connexion though I see it not nay t is therfore I can belieue it because I do not see it Faith requiring that what is belieued be not seen It would indeed be a contradiction to say I see and do not see the infallibility of Tradition or of Faith but t is not any to say I do not see and do belieue that infallibility It may be as well sayd a man who is blind and infallibly or securely led by a knowing Guide through a dangerous way doth see his ruin or danger because he doth not see his own safety or the infallibility of his Guide though he belieues himself secure from all danger Q. Is it not cleerly euident that God can not permit falfood to be so authenticaly proposed in his name as the Roman Catholik Church doth her doctrin by so continued a tradition and so surprising signs as her miracles sanctity conuersion of Nations c. A. Though I am of opinion God can not permit such an appearance of Diuine truth to be a mistake yet our vnderstandings being so imperfect it would be presumption in vs to define or pretend to demonstrat what God can do or not do Vve only know he can not sin But we do â—ot know scientificaly whether he may not 〈◊〉 to punish the sins of some permit the Church to err and the world to be deluded by their cleerest and most frequent â—ensations wherupon as our Aduersary sayeth the certainty of Catholik Tradition is grounded And though both Scripture and Tradition say the Church shall neuer fail or err yet we do not pretend to cleer euidence that either Scripture or Tradition is Gods word SVBSECT HOVV A MAN MAY ASSENT in matters of Faith vvith more assurance than there is appearance of the truth Q. If it be not cleerly euident to us by the tradition of the Roman Catholik Church nor by Gods veracity that he reuealed its doctrin how can we assent or belieue with infallible certainty or assurance that God reuealed it Is it in our power or euen in Gods power to make vs affirm inwardly and certainly any thing we not knowing whether it be so or no How therfore can we affirm inwardly and certainly the truth of the Trinity or that God reueald it if we know it not cleerly either by Gods veracity or by the tradition of the Church A. Assents grounded vpon authority differ in this from assents grounded vpon cleer knowledge that the certainty of these are deriued from and measured by the cleer sight and euidence we haue of their truth or of the obiects being as they are affirm'd to be But the certainty of assents grounded vpon authority is not deriued from or measured by any cleer euidence or sight of their truth but by the persuasion we haue of the persons we belieue his knowledge and inclination to truth Now all men who admit of a God being most certainly persuaded that he is infinitly inclined to truth they may and ought to assent with the greatest assurance and certainty imaginable that God did realy reueale all that which the Church proposeth as Diuine doctrin for though wee do not see this truth in the mystery or matter deliuered by Catholik tradition nor in that euidence which our sensations giue to tradition itself yet by reflecting vpon Gods infinit auersion from falsood and vpon our own persuasion of his infinit veracity and seing so great an appearance of his being deeply engaged and concerned for the truth of a Churches testimony that lookes so like his own affirming the doctrin to be Diuine we are bound in conscience to belieue without the least doubt or at least we are bound to endeauor to belieue without doubt which must be a rational endeauor seing our obligation of endeauoring is so euident to us that God is the Author of the Roman Catholik doctrin and hath reueald it for if he had not he would neuer permit the same to be so plausibly and probably proposed as Diuine by Miracles and other signs of the Church that prudent and learned men must sin in being obstinat against its doctrin and testimony And this is that we mean when we say that we apply the Diuine veracity to euery particular point of faith not by seing the reuelation itself in the tradition or testimony of the Church for then we could not deny its doctrin was reueald nor be heretiks but by hauing so much veneration for Gods veracity that whensoeuer it seemes to be so publikly engaged and prudently belieued as we see it is in the Roman Catholik Church God speakes or reuealeth what it proposeth as his word Q. Methinks the veneration we haue for God and his veracity ought rather oblige vs not to assent to any doctrin as spoken or reuealed by him vnless it be cleerly euident to vs that he spoke or reuealed it for if we do otherwise we expose his holy name to contempt and ourselues to damnation by uenturing to father what we fancy vpon God when perhaps he neuer sayd or reuealed what we imagined A. It s a prerogatiue due to soueraignty and a fortiori to the Deity to speake and command by Ministers and inferior officers which beare the badges of the royal authority And it is not only a disrespect but obstinacy and rebellion not to obey lawes and commands so authenticaly proposed So likewise it must be not only a sin of disrespect and contempt but of heretical obstinacy not to belieue that God speakes or commands by the Roman Catholik Church when its testimony and tradition of hauing Gods trust and authority to declare that he speakes or reueales its doctrin is authenticaly proposed by signs so supernatural in appearance that no human authority is so authentik and no other Church can or dares pretend to the like The more soueraign is any superiority and veracity the greater obligation there is in subiects not to exact for their obedience therunto or belief therof cleerer euidence of its commanding than is usual and sufficient in human affairs when Princes proclaim or command And the more infallible the veracity of him is who claimes the authority if this be authenticaly proposed the greater is the obligation of assenting inwardly therunto without cleerer euidence that it proceeds from the infallible Author of the same than such a moral certainty as the signs of the Church create this being the cleerest that is consistent with the nature liberty obscurity and obsequiousness of Christian Faith Q. Ought there not to be in the true Church an euident and conclusiue argument against heretiks and Pagans to let them see their obstinacy by shewing cleerly to them that God reuealed what they deny to be true or to be matter of Faith A. If men were to be saued by Demon. strations or cleer knowledges deduced one from the other what you say were fit and necessary But God hauing decreed to saue men by Faith rather than by science by a meritorious and free rather than a necessary or
