them abuses never so universally received if not Canonically decided might be reformed and Thirdly considering that a preservation of their Authority and a prevention of Innovations which they conceive effectually performable onely by that pretence seem to be their principal inducements to it may be thus provided for by being themselves the Authors of such Reformation it may be they might not 〈◊〉 it so inexpedient to yield even this which seems to be the principal cause that makes our breaches irreconcileable And certainly if it would please God to inspire Governours with a serious and industrious and candid yet active Spirit for the service of the Church much more might be done that is for the Restoration of Religion and unity and the prevention of those daily scandalous both Oâ—inions and Practices which all good Christians do so seriously deplore and that he would be pleased to do so their conâ—ederated prayers and endeavours might be very available Letter I. CONTENTS THE Introduction Numb I. The design of the following Advices II. The danger of miscarriage in the Clerical Calling the consequent necessity of a Call from God for undertaking it how we are to judge of this Call in a rational way the general requisites thereunto III. The first requisite A pure Intention what it is and how to be tryed IV. V. VI. The second requisite Natural Gifts how we may hence conclude a Calling VII Why these Gifts are called Natural What they are that necessary in regard of knowledge All Theological knowledge not simply necessary for every ordinary Parochian but what is more immediately practicall Men are to be fitted for further knowledge by the practice of what they know already VIII The great use and probable successfulness of this Method in reducing Hereticks or Schismaticks IX The knowledge of a Clergieman ought to be not onely that of a Practitioner but that of a Guide Hence is inferred First a necessity of knowing and understanding Fundamentals wherein all agree as of the Apostles Creed From whence is also further inferred a necessity of understanding First the Scriptures and therefore the Originals wherein they were written especially the Greek X. XI Secondly the Fathers of the first and purest Centuries The necessity of this XII The expediency of it XIII Secondly a necessity of skill in such Controversies as divide Communions XIV Thirdly a skill in Casuistical Divinity The insufficiency of Pulpit-reproofs and the necessity of dealing with particular Consciences in order to the Reformation of particular persons XV. XVI XVII Requisites for inducing the People to a practice of their duty when known First a skill in the Ars Voluntatis XVIII Secondly Boldness and Courage in telling them of their duty How necessary this qualification is and how much to be tendered How it may be best performed without offending on the other extreme of petulancy XIX Thirdly a sweet and sociable yet grave and serious Conversation How these two seeming contradictory extremes may be reconciled XX. Fourthly a holy and exemplary life XXI That their Lives may be exemplary two conditions are necessary First that they be Excellent XXII Secondly that their Excellency he conspicuous How this conspicuity may be so contrived as that it may not hinder Humility and Modesty XXIII The last requisite a firm and stable Resolution How to be tryed XXIV These Advices seasonable for such as have already undertaken Orders as well as such as onely design them That these personal qualifications will supersede the necessity of particular Rules XXV Two things further requisite for a nearer accommodation of the forementioned qualifications to practice First that an observation of them from a principle of Divine love and on a rational account is more expedient both for personal comfort and publick edification XXVI Second some general Rules in managing a Parochial Cure for bringing the People to a ruleable temper XXVII The Catalogue of the Writings of such Christian Authors as Flourished before the Conversion of the Romane Empire to Christianity Pag. 131. Letter II. CONTENTS THE Introduction and Heads of the ensuing Discourse Numb I. What is meant by Scholastical Divinity What to be observed in Oratory The Light and Certainty of the Rational Faculties supposed anteedently to all Theological proof II. A method of managing Reason most advantageously in Theological Controversies III. The usefulness of Reason and School-Divinity In what principal Controversies they are especially seasonable IV. A censure of School-Divinity and how it is to be used V. The most accurate way of finding out the sense of the Scripture The use of Philological Learning in general in order hereunto particularly First of those Tongues wherein they were Originally written Secondly the Idioms of those Tongues Thirdly the Idioms of the Writers Fourthly the Antiquities the Customes of the Zabij Chaldaean and Phaenician their History Chronology and Geography The way of judging the Testimonies of the Fathers concerning Traditions VI. The use of Saecular Philosophy in order to School-Divinity VII The use of Saecular Learning to the Text of the Holy Scriptures of the ancient Greek Poetry of the Greek especially the Stoical Philosophy An Apology for it VIII The means for unriddling the mystical senses of the ancient Poets and Philosophers and Publick Idolatries of the Heathens the Oneirocriticks and Hieroglyphicks An Apology for their use in expounding Prophetick Books of Scripture IX The Authors to be read for initiating a young Student in each of the particulars advised X. The Method