Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	bishop_n	church_n	pastor_n	3,273	5	9.0845	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33360	A discourse concerning liturgies by ... David Clarkson.	Clarkson, David, 1622-1686.	1689 (1689)	Wing C4572; ESTC R12536	141,203	202

ep 259. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because he must either be evil or hated and indangered if good by those who observed pernicious custom as a Divine Law and expelled those that lived well ep 481. l. 5. How Episcopacy degenerately abused l. 2. ep 50. Those Rulers generally worst ep 71. In Egypt r 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Soz. lib. 8. c. 7. p. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Georg. Alex. vit Chrysost cap. ... p. 202. 632. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys Epist 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 id ibid. cap. 20. p. 185. Georg. Alex. it was the custom of Theophilus of Alexandria without whom no Bishop was to be ordained in those parts to consecrate not knowing Men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 unless he miss'd of his aim choosing rather to have the ordering of them as of Fools than to be liable to the control of any that were prudent A thing which would scarce have past as credible upon the word of George of Alexandria had not Palladius said as much before him And as he in Egypt would have none so they in Africa could scarce get any that were sit to be Pastors For so Aurelius Bishop of Carthage in a Council there Assembled An. 401. complains That so great was their want of Ministers as many Churches were found to have not so much as one ſ Euscbius of Peleusium did as bad or worse ordaining not only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ep 81. lib. 3. himself being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 epist 3. but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 l. 5. ep 52 53 54. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ep 140. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ep 147. illiterate Deacon and leaves them to consider at what a loss they must needs be for persons qualified to be superiour Officers when they could not find such as were fit to be t Communi periculo providendum maxim● quia tanta indigentia Clericorum est multaeque Ecclesiae ita desertae sunt ut ne unum quidem Diaconum vel inliteratum Graec. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 habere reperiantur Nam de caeteris superioribus gradibus tacendum arbitror quia ut dixi si ministerium Diaconi facile non invenitur multo magis superiorum honorum inveniri non posse certissimum est quotidie nos planctus diversarum pene emortuarum plebium jam non sustinemus quibus nisi fuerit aliquando subventum gravis nobis inexcusabilis innumerabilium animarum pereuntium causa apud Deum mansura est in Cod. Afr. can 56. in Justell p. 164. in Crab. Concil tom 1. p. 502 503. Deacons And Augustin tells us there were many good Pastors who could not discern per ignorantiae simplicitatem through their ignorance and simpleness when there was Heresie in a Prayer but made use of such as were Heretical accounting them to be good de Bapt. contr Donat. l. 6. c. 25. Yea many Bishops there were and many more consequently of lower rank who knew u Helius Episcopus Hadrianopolitanus definiens subscripsi per Romanum Episcopum Myronum eo quod nesciam literas Caiumus Episcopus Phoenicensis definiens subscripsi per Coepiscopum meum Dionysium propterea quod literas ignorem Concil Ephes 2. in Act. 1. Chalced. Conc. in Crab. Tom. 1. p. 830. So amongst others Conc. Ephes 1. Patricius Presbyter de vico Paradioxilo manu utens Maximi compresbyteri ob hoc quod literas ignorarem Zenon Chorepiscopus manum accommodavi pro eo ego Flavius Palladius ob hoc quod praesens dixerit literas se ignorare in Act. 1. Con. Chalced. in Crab. p. 816. Theodorus Gadorensis per alterius manum i. e. Aetherii Diaconi in Gr. can Aetherius the Deacon subscribed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is likely the cause tho' not exprest why those that were present subscribed by others of which see instances Con. Eph. 2. in Cr. p. 831. Con. Constantinop sub Flaviano contra Eutych in Cr. p. 781. Conc. Eph. 1. in Conc. Chalc. Act. 1. Crab. p. 819 820. ●antinus Zenensis literas nescit collect Carth. d. 1. n. 133. no Letters and could not so much as write their own Names but were glad to get others to subscribe for them even in Councils where we may think such insufficiency would have been ashamed to shew it self if it had not been too common Not to be tedious Leo the Emperour about An. 460. is commended as having well provided that the Church should have able Bishops because he would have none Ordained but those who had learnt their Psalter 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theodor. lect collect lib. 1. Such was the state of the Church as to the sufficiency of her prime Guides before the Sixth Age and much worse afterwards when they steered this course in their Worship all sorts of Learning together with Holiness declining apace And Barbarism Ignorance and Vitiousness more and more prevailing Under such Planets were those Liturgies born and by their influence nourished To conclude They were not entertained till nothing was admitted into the Church de novo but Corruptions or the issues thereof no change made in the Antient Usages but for the worse no motions from its Primitive Posture but downwards into degeneracy Till such orders took place as respected not what was most agreeable to the rule and primitive Practice or what was best to uphold the life and power of Religion in its solemn exercises or what might secure it from that dead heartless formality into which Christianity was sinking and which is at this day the sediment of Popery But what might shew the Power and continue occasion for exercise of Authority to the imperious and tyrannical or what might comport with the ease of the lazy and slothful or what might favour the weakness and insufficiency and not detect the lameness and nakedness of those who had the Place w Sentio negligente me crescit sentina vitiorum tempestate fortiter obviante jam jamque putridae naufragium tabulae ●onant Gregor 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys ep 1. p. 51. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 epist 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 115. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Epist ●on p. 186. and Name but not the real accomplishments of Pastors and Teachers In a word nor till the state of the Church was rather to be pitied than imitated and what was discernable therein different from preceding times were Wrecks and Ruines rather than Patterns FINIS An ADVERTISEMENT Lately PUBLISHED of the same Author's PRimitive Episcopacy evincing from Scripture and Ancient Records that a Bishop in the Apostles Times and for the space of the first three Centuries of the gospel-Gospel-Church was no more than a Pastor to one single Church or Congregation With the Contents of each Chapter at the End of the Book Printed for N. P. and are to be sold by Jonathan Robinson at the Golden-Lion in S. Paul ' s Church-yard 1689.