declared by the Parliament of Q. Mary a bundel of Cranmers errers and priuat opinions which himself and som few others inuented or borrowed from Luther and Caluin and other Innouators who had resolued to make themselues popular and powerfull by setting vp their own priuat interpretations of Scripture and opinions for points of Religion So that though all England or a greater part of the world than England is should embrace that Reformation and submit their iudgments to that Church their protestant Tenets are still priuat opinions and the submission of their iudgments to the same doth still inuolue that pride and preference of their own choice of a nouelty or new interpretation of Scripture before the ancient doetrin and against the publik testimony of all precedent English Parliaments as also against the tradition of the Catholik Church As for Queen Elizabeth shee accommodated her religion to the times untill shee got the Croun and then shee made use of the new Faith to serue her turn and secure her interest Indeed Iohn Fox his Martyrs were great but foolish sufferers their ignorance was proportion'd to their obstinacy they cast themselues into the fire without Knowing wherfore And yet Iohn Fox sayes those Tinkers Tanners and silly women confuted the Bishops that endeuored to saue their liues which themselues had forfeited acording to the ancient lawes of the land And though they dyed not Martyrs yet they dyed like Englishmen that is with as litle concern and as great courage as if their cause had bin better But this is no miracle in England though the foolish partiality of Iohn Fox his pen doth endeuor to make his Protestant Readers mistake those proud mad fellows for pious Martyrs Q. Though I do approue of your difference between heretical obstinacy and Catholik constancy yet I must still condemn your application therof to protestancy and popery for an other reason which is that Protestancy is so far from inuoluing pride that the Church of England doth not as much as pretend to be infallible in its doctrin neither doth it exact from its children a submission of their iudgments to itself but only to Scripture And I hope there is as much humility I am sure there is more safety in submitting our iudgments to Gods written word as to the tradition of the Roma Catholik Church A. As I commend the Church of Englands modesty and ingenuity in acknowledging its fallibility and in dispensing with the submission of your iudgments to the same no fallible Church can exact or expect a submission of iudgment in any points of doctrin so must I continue in my opinion of the pride and obstinacy of protestancy 1. Because you will not belieue any thing inculcated to you by God vnless it be deliuered to you in writing as if the Diuine maiesty had not as much right to command by orders intimated to us by word of mouth as by his writing All the true belieuers of the world vntill Moyses his law were gouernd by the testimony and tradition of the Church without any writing or Scriptures neither is any thing written in the old or new Testament wherupon Protestants may with any color of probability ground their pretended priuilege of not belieuing any thing but Scripture and this doth in many places tell them they are as much obliged to belieue Tradition or Gods unwritten word as the written Now why Englishmen and som Northen people alone should refuse to obey the Catholik Church vnless it shewes for euery particular Gods order in writing is not intelligible themselues and all other Nations owning the contrary to be prudently practised in all human gouernments This must be pride and obstinacy 2. The pride and obstinacy of this their pretended priuilege which is the life and fundation of all Protestant Reformations is further discouered by the practise of aprinciple wherin all Protestants agree which is that not one of them thinks he is bound in conscience to submit his iudgment to any of their own or any other Congregations sense of Scripture in controuerted texts if that sense agreeth not with his own priuat interpretation If that of his Church agree not with his own sense he may stick to his own and reiect the other And this is the reason why Protestants are diuided into so many sects How this principle and practise may be excused from heretical pride and obstinacy I know not For they stand at a defiance with all Churches and will as litle submit their iudgments to their own as to that of Rome Euery Protestant is by the fundamental Tenet of the Reformation his own Master and a supreme Iudge of Gods written law Doth not this demonstrat how those Reformations are founded vpon pride and obstinacy Can there be greater than that simple men and silly women should presume to be Masters and Iudges of those Diuine and incomprehensible mysteries That they should preferr their priuat iudgments before that of their own Church and of ours vnto which the greatest Doctors in all ages haue submitted Vvhat a proud foolish insolent and obstinat people would the English conclude any other to be wherof not one would acquiesce in the iudgment or sentence of the Courts of Iudicature but euery one assume to himself the power of deciding his own law suites and of appealing from the Chancery or euen from the Parliament to his own priuat opinion and iudgment Let euery Protestant know this is his own case in matters of religion He appeals in what concerns Faith and the sense of Scripture from his own Church and the Catholik and general Councells to his own proper iudgment Doth he think that Christ would institute so absurd a spiritual gouernment Can any man of sense imagin it agrees with Scripture To what purpose then should the Scriptures and St Paul bid us be of one belief peaceable and humble Is any of these virtues or that of Catholik Faith consistent with such pride obstinacy and dissentions as this principle must inspire and we see in all the reformed Churches and in that of our own Countrey You see therfore that your reformed Churches and interpretations of Scripture haue so litle in them of the vnity obsequiousness and humility of Christian Faith so much recommended to us by St Paul that they seeme to the most learned Roman Catholiks not only to sauor of heresy but to be the very source of heretical pride and damnable obstinacy so far are they from hauing the least smack of the fundation or fruit of Christianity SECT III. SOM INFERENCES FIT TO BE considered by all Protestants and vvhether any may be saued if they dye in that persuasion IF Protestancy doth inuolue that pride and obstinacy which I haue endeuored to proue and deduce from its principles without doubt he who dyes a Protestant is damn'd But Because som are called Protestants and yet know not what protestancy is I will deliuer my opinion how far their ignorance may excuse them from being