to be observed for preventing distraction in so great a variety XI ERRATA THE most material Errata that might prejudice the sense or prove any other way inconvenient are already corrected with the Pen. Some others there are of less momenâ— which upon occasion of this vacancy are here presented as Pag. 18. l. 14. for advant agâ—ously read advantagiously P. 22. l penult for especially r. especially p. 51. l. penult for Besides r. Besides p. 54. l. 25. for i â— r. in p. 55. l. â— for he p r. help p. 231. r. 131. p. 163 l. 11 for oppotunities r. opportunities p. 179. lâ— ult for wholy r. wholly Letter I. A Letter of Advice to a young Student designing the Susception of HOLY ORDERS SIR I. HAving got that opportunity of fulfilling your Requests since your departure which I wanted when you were present because besides the gravity of the Subject whereon you have employed me and my own natural aversness from such insignificancies and the necessity now if ever of plain dealing I believe your self would rather have it bestowed on material Advices â—â—an empty Complements I shall therefore like the downright and truly just Areopagites 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 make use of it without any further Ceremonial Addresses II. First therefore when you desire Advice for your Behaviour in that holy Function you design to undertake I hope you do not intend that I should be prolix in insisting on particulars For both that has already been performed at large by many others
Authority and if it be Reason grounded on Authority as most of the School-Questions are that then you urge the Reason no farther than the Authority will warrant you and remember that a less will suffice when all the use of reason is for rendring the Conclusion it self defensible for that proceeds on particular evidences whereby it appears to us and therefore does not require a real but every-way apparent credibility but where the reasons grounded on these phrases and manners of expressing the Article are drawn to the direct proof of its real truth or are taken as principles for the probation of others it were then reasonable to have recourse to Lombard's Text and to examine First whether that doctrine be really taught by that Father who is by him quoted for it and Secondly whether it be delivered by him as his own private opinion or as the sense of the Church and whether dogmatically or in heat of controversie if as the sense of the Church then Thirdly what was the ground of it whether the evidence of universal Tradition or aequivalencies in the Scriptures or the general sense onely of the learned and whether they took it up for the evidence of its proper reason or originally from the Authority of some private person who was commended in these controversies and from whom it was derived by the rest without any new examination for in some of these things you will find most of Lombards principles to be deficient they being for the much greater part transcribed from St. Augustine But it may be a more direct way for knowing the rational modes of expression whereon the Church grounded her arguments in those Articles which are generally and surely believed for Revelation and wherein ancient and universal Authority may be presumed more securely expressive of the genuine sense of Tradition than our private reasonings as in the Trinity and Incarnation will be by examining what principles of this kind are supposed in her discourses with the ancient Hereticks in the first general Councils most of her definitions there being as I formerly said grounded on Theological reason And therefore I would advise you in general before your particular enquiries to satisfie your self how far your resolution is to be grounded on particular reason that so if they should fail as they will certainly in many things which yet upon other accounts are very reasonably credible you may not presently condemn the Conclusion as simply false because of the falshood of their improper principles And what Questions are onely determinable by reason you have several instances in the beginning of the former Paragraph VI. But it remains for the accomplishment of this first part of my task that I proceed to the second sort of principles namely such as are known by Divine Revelation And here seeing the resolution of no Parties is against the plain words or at least the sense of the Scriptures and it is farther agreed that the bare Grammatical signification of the words is of no other force for expressing the speakers mind than as it is ordinarily reasonable to presume that he intended this where there are not particular suspicious of believing otherwise therefore for the bringing these things home to the decision of our present Controversies it will be requisite to enquire First what sense of them is aequivalent with the Conclusions to be proved by them and Secondly what reason there is to believe that this sense was designed by the Speaker and where this is ambiguous and both of them seem applicable without absurdity the onely way for determining which of them was intended by him must be by examining all those things which may be supposed as notorious to that Auditory to whose understandings he was to accommodate himself and what was onely likely to prove efficacious in reference to his design And though this later be to be performed by reason by examining their misapprehensions and then considering what were in Prudence most proper for their correction and which particular sense is most rationally reducible to this design yet the former will be most satisfactorily