly also considering the bond of his Allegiance towards his Soueraigne should endeuour to thrust his lawfull Prince out of his Kingdome which he possesseth notwithstanding any Excommunication or sentence of depriuation denounced by the Pope against him Wherefore it is apparant that in practise I taught it to bee absolutely false that the Pope hath authority to depose Princes 11 Consider now good Reader first the vnsincere dealing of this Author who concealeth the cheefest part of my opinion in securing his Maiestie of the constant loyalty and allegiance wherein all his Catholique Subiects are in conscience bound vnto him that thereby hee may cause his Maiestie to be iealous of my fidelitie and to account me no good Subiect as this Authour falsely affirmeth that I am neither a good Subiect nor a good Catholike or Childe of the Church But I trust in God that it will appeare to all men that Insurrexerunt in me testes iniqui mentita est iniquitas sibi That false witnesses are risen vp against me and wickednesse hath belyed her selfe ●al 26. and that I will euer prooue my selfe to bee both a good Subiect to his Maiestie and also a dutifull child of the Catholike Church 12 Secondlie consider the reason why this Authour is so greatly offended that I at this present doe onely take in hand by answering probably all the arguments which on the contrary side are to be obiected to shew that it is at least-wise probable that the Pope hath no authority to depose Princes and consequently that any man may with a probable and safe conscience take the Oath for that the doctrine concerning the Popes authority to depose is by this Authours owne confession the maine question betwixt him and me and the cheefe ground wherefore the Oath is iudged to be vnlawfull His reason therefore is for that hee saw right well what great aduantage I had against him and what little aduantage hee had against me in arguing or rather answering in this sort and therefore he calleth it in heat of his zeale The most deuolish deuice that any man could inuent And truly if I should at this first beginning haue treated of this Controuersie in any other manner then by handling it probably in that sense as I haue declared I might worthily haue beene censured of great imprudency in giuing my Aduersary more aduantage against mee then was needfull For this is the State of the question whether it can be cleerely conuinced by the authority of the holy Scriptures Ancient Fathers Generall Councels or by necessary inferences from any of them as our Aduersaries pretend to conuince that it is an vndoubted doctrine of Faith and the contrary not be defended by any Catholike that the Pope hath power to depose Princes and consequently that the oath cannot lawfully be taken This is the question Marke now the aduantage I haue for first I am not to prooue but onely to aunswer to defend not to oppose Secondlie it is sufficient for me that my answers be onely probable but there Replyes must not bee onely probable but also conuincing and which with any probabilitie cannot bee answered So that if I should goe about at the first to proue my opinion to be most true which my aduersary affirmeth not to be questionable I should as it is euident greatly disaduantage my selfe For in such Controuersies as are so violently maintained by the Aduersary that he will not grant the contrary part to bee questionable it is necessary to proceed by degrees first to make the thing questionable and disputable which the aduerse part will not haue to be called in question and after this is once agreed vpon then to examine whether opinion be the truest For perchance it may fall out that as the opinion for the immaculate Conception of our B. Lady before Scotus did oppose himselfe therein against S. Thomas and his followers was scarse accounted probable yet afterwards it was daily more and more followed so that now it is esteemed to be the farre more true opinion and as Alphonsus Salmeron f In cap. 5. ● Rem disp 51. Sect. D● inde and Fa. Suarez g Tom. ● disp 3. sec doe affirme Agreed vpon by the consent almost of the Vniuersall Church and of the Ecclesiasticall writers Bishops Religious Orders and Vniuersities and as that opinion which holdeth that the Pope hath not power to dispence in the solemne vow of religious chastitie neither in any lawfull marriage before it be consummate is accounted by very many learned men to bee the farre truer opinion notwithstanding the practise of many Popes to the contrary So it may fall out that in processe of time this opinion that denieth the Popes authority to depose Princes may bee embraced by almost all Ecclesiasticall Writers Bishops Religious Orders and Vniuersities notwithstanding the practise of many Popes and the vehement opposition of the Iesuites at this present time to the contrary 13 Thirdly consider how little beholding are English Catholikes to this Author T. F. who will needes enforce them euen with the temporall ouerthrowe of themselues and of their whole posteritie to defend that doctrine to bee of faith which the