blindness in faith is to pretend a cleer sight of its rules infallibility The Catholik Church acording to St Paul and the Scriptures is a Congregation of men who do not see what they belieue and are led and directed by the holy Ghost in matters of doctrin This Church is euery particular mans immediat Guide because we follow it and hold fast to its testimony and tradition but this Church also hath a Guide the holy Spirit which leads it as Christ sayes into all truth by continualy directing it and assisting in its definitions and decrees Vvhen the four first general Councells defin'd the Diuinity of Christ and of the holy Ghost they did not cleerly see nor demonstrat against heretiks the truth of that doctrin or that God reuealed it For if they had the heretiks could not haue continued heretiks in their iudgments It s therfore fufficient that in the Catholik Church there be Doctors and arguments to demonstrat that all Dissenters or heretiks by not submitting to its doctrin and authority go against reason and the obligation all men haue to embrace that religion which is most likely to be Diuine in regard of greater appearance therin of supernatural signs which Christ sayd his Church should haue than in any other To ground therfore the certainty of Christian Faith or of its rule vpon any euidence which faith itself declares to be fallacious and fallible as it doth declare the euidence of our senses and sensations is in the article of Transubstantiation is to destroy Christianity and therfore Tradition as receiuing its certainty from our sensations can not be a sufficient ground for the certainty of Christian faith Q. I pray resolue your Catholik faith vnto its motiue A. That is don by answering questions Thus. Vvhy do you belieue the mystery of the Trinity or Transubstantiation Because God who can not deceiue nor be deceiued reuealed it How do you know God reuealed it If you speake of cleer knowledge I do not know that God reuealed it But if you will speake properly as a Christian or as a man that vnderstands what we mean by Faith you must not ask how I know but how or why do I belieue that God reuealed it Then I will answer that the testimony or tradition of the Church confirmed with seemingly supernatural signs testifying that God reuealed those mysteries makes it euidently credible he did reueal them But because I know my vnderstanding is so imperfect that I can not pretend to infallibility and my senses are so fallacious that by our sensations we are often mistaken and that faith itself tells us so in the article of Transubstantiation I cant no assent to this article or to the mystery of the Trinity or to any other pretended to be euidently reuealed by virtue of self euident Tradition and infallible sensations with that certainty which Christianity requires vntill I reflect and rely altogether vpon Gods veracity and apply it to the aforesaid testimony and Tradition of the Roman Catholik Church which declares that itself is authorised by God and shews for that authority seemingly supernatural signs to propose as reuealed by him those mysteries and all the other particulars of our Faith Vvhen I compare and apply the Diuine veracity to this testimony of the Church authorised by those signs I assent to all shee proposeth as reuealed by God by this act Notvvithstanding I do not see any cleer euidence or infallible connexion betvven the testimony or signs of the Church and Gods reuealing its doctrin yet because Gods veracity and his auersion from falsood is infinit I do belieue as certainly as I do that God is infinitly inclined to truth that he neuer did nor neuer vvill permit the least falsood to be so authenticaly proposed as his reuelation or vvord as I see euery point of the Roman Catholick doctrin is proposed by the tradition and signs of that Church This general assent is applyed to euery particular article Heer you see that the motiue of our Chatholik Faith is not the Tradition or testimony of the Church but only Gods veracity You see also that the tradition of the Church is the rule of our Faith because it helps and directs vs to reflect and rely more vpon the motiue which is Gods veracity than upon Tradition itself Lastly you see there is no impossibility in assenting by an act of faith with more assurance than there is appearance or euidence of the truth assented vnto because the assurance is not taken from nor grounded vpon the appearance but vpon Gods veracity and his infinit inclination to truth Hence followeth 1. That whosoeuer denyes any one article of Faith whether fundamental or not fundamental belieueth none at all with Diuine or Christian Faith because he slights the motiue therof which is Gods infinit inclination to truth and auersion from falsood to that degree as to be persuaded the Diuinity can permit falsood to be so credibly fatherd vpon itself as the Roman Catholik Church doth its doctrin with so seeming supernatural signs and so constant a Tradition The motiue of Faith being thus once slighted none that so slights it can belieue any thing for its sake or upon its score 2. It followeth That the Tradition and Miracles of the Catholik Church do not make it cleerly euident to us that God reuealed any one article of Christian Faith nay not that fundamental one of the Diuinity of Christ For though Tradition makes it cleerly euident to us there was such a man as Christ and such prodigies as his Miracles and that him self say'd he was God yet that Tradition and those prodigies do not make it cleerly euident to us as it did not to the Iewes that Christ was realy God For if this had bin cleerly euidenc'd to them or us neither Iewes nor Socinians or any other ancient heretiks could haue bin obstinat or heretiks in their iudgments against Christs Diuinity Q. If I do not see an infallible connexion between the assent or rule of Faith and Gods reuelation I must needs see there is no infallible connexion and may say the assent of Faith may be false seing Tradition which is the rule of that assent is fallible On the other side I must sa yt he assent of Faith can not be false So that if Tradition be not so self euident as from it to conclude cleerly the impossibility of Faiths falsood it must be granted that I see Faith is and is not infallible and that Tradition is and is not an infallible Rule A. Though I do not see any infallible connexion between Gods reuelation and the Tradition of the Church or any other rule directing to belieue what he realy â—eueald or which is the same between the assent of Faith and the rule of Faith yet it doth not follow that I must see or say there is no necessary connexion between them For at the same time I do not see that necessary connexion or infallibility I do belieue there is that