to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Phavorinus a boldness to express ones self freely Epist 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 186. No freedom is left him who must only read what is prescribed him Vid. in Eph. hom ult p. 892. where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Vid. D. H. N. T. 319. 1. Idem tam commode orationes legit ut hoc solum didicisse videatur Plin. ep 19. l. 5. If the Antient Churches had no written Liturgies no Books of publick Prayers they could have no prescribed no imposed no nor any common Liturgies viz. the same in many several Congregations though not imposed And if there had been any such Service Books it is not imaginable but there would have been some notice of them in some of the Writers of those Ages yet for this both we and those who are most concerned to find it are still to seek We meet not with any mention of such Books upon such occasions where it might be expected they would be mentioned if any where and where we might justly look to find them if they had been to be found Those who give a particular account of the Books Vessels and several Utensils which were to be found in the Church make no mention of any such thing as this Vid. Dall de objecto cultus Amongst other things wherewith Athanasius was falsely charged by the Arrian faction to make way for his condemnation Macarius with reflection upon that great Person who imployed him is accused to have leapt upon the Altar overthrown the Table broke the Communion Cup burnt the Bible 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Socr. Hist l. 1. c. 20. p. 539. Now it may well be presumed that Ischyras the false accuser incouraged with hopes of a Bishoprick which was his reward afterward and so concerned to swell the charge as big and render it as odious as he could would have added to the rest some indignity offered to the Sacred Liturgy This had been as easily alleadged as the rest if the subject had been extant and might have been as hainously resented if there had been such Liturgies or such opinion of them as in our times When Gregorius the Arrian Bishop came to take possession of the Bishoprick of Alexandria and entered a Church by force of what abuses were offered to all things therein Athanasius gives a particular account the Table 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Scriptures 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Font 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Wine the Oyl the Doors and latticed Partitions 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Candlesticks the Tapers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ad Africanos ep tom 1. p. 729. But not a word of a Service Book no more then of a Book of Homilies When the multitude of Christians so increased at Constantinople that it was thought necessary to dispose of them in several Churches Constantine takes care that those Churches should be respectively furnished with Bibles and writes to Eusebius of Caesarea to have them prepared accordingly Now let those that are for prescribed Liturgies be Judges would it not have been requisite that those Churches should have been also furnished with Service Books and care taken that these should have been likewise writ out for them if any such had been then in use Would Constantine have omitted this if he had been of their mind or would not Eusebius who overlooks nothing of that nature have added this in commendation of him if he had made any such provision Does it not hence appear that Churches were then thought sufficiently provided with Books necessary for Divine Service when they were furnished with Bibles And can it be supposed that Constantine whose generousness towards the Church is known to have run out in many superfluities would have been deficient in things accounted in any degree necessary Euseb de vit Constant l. 4. c. 34. ' O 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and cap. 36. p. 401. where we have that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In the fourth Council of Carthage it is provided when the Bishop is ordained the Book of the Gospels shall be held over his head teneat Evangelio●um codicem super caput cervicem ejus c. 2. When the Exorcist is ordained a Book of Exorcisms is to be given him accipiat de manu Episcopi libellum in quo scripti s●nt exorcismi c. 7. When the Reader is ordained the Bible out of which he is to read is to be delivered him can 8. tradet ei codicem de quo lecturus est dicens ad eum accipe esto lector verbi Dei. But no Book of publick Prayers either used or delivered or mentioned in the Ordination of Bishop Presbyter or Deacon the only persons who ministred in the Prayers of the Church or any other Officer Yet here if any where we might reasonably have expected to have met with a Service Book if there had been any at that time One of the first Books for publick Service which I meet with is the Libellus officialis in Conc. Tol. 4. Can. 25. an 633. which seems rather but a short Directory then a compleat Liturgy given to every Presbyter at his Ordination to instruct him how to administer the Sacraments least through ignorance of his Duty herein he should offend Quando Presbyteri in Parochiis ordinantur libellum officialem a suo Sacerdote accipiant ut ad Ecclesias sibi deputatas instructi accedant ne per ignorantiam etiam in ipsis divinis Sacramentis Christum offendant And many of the Canons of that Council had been needless if those Churches had been before furnished with such a Liturgy since that would have provided sufficiently for the severals there decreed Can. 2. 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17. To ascend a little higher in the times of the Churches Persecution in the beginning of the fourth Age if there had been such Service Books why did not their Persecutors call for the delivery of them as they did not only for the Bible but for other Church Utensils Vid. Conc. Arelat Can. 13. in Caranz p. 65. Why hear we of no traditores upon this account It was not the Christians belief contained in the Scripture concerning the true God or the Gentiles false Gods that did more exasperate the Heathen against them then their Worship The Jews whose belief was as opposite to theirs had a toleration many times when the Christians were destroyed And Origen l Neque de Diis non recte sentire crederentur eum non fuisse verum sevitiae causam ex ●o probat Origines quod Epicureis aliisque Philosophis omnem omnino divinam providentiam tollentibus parcebatur Grot. observes that they were not wont to persecute any for their Opinions 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 adv Cel● l. 2. p. 68. There were opinions amongst their persecutors concerning God as scandalous to the Heathen as those which the Scripture taught the Christians The Epicureans wholly denying Divine Providence m 〈◊〉 〈◊〉