resolved by Philological learning by enquiring how the same Author used the same expression in other clearer parallel places how the Auditors themselves usually understood it and so to examine the Idiomes either of the place or Country from other their contemporary writers and if the notoriousness of the Speech depended on a matter of Fact to which it alluded and of which none of them could probably be presumed ignorant then the most sure way both for understanding that particular phrase and all other discourses whatsoever of the same subject will be by clearing the thing it self and poynting at those instances in allusion to which those expressions might have been occasioned which had been otherwise unintelligible And to this end you may more easily discern First the necessity of the Tongues wherein they were originally written for it is very possible either by reason of the affinity or homonymy or for want of answering words in the other Tongues for Translations to be mistaken at least not to be so secure as to ground arguments which may be very much endangered by the very uncautiousness of the expression and Secondly the Idiomes of those Tongues which are frequently occasions of mistakes in them that rely on Translations that render them verbatim without considering their importance in the Originals as is usual both in the reputed LXXII and the vulgar Latine which were generally followed by the Greek and later Latine Fathers and many perplexities might be instanced which are raised by them from thence which have no difficulty in the Originals And for this it will be convenient to be acquainted not onely with the sacred Text it self which especially in the Old Testament are all the records remaining of the purer ancient Hebrew and therefore can give little light to the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but also with those Tongues which seem at first derived from it as most of the Orientals are but those especially into which it afterwards degenerated after the ruine of their Government by reason of their mixture with other conquering Nations Such was the Chaldee on occasion of the Babylonian captivity as appears from part of Jeremy Daniel and Ezra and those parts of the Chaldee Paraphrases which are truly inscribed to Jonathan and Onkelos and Syriack in the time of our Saviour as is observed by learned men from most of these Hebrew words mentioned in the New Testament by mixture of the Syro-Macedones after the prevalency of the Grecian Monarchy for in these it seems more probable that the words which were afterwards imposed in stead of the genuine Hebrew without any interruption where the things were practiced and whilest the Notions were fresh in memory did more exactly answer them than those that wanted these advantages and Thirdly the Idiomes of the Person himself of his wit of his Country of his education for it is clear that the Style
advantage of proper and persuasive expression the suiting all to the circumstances and apprehension of the person and the like which when they concur cannot frequently fail of the desired event But that which does especially recommend this method is that these moral dispositions of the will are so frequently taken notice of in the Gospel it self as the qualifications that prepared its Auditors for its reception For these seem to be the the opening of the ears the touching of the heart the sheeplike disposition the preparation for the kingdom the ordination to eternal life the true Israeliteship which are everywhere assigned as the reasons of the conversion of many of them But this onely by the way X. That I may therefore return to the subject of my former discourse you may hence conclude that all that your people are obliged to practice that at east you are obliged to know and that not onely as a Practitioner who may be secure in knowing his own duty in the simplicity of it with such reasons also of it as may be useful for rectifying his intention which is the onely thing that can rationally be conceived to render a duty acceptable to God but also as a Guide who should also be acquainted with the nature of the duty it self and the reason why it is imposed by God and how it may contribute to the improvement of mankind and what influence every circumstance considerable may have on the morality of the whole duty for without these things you can never be able to make a true estimate of those infinite cases that may occur having to deal with persons of different complexions and different callings and different habitual inclinations Upon which account it will concern you first to have studied all those fundamentals which are generally esteemed so by persons of all persuasions such are those contained in the Creed commonly ascribed to the Apostles not that I conceive it necessary that you deduce all consequences that may be inferred from expressions used even by approved Authors even in these affairs themselves but that you may be able from your own judgment to give an account what concerning them is necessary to be believed and for what reasons that so you may be able to satisfie an inquisitive Laick and maintain the honour of your place which is to preserve the Keys of knowledge as well as Discipline and believe it in this knowing age it is more than ever necessary But for these things I would not have you too much trust the Schoolmen or any modern collectors of Bodies of Divinity who do too frequently confound Traditions with Opinions the Doctrines and Inferences of the Church with her Historical Traditions the sense of the ancient