make great impression vpon all sorts of people as also relations of miracles credibly reported These impressions and the inspirations which follow them raise doubts and these if not endeuored to be cleered are a sufficient cause of damnation The doubts which are raised in ourselues by the example or the discourse of others who haue no design vpon us but the saluation of our souls are also damnable to us if we neglect the cleering of them by all the wayes that a buisness of so great importance doth require And the more diligent we must be in the search by how much more the persons interested in maintaining our persuasion I mean such as liue by the ministery therof deterr us from so rational a scrutiny which they would neuer dissuade us from if they did not feare a discouery of their own wickedness and of their causes weakness Q. I pray sir apply this discourse to the Protestants and Roman Catholiks of England A. I beg your pardon sir I am loath to offend the Parliament But I will apply it to the Arians and Roman Catholiks of Spain The Heir of that Croun Prince Hermenegild hauing bin bred an Arian doubted of the truth of that pretended reformation this doubt was ocasioned by the discourse he had with St Leander Archbishop of Seuil At length he was conuinc't of the falsood of that Arian heresy and reconciled to the Roman Catholik Church The King his Father would needs haue him receiue the Arian communion which the Prince refusing to do the wicked Father for fear of his people sacrified the Heir apparent of the Croun to their fury and caused him to be murthered This change to and constancy in the Roman Catholik Religion together with a report of som miracles wrought so much upon all the people of Spain that a litle after they all turned Catholiks and a law was made that none but Catholiks should haue employment in that Kingdom Hence you may inferr what strong influence the example of a religious and resolute Prince hath euen vpon the most uulgar iudgments and how damnable it is in all people not to examin the motiues of so edifying a conuersion as that wherby one hazards and waues the greatest temporal interest and how certain it is that God will punish as well in this world as in the next all such as resist or neglect the impressions and inspirations which men feel in themselues to follow a religion so generously professed and preferrd before all the greatness and glory of an Imperial Croun Q. If Princely suffering vpon the score of conscience be so great a miracle why shall not the Lady Iane Grayes suffering and Queen Elizabeths also for the Protestant religion be miracles and confirm that profession as the true Catholik Add to these the patience and constancy of those glorious Protestant Martyrs recounted by Iohn Fox in his Acts and Monuments SECT II. OF THE DIFFERENCE BETVVEEN Catholik constancy and heretical obstinacy and vvherin doth each consist A Your obiection is material and I shal endeuor to answer it as cleerly and in as few words as I can but depending of a proper notion of heresy it inuolues som difficulty Experience and history hath proued almost in euery age that som heretiks suffer with as great resolution all Kind of torments and death itself for their false religion as Catholiks do for the true one And yet we all agree in terming the heretiks resolution obstinacy and the Catholiks constancy The reason is because the heretik suffers for adhering to a particular opinion and to his own priuat iudgment The Catholik for conforming himself to the belief of the uniuersal Church and for submitting his iudgement to the same Therfore St Paul sayes that an heretik is condemned by his own proper iudgment 2. Petr. 1. 2. No profecy of Scripture is made by priuat interpretation and St Peter tells us that the true interpretation of Scripture is not that of a priuat man but of the Church And the very word Heresy signifies a particular choyce or a wilfull diuision and declining from the first doctrin This supposed there can be no difficulty in declaring why an heretik may without any miracle suffer with great resolution the greatest torments for maintaining his heresy Because men are naturaly inclined to follow their own opinions and to maintain their own choice and therfore we see what endeuors are used in vain to persuade an humorsom and wilfull man or woman to recall any foolish Act they did of their own heads and how hard it is to conuince them that it was ill don Now euery heretik makes his religion his own act not by an humble submission of his iudgment to the Church as Catholiks do but by a proud preference of his own vnderstanding before that of all others This needs no other proof than that pitty which euery pittifull Protestant euen the women hath of the most learned Roman Catholiks ignorance and Idolatry In this pride and preference of their proper iudgment and in the wilfulness of continuing in their own choice doth consist the obstinacy of heretiks as the constancy of Catholiks takes its denomination from that religious perseuerance which is grounded vpon so rational a resolution as it is to submit and stick to the doctrin of a Church signalised with so many supernatural and uisible marks of being trusted by God to teach and preach the true Catholik Faith as hath bin demonstrated in the 5. Chap. Q. I grant that the difference between Catholik constancy and heretical obstinacy is that this is a more wilfull than rational adherency to a mans proper opinion or to a priuat interpretation of Scripture against the testimony and tradition of the Church and Catholik constancy is a religious perseuerance in a resolution of submitting our iudgments to the same Church but how will you make it appeare that our Protestant interpretation of Scripture is a priuat one or that we are guilty of pride seing we follow the interpretation of the Church of England and submit our iudgments therunto A. I will make that heretical obstinacy appeare in those very Protestant Saints and Martyrs which Iohn Fox doth celebrat for their constancy And to begin as you do with the most innocent of them all the Lady Iane Grey shee did wilfully choose and preferr before the Catholik a new religion or an interpretation of Scripture that was not as old as herself though she was very yong It had bin hatcht by Cranmer and confirmed by the Parliament of Ed. 6. but some fiue years before she suffered and was then Known and declared by an other Parliament 1. Mar. to be heresy and contrary to the publik sense and continual tradition of the Catholik Church and therfore was called by the Protestants themselues a Reformation of the old doctrin So that though the Church and Parliament of England in the reign of K. Ed. 6. called it à Common prayer or a publik worship yet was it
why God gaue men their senses if it was not to be directed wholy by them in iudging euen of mysteries of Faith And though God tells us that the euidence of sense is fallacious when it agrees not with his word as it proued when Eue tasted the forbidden fruit yet Heretiks despising that truth and imitating her example prefer the serpent or the priuat spirits suggestions and their own appetit before Gods reuelation and interpret the Scriptures after a new manner contrary to the testimony tradition and practise of the Church in fauor of liberty and sensuality Heresy hauing thus slighted Ecclesiastical authority and the supernatural signs or Miracles of the Roman Catholik Church as fables or frauds of interested persons and finding no signs or seales of a Deity in any other Congregation it begins to doubt of Gods prouidence and after many windings and turnings from one Sect to an other deuoring most gross absurdities euen against the Diuinity of Christ and immortality of the Soul it growes at length to be a Dragon which armed with scales of obstinat incredulity and wingd with unbridled liberty and pride flyes at the Deity itself like that seuen headed Beast of the Reuelations So that Atheism is nothing but ouergrown Heresy as the Dragon is an ouergrown serpent Both agree in making sensuality the soul of man and the rule of Faith The Heretik by submitting his Faith and Soul to euidence of sense against Gods warning and word the Atheist by maintaining men haue no Faith or soul but sense This last error seemes to som the more iudicious it being most euidently certain that if there be a spiritual Soul it must be superior and ought to command sense curbing its inclinations as foolish and correcting its euidence as fallacious Against this vermin and venom of Atheism and Heresy I haue prepared the Antidot I heer present you with its chief ingredients are strength of reason and supernaturality of Miracles it is as natural for reason to submit to Miracles as it is for sense to submit to reason For what greater violence can be offered to Reason than to rebell or resist against authority signd by Gods hand and seale Miracles Or to deny a Deity and spirits because they com not under the Kenning of our senses Is it not against the first principles of reason and morality to iudge otherwise of things and persons than they seem to be when neither the word of God nor any thing else appears to the contrary Though we do not see spirits or the Deity yet we see effects aboue the sphere and power of bodyes and Nature which can not be attributed to any other causes but Spirits and a Deity So that we must grant the existence of these or maintain an impossibility which is that there can be an effect without a cause Vvhat effect this Antidot will work upon the minds of the Readers God only Knowes I haue endeuored to express my thoughts in the cleerest termes I could and in ordinary English the highest mysteries of Christianity Others may excell in the quaintness of expression I desire no such commendation neither is that manner of writing so proper in matters of Faith which limits our vvords as well as our opinions And though the latitude were greater I should choose those expressions which are best vnderstood my design being to inform all sorts of people Yet I would haue our vvits Know and I hope they will find it so by experience that Atheism and Heresy how new and subtile so euer may be solidly confuted in ordinary and old English A SOVERAIGN REMEDY against Heresy and Atheism Fitted for the wit and want of the British Nations CHAP. I. OF THE EXISTENCE VNITY and Trinity of God Q. Is there any such thing as God I knowthere is such a notion and that men fancy when they speake of God an vnlimited being including in it self infinit excellencies and all perfections My question is whether this Deity of all and infinit perfections be only a meer notion or a real obiect A. it is a real obiect Q. How proue you that for we haue notions not only of things that do not exist as Vtopia but of things that can not possibly exist as Chimeras Centaures c. How therfore wil you make it appeare that the notion of an infinitly perfect Deity is not the bare notion of an impossibility A. Many proofes there are of Gods real existence but in my opinion the cleerest of all must be grounded vpon the experience euery man hath of his own nothing For the only thing we know cleerly euen of our selues is that we do exist and are our selues and yet that there was a tyme we did not exist nor were our selues or which is the same that we were nothing From hence necessarily follow these conclusions 1. that we can not haue our being or existence from our selves because that which at any tyme hath bin nothing or did not exist can no more giue a being or existence to it self then nothing can produce somthing 2. that there must of necessity be somthing which did alwayes exist otherwise nothing did produce all things 3. that the somthing which did alwayes exist must include all and infinit perfections because hauing its being or perfection only from it self as none could giue it a being but it self so none but it self could set a limit to its being or perfections and that thing must haue bin naturaly auers to it self and by consequence not it self which would wave hinder or enuy its own happiness or its hauing all perfections 4. As it is impossible that a thing which hath its being from it self should want or waue any perfection so is it impossible there should be two or more distinct things infinitly perfect Because that which is the source of its own being must necessarily include in it self all being or all perfections seing there can be no cause or reason why it should haue one perfection and not all vnless you wil fancy that a thing before it exists or is any thing can limit it self or out of a pik to it self would pick and choose out of infinit perfections only such as Atheists attribute to that which they call Nature If therfore all perfections must be included in that one thing which hath its own being from it self no other thing of infinit perfections can be as much as fancied to be distinct from it Therfore it must be the same and consequently there can be but one thing or one God including in it self or identifying with it self all perfections So that you see how little wit Atheists do shew in denying a Deity of infinit perfections because they must either grant it or confess that we men or any thing els when we did not exist and were nothing did or could produce our selues Or that this world with all its imperfections is God or that the world before its existence when it was nothing was also somthing and so against the