with the superadditions of modern ages and their own private senses with those of the Church If therefore you would faithfully and distinctly inform your self herein I do not understand how you can do it with security to your self that you do not misguide your flock in affairs of so momentous a concernment without having recourse to the Originals themselves wherein you should cautiously distinguish what is clearly and in terms revealed by the Apostles and what onely is so virtually and consequentially for it cannot be credible that God has made the belief of that necessary to salvation which he has not clearly revealed so as to leave the unbelievers unexcusable and that cannot rationally be pretended to be clearly revealed which is neither so in terms nor in clear and certain consequences Now these Originals are the Scriptures as the Text and the Fathers of the first and purest Centuries as an Historical Commentary in controverted passages to clear its sense First therefore the reading of the Scripture is a duty in all regards incumbent on you For these are they that are written that we might believe and that believing we might have life in the name of Christ that are certainly to assure us of those things wherein we have been Catechized that are able to make us wise unto salvation And particularly in reference to your Calling the Scriptures are said to be necessary for making the man of God an appellative especially proper to the Clergie 1 Tim. vi 11. perfect in teaching in reproving in correcting in discipline so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies acts also peculiarly belonging to the Clerical Calling And accordingly our Church does oblige the Clergie to read two Chapters at least every day concerning which according to the old rules they might have been examined by the Bishop as also in Erasmus's Paraphrase which seems to have been Instituted to make amends for the length of the Romane Offices injoyned by them on their Clergie under pain of mortal sin above that of our Liturgie as conceiving the skill of the Clergie in the Scriptures of more moment for the discharge of their duty to the publick than their prayers themselves Besides your skill herein is looked on as so necessary as that it is one of the severest charges laid on all in the very collation of their Orders that they be diligent in reading the Scriptures XI But you must not think this charge satisfied in beginning to do so from the time of your Ordination For you must remember that you are then to be a Teacher not a Scholar besides that you cannot pass a prudent judgment of your own abilities till you have already experienced them and thereof 〈◊〉 must have begun before As you therefore read the Scriptures it were well that after reading of any Chapter you would mark the difficult places at least in the New Testament and when they may seeâ—â— to concern any necessary matter of Faith or Practice for you must remember that I am now speaking of the meanest qualifications that may be expected in him who would prudently take this calling on him afterwards consult Commentators such as are reputed most excellent in their kind and read them not cursorily but carefully examining their grounds to the uttermost of your capacity seeing that you are to enquire not onely for your self but also for as many as are to be led by you First therefore after you have read the Commentator either in writing or if that bee too tedious in meditation recollect the sum of his discourse by reducing them to Propositions then apply the proofs to the Propositions they properly belong to Then examine the pertinency of his proofs so applyed if they be reasons from the nature of the thing if Testimonies from the Authors from whom he borrowes them by which means alone you may understand whether they mean them in the sense intended by him And at last see how his sense agrees with the Text it self by comparing it with the cohaerence both antecedent and consequent And for this occasional use of expounding Scripture it were necessary to be skilled in the Originals for all Translations being performed by fallible persons and being
capable of such aequivocations which may frequently have no ground in the Originals the sense as collected from such Translations may very probably be misunderstood and therefore cannot be securely trusted But of the two Originals the Greek is that which can with less security be neglected upon the principles already praemised For supposing that your obligation is chiefly for matters of Faith and so transcending natural means of knowledge and moral duties not evident nor deducible from the light of right Reason as being special degrees peculiarly due to those manifestations of the Divine love in the Gospel greater than could have been expected from the Divine Philanthropy as it appears from reason alone both of these are proper to the Gospel-state and therefore are onely to be expected from the New Testament which though in other things it may require the Hebrew for understanding the Hellenistical sâ—ile yet in these things being so peculiarly proper to the Gospel-state and being many of them merely new Revelations it cannot be so extreamly necessary and therefore the Greek may be here sufficient Yet I must withall needs confess that for the Government and Governours of the Church and the rituals adopted into Christianity by the positive Institution of the Gospel the two Sacraments and other Solemnities of the Service of God the knowledge of the Jewish Antiquities is very necessary for clearing some things of so