be a prudent or pious act without seing seeiming supernatural signes so obuious to all kind of people that they may if reflected vpon exclude all prudent doubts of our being mistaken because they must dispose us to fix our thoughts so firmly vpon Gods goodness and veracity that we assent with greater assurance to what the Church sayes and its signes shew than if we had seen it not because the Church sayes it or because the signs confirm its testimony but because we rationaly iudge it impossible that God would permit such an appearance and testimony to be falsly fathered vpon himself or permit vs to be deceiued by signs so likely to be supernatural Q. How can a certainty only moral of God being the Author of the commission and doctrin of the Church be a solid and sufficient ground for acts of Christian faith wherby we belieue without the least doubt and by consequence with more than moral certainty or assurance that God is Author of the commission and doctrin of the Church How can any prudent act of our vnderstanding assent to more than it doth see or assent with greater assurance than there is appearance of the truth An intellectual act or assent being an intellectual sight of the truth of the obiect To say therfore that by acts of faith we assent to more than we see or with greater assurance then there is appearance of the truth is as much as to say that by acts of faith we see more than we see and belieue more firmly than we can A. The answer of this obiection is that assent being no more than an interior yeelding a thing to be as dissent is an interior denying it to be the assent of the mind is not alwayes an intellectual sight of the truth of its obiect It is not alwayes the same thing in the soul to say a thing is so and to see it is so For if these two were the same the soul could neuer assent or rely vpon authority nor be mistaken in any assent because it is neuer mistaken in its sight of the truth Besides this opinion that confounds the assent of faith with the sight of the truth whether it be in proper causes or by its connexion with the euidence of Gods reuelation takes away the obscurity liberty and merit of Christian faith because à cleer sight of the truth by whatsoeuer means it coms is not compatible with those attributes St Paul tells vs that faith is an argument of things not appearing and surely if they do not appeare by faith they are not seen by an act of faith More A great proportion of the supernaturality of faith and of its merit consists in ouer comming the difficulty we find not only in examining the motiues and in adhering with the will but in assenting with the vnderstanding to the truth and to the existence of its reuelation as to that of the Trinity Incarnation c. But if our assent of faith were an intellectual sight of the truth or of the existence of Diuine reuelation of those mysteries such an assent could not inuolue nor we find therin any intellectual difficulty for what intellectual difficulty can there be in saying inwardly it is so if we see it is so There is rather a necessity in such a case of saying it is so Faith is so far from being an intellectual sight of the verities belieued or assented vnto that the less cleerly you see the truth or the reuelation credited so it be prudently credible the greater your faith is Therfore Christ reproacht St Thomas for not belieuing the Resurrection vntill he had seen with his eyes Christ resuscitated â—oan 20. And told him they were happy that belieued and did not see what they believed Now the reason why faith and sight or knowledge are so opposit is because the nature and notion of faith is to supply and by consequence it doth suppose the want of sight or knowledge Hence it is that many say faith and knowledge are no more consistent one with the other than the want and not want of the same thing And indeed this notion of faith is well grounded because experience doth conuince and all confess our human nature to be so imperfect that it stands in need of Christian faith to supply the want of knowledge touching Diuine mysteries And euen in worldly affairs we must in most rely for want of cleerer knowledge vpon the authority and testimony of lawfull witnesses and take their word for legal euidence which as it is a sufficient proof of what they testify so is it a demonstration of the imperfection of our vnderstandings and that most of our human assents and iudicial sentences are not intellectual sights of the truth itself but humble submissions to the authority and knowledge of others which we belieue though for ought we euidently know we may be misinformed by their mistake or malice But the supernatural signes of the Catholik Church do shine so cleerly vpon the same that not any who reflects vpon them and relyes vpon Gods veracity can prudently entertain the least feare or doubt of being mistaken in its authority or misled by its doctrin notwithstanding that we do not cleerly see the Diuine trust of the Church or the infallible truth of its Tenets But though the assent of Christian faith be not an intellectuall sight of the truth reuealed or of the Diuine reuelation it doth suppose at least in our Predecessors sensations or an intellectual sight of som seemingly supernatural signs which being credibly reported to us by Tradition are sufficient to gain so much credit and authority for the Church wherin they appear'd as that whoeuer doth not belieue its testimony and assenteth or yeeldeth not to its doctrin as Diuine is iustly condemned by Christ himself in his last words to the Apostles Marc. 16. v. 16. and therfore tells them that his Church shall haue visible and supernatural signes wherby it may be easily discerned from all heretical Assemblies som wherof he specified as power to cast out Deuills to cure diseases to speak vnknowen languages to rid people of serpents These besides others related in Scripture as the Conuersion of Nations to Christianity the continual succession and sanctity of Doctrin and Doctors the spirit of profecy and many such miraculous marks ioyned with profound humility and eminent virtues are so far aboue all heathens and heretiks pretended morality and sanctity that when their saints are compared with canonized Catholiks they appeare to be but hypocritical sycophants puff'd vp with that secret pride so proper to all sectaries preferring their own priuat interpretation of scripture before the publik sense and practise of a visible and miraculous Church Vve conclude therfore that an assent of Christian faith is not an intellectuall sight of the truth reuealed nor of the reuelation and yet the faithfull do assent to both with no less assurance than if it had bin a cleer sight of both because euery
that they can be saued by Protestancy Q. I see you are of opinion that no Protestant at all can be saued Vvhat Can none of them haue inuincible ignorance Is there so cleer and obuious an euidence of the Roman Catholik being the true Church that none can pretend nor plead ignorance of that truth A. That out of the true Church there is no saluation is a maxim of Faith wherin the holy Fathers agree That the same Church is so visible and preferable before all others that euen the most stupid may as easily see it as a Citty vpon a mountain and therfore are commanded to repair to it is manifest in Scripture That the Roman Catholik hath those cleer marks of Gods fauor which persuade the most scrupulous it is the true Church of God hath bin in the 4. Chapter demonstrated by us and appeareth by those supernatural signs of miracles sanctity conuersion of Nations to Christianity c. which shine in it and haue set it out so gloriously in all ages and places of the world since the preaching of the Apostles That in England there is any corner or person wherin common sense can be so burried or curiosity so dead as to be ignorant of these things and others deliuered by tradition from age to age and year to year is not credible But in case there be any Protestant so neer a beast as not to reflect vpon any thing he sees or heareth of his own or of our Religion his Baptisme will saue him if he did not loose by a mortal sin the grace which he receiued in and by that Sacrament And this is all the comfort I can giue my Protestant friends whose saluation I more heartily wish than those do who delude them with larger opinions Q. This is but very cold comfort Vvill not God grant to som poor ignorant Protestant an act of contrition at least in the last hour A. I think not But if he doth to any it is to som of those stupid Creatures I last spoke of As for others who haue wit and wayes to consider and reflect vpon those doubts which occurr to themselues or are raised in them by the discourse of others their obstinacy or affected ignorance in not listening or inquiring into a matter so important and so easily resolued makes them incapable of so great a fauor as an act of contrition And as for those ernest or bigot Protestants they are in greatest danger of any and furthest from contrition because hauing a cleerer Knowledge of their own religion and spending much time in the meditation therof they must needs haue great doubts if they do not stifle them in their first birth by diuerting their thoughts to more pleasing obiects and by auoyding all occasions of discoursing of protestancy as commonly they do especialy when they perceiue there is any likelihood of laying open the weakness of its principles and the wickedness of the first Reformers Besides an act of contrition inuolues Faith hope and charity and these Protestants not hauing Faith but rather an auersion against hearing of it are not in a disposition fit for contrition which is the greatest grace God doth to his most eminent seruants and the Saints of his own Church Q. Methinks this is very hard I can not as yet comprehend why a deuout Protestant may not be capable of an act of contrition Is protestancy so abominable in the sight of God that he will not turn his mercifull eye towards Protestants Is it wors than other great sins which God doth pardon Is it heresy And if it be may not an heretik haue an act of contrition Is the malice of heresy so great as to exclude Gods mercy A. Vvithout doubt Heresy is the greatest of sins and yet excludes not Gods mercy but an Heretiks conuersion precedes contrition this not being compatible vvith heresy I vvill briefly tell you vvherin consists the malice of heresy and leaue yourself to iudge vvhether protestancy be Heresy The malice of Heresy consists in the contempt of Gods veracity And Gods veracity consists in an infinit inclination to truth An infinit inclination to truth is not consistent vvith a permission of falsood credibly fathered and fastned upon him that permits it if he can easily hinder the same Now the malice of heresy consists in hauing so mean an opinion of Gods veracity or of his inclination to truth that he vvould permit a Church so credibly pretending to be his own as the Roman Catholik doth by its miracles its sanctity its conuersion of Nations to Christianity and other supernatural marks to impose upon the vvorld in his name for so many ages false doctrin for true vvheras it vvas in his power euery moment of all that time to discouer and declare the cheat and disown the doctrin And yet he did not either That our miracles father our doctrin upon God is easily proued for though the first Protestant Reformers and their successors cry out against som of our miracles as false yet they are forc't to confess som of them are true and vve joyn with them in censuring false miracles as such and punish them who feign them as Malefactors Against our conuersion of Nations to Christianity a confessed mark of the true Church they haue nothing to say and as litle against the succession and sanctity of our Doctrin and Doctors Notwithstanding this credible and indeed conuincing appearance of our miracles and of the Roman Catholik Church being the true one commissioned by God to instruct his people yet the Protestants will not belieue it nor submit their iudgments to so authentik an authority nor hearken to the Diuine voice manifesting itself by the cleerest signs and euidence that is consistent with the freedom merit and obscurity of Christian Faith Vvhether this obstinacy be not heresy let the Protestants themselues iudge and examin whether to slight the testimony and signs of such a Church be not a contempt of Gods veracity as supposing he can permit falsood to be so plausibly fatherd upon him as wee see the Roman Catholik doctrin hath bin for so many ages and throughout all parts of the world CHAP. VII OF THE MINISTERY OF THE Church and of the nullity of that of England AS it is necessary that Gods Church should haue visible signs wherby it may be discerned from all heretical Congregations so it is acknowledged that in the same there is a Ministery caracterised with such publik ceremonies and authentik testimonies that there can be no danger of counterfeiting a mission or vocation so sacred In the Christian Church the Ministers are called Bishops and Priests Both are consecrated by a real imposition of Episcopal hands and other ceremonies which haue bin practised in the Church euer since the Apostles from whom by a continual succession the Episcopal caracter must descend and be proued otherwise no credit is to be giuen to any persons claiming to be Bishops of whose ordination Priestood dependeth It was the misfortune of the