momentous a consideration and so ordinary practice as that you may not be able without them to give a fall satisfaction to your Parochiaâ— cure in doubts that may nearly concern them which will therefore require a skill in the Rabbins if not in the Hebrew Tongue wherein they are written XII And upon the same account I do not for my part see how you can well have neglected the Fathers of the first and purest Centuries especially those that are by the consent of all concluded genuine and that lived before the Empire turned Christian who consequently were free from those secular enjoyments which in a short time sensibly corrupted that generosity and exemplary severity which were so admirably conspicuous in the Infancy of Christianity For though it be confessed that the Scriptures are indeed clear in all matters indispensably necessary to Salvation which are the onely subjects of my present discourse yet I conceive that perspicuity to have been mainly accommodated to the present apprehensions of the persons then living many of the phrases being taken from doctrines or practices then generally prevailing among them and obviously notorious to all the vulgar as well as persons of greater capacities But that all things that were then clear might not as other Antiquities have done since in a long process of time contract an accidental obscurity by the abolition or neglect of those then notorious Antiquities on which that perspicuity is supposed to depend or that supposing this perspicuity still to depend on such Antiquities Providence should have been obliged to keep such Antiquities themselves unchanged or any other way notorious than by the monuments still extant of those ages cannot I conceive with any probability be presumed either from the nature of the thing or the design of the Scriptures which both seem to have been written in accommodation to particular exigences and on particular occasions and rather to intimate than insist on such things as were already presumed notorious and must needs have been either more intricate if brief or more tedious and voluminous if accurate in explaining so numerous particulars Now if this perspicuity were accommodated to the apprehensions of them to whom they were more immediately revealed then certainly the Holy Ghost must needs be presumed to have intended such senses as he knew them ready and likely to apprehend especially in such cases wherein the terms were taken from something already notorious among them and wherein they could have no reason to suspect their misapprehensions much less ordinary means to rectifie them and therefore on the contrary what we can find to have been their sense of the Scriptures in things perspicuous and necessary that we have reason to believe verily intended by the Revealer Besides that this is the usual practice of our most accurate Criticks to expound their Authors where difficult by comparing them with other writers of the same time or Sect or Subject which mention the thing doubted of more clearly and therefore cannot prudently be refused here where we are speaking of the ordinary moral means of finding out the true sense of the Scriptures I do confess that the Fathers do not write in a method so accurate and fitted to the capacities of beginners as our modern Systemes but withall I think it cannot be denyed but that they are even upon that account more intelligible than the Scriptures so that they who are obliged to be skilful in the Scriptures cannot upon any account be presumed uncapable of understanding the Fathers Nor ought it to be pretended that the writings of the Fathers are too voluminous and tedious a task for a young man to undertake before his entring into the Clerical calling for both I do not see how that way can be counted tedious which is necessary and onely secure how long soever it may be nor is it indeed true that the Fathers of the first three Centuries were a task so very tedious for as for others afterwards the more remote they are the less competent also they must be for informing us of the sense of the Apostles in an Historical way of which alone we are now discoursing nay seeing that the later writers can know nothing this way but what has been delivered to them by the former it will follow that they cannot be able to inform us of any thing new after the reading of their predecessors and therefore though it might be convenient yet after the Primitives the reading of the later Fathers cannot be so indispensably necessary especially if the counterfeited Authors and writings be excepted together withall those that are lyable to any just suspicion and are reputed such by learned and candid men and if their time were improved as it might by most and would by all that would undertake this severe Calling upon these conscientiâ—us accounts I have been already describing Besides I do not know why they should complain for want of time either before or after the susception of holy Orders when as we see other Callings require seven years learning before their liberty to practice whereas a much less time well improved would serve for this even for ordinary capacities that were grounded in the necessary rudiments of humane learning and they have afterwards a maintenance provided for them without care that they might addict themselves without distraction to employments of this nature All things therefore being considered I do not see how this requisite how much soever it may amuse some by its seeming novelty is either unnecessary or unpracticable XIII Besides these reasons from necessity I might produce others