you pretend to haue in your Church and for confirmation of the doctrin wherin you differ from us But I pray let them be Miracles like those of Christ for I will not belieue any others I giue you this caution for feare you should trouble me with Mother Iulianas fits and one Finaghtyes triks wherwith he deluded the common people heer in England and Ireland where that mans Miracles as I heare are mightily cryed up A. Sir you haue reason to expect I should relate unto you Miracles like those of Christ seing himself hath sayd Iohn 14.22 Luther to 7. l. de Iudaeis c. fol. 210. A Deo didicimus accepimê° aeternum verbuÌ„ veritatem Dei hactenus mille quingentio annis miraculis signis confessam confirmatam he that belieueth in me the vvorks that I do he shall do and greater Vvhich words not only Luther the first Protestant Reformer but your English Bibles edit 1576. in the marginal notes referr to the vvhole body of the Church in vvhom this virtue doth shine for euer Though I must confess both Luther and our English Protestant writers contradict themselues again in this particular as all men must who maintain errors and say when we press them to relate som of their Miracles that Miracles are now superfluous and therfore none wrought in the Church But I shall deal so impartialy with Protestants in this matter that I will not mention any miracle for confirmation of the Roman Catholik Church and doctrin which the best Protestant writers themselues do not confess to be miracles though others of them attribute the working therof to the power of Beelzebub as the obstinat Iewes did of Christs and that for no other reason but because the miracles were wrought by Papists and to confirm Popery As for Finaghtyes miracles I made it my buisness to inquire after them and him also and do find that so soon as he began to work his miracles the Popish Archbishop of Tuam in Ireland who was his Ordinary questioned him for that presumption and finding him both ignorant and obstinat he forbid him the further tempting of God and scandalizing the Church by his foolish attempts But the mans zeal or vanity preuailing more vpon his Spirit than his Superiors commands he continued his ridiculous course and therupon was commanded out of the Archbishops Prouince After that vigilant Prelats death Finaghty lurking for som time in other places came into England and from thence returned to Dublin where he playd the fool with breathing and beating the Deuil in good ernest one Stanton an other mad Priest of his Countrey printed many of his rash attempts for great miracles Finaghty after that his manner of exorcisms had hin examind and found to be different from those of the Church and his dispossessing of Deuils to be without any visible marke or sign of the Deuils possession or at least departure was silenc't by the Clergy of Dublin and commanded out of that Province From thence he went to his own Conaght and falling again to his old miracles he was by the Popish Bishop of Elfin depriued of his general Vicarship and that extraordinary respect forgot which the simplicity of the people had offered to his supposed sanctity by vvhom now he is much slighted My charity inclineth me to belieue that his greatest fault was folly and that he was more cheated by the Deuil than so simple a man could design to cheat others I haue bin more diffuse upon this subiect than you may think it deserues because the world may be satisfied None suspects the truth of miracles nor corrects the foolish Pretenders of working them more than we Roman Catholiks it being one of the greatest cares of our Bishops and Pastors to preuent such impostures and to punish the Impostors And this hath bin the continual practise of our Church euer since the beginning of Christianity Q. You haue giuen me great satisfaction by your relation and opinion of Finaghty and his miracles If they had not bin so soon and sesonably condemn'd by his own party I should suspect that all your other miracles reported in Legends and Saints liues were of the same nature But now I see that miracles which were neuer contradicted or suspected by yourselues are credible I pray therfore relate those which you say are confessed or allowed of by the learned Protestants and yet confirm your doctrin in opposition to theirs SECT I. THE CONVERSION OF THE Heathen Kings and Nations from Paganism to Christianity and Popery is an euident miracle and mark of the truth of the Roman Catholik Church and doctrin in opposition to that of all Protestant Reformations It s continuance euen from the Apostles to this present demonstrated as also the impossibility of its pretended insensible change THe greatest of all miracles it being the end for which they haue bin wrought and the Christian Church instituted is the conuersion of the Heathen Kings and Nations to Christianity If therfore it be proued that all the Heathen Kings and Nations which haue bin conuerted from Paganism to Christianity were conuerted to no other but to that Christianity which Protestants call Popery and that the sayd conuersions were performed by knowen Papists and confessed miracles our Aduersaries must acknowledge that the Roman Catholik Church and it alone is the true Church of God otherwise it will follow that Christ instituted his Church to no purpose and that his design and desire of the conuersion of Nations and sauing their souls came to nothing Nay it will follow that Christ is not the Messias to vvhose doctrin and Church as the Scriptures and Prophets foretell all Nations shall flovv and their Kings Minister the multitude of the seas shall be conuerted the Iles shall vvayt for and the Heathens be its inheritance and the end of the earth its possession All this the Protestants themselues confess to be prophecied of the true Christian Church as you may see in their marginal notes upon the English Bible edit 1576. in Esay 60. vers ult And in Daniel 2. vers 45. This argument made so great impression upon many of the most learned Protestant writers who had resolued not to be Papists that som of them turned Iewes others Atheists others Turks as Bernardin Ochin Sebastian Castalio Dauid George Adam Neuserus Allemanus and others Q. Sir though I doubt not of your sincere dealing yet I must not take upon your single credit that learned Protestants could turn Turks and Iewes vpon the score you mention A. Sir I hope you will belieue themselues Read Bernardin Ochins Preface to his Dialogues wherin you will find these words vvhen I did consider hovv Christ by his povver vvisdom and goodness had founded and established his Church c. and again discerned hovv the same vvas utterly ouerthrovvn I could not but vvonder and being desirous to knovv the cause I found there had bin Popes From this conceit of the Popes preuailing against Christs Church