Pope said Such a thing as that could not be forasmuch as whoever will enjoy an Indulgence they must by all means merit or obtain this by giving at least some Alms. This is well said and and opens all the Trick and Cheat of Indulgences The Pope asked further How many Years he desir'd this Indulgence should extend to St. Francis answer'd I intreat that your Holiness will be pleas'd to grant That all they who with Penitence come into this Church and confess themselves and have receiv'd Absolution may be absolv'd both in Heaven and Earth from all Guilt and Punishment from the time of their Baptism to the time that they come into this Church As the Pope made a Difficulty to grant this St. Francis said My Lord I seek this Indulgence not of my self but in the Name of Christ who hath sent me Then did the Pope give his Consent but through the Instigation of some Cardinals he order'd that this Indulgence should indeed be continued for ever but that it should not be obtain'd on more than one day in a Year Upon which St. Francis with great Reverence taking his leave the Pope call'd to him and said Well Brother Simplicity and what Security have you now for your Indulgence St. Francis said My Lord your Word is enough for me for God shall further his own Work and I desire no other Bull for our good Lady shall be the Paper Christ the Notary and the Angels the Witnesses And doubtless it was very proper that all these should be thus concern'd about so precious and important a matter And this matter was very wisely manag'd all this while or at least very sillily devis'd for they go on and say It was now two Years that St. Francis had obtain'd this divine Indulgence but there was yet no day settled whereon the World should obtain it St. Francis expecting that God who had granted the same should also reveal the Day the which came to pass in the Month of January of the Year 1223. in the following manner for this Circumstance was omitted purposely before for a pretence to bring in more ridiculous and lying Wonders to recommend St. Francis and his Indulgence As St. Francis at Midnight was praying in his Cell the Enemy came to him with the pretence of Friendship saying Francis wherefore will you destory your self before your time Why do you so mortifie your self with Watching Know you not that Sleep is the principal Cherisher of Life and very necessary and profitable for a young Person The holy Father observing the Artifice of the Devil threw off his upper Cloathing and having nothing on but his Drawers in fervour of Spirit run out of his Cell and creeping through a thick Thorn-Hedge he forc'd his way into a neighbouring Wood where he tumbl'd his Body among the Briars and Thorns till it was all over bloody saying to himself 'T is much better that I by suffering this do fill up the Sufferings of Christ than that I should suffer my self to be prevail'd upon by the Enemy The Enemy being thus drove away a great Light shin'd round about him And altho' this was in the middle of Winter nevertheless he saw about him red and white Roses in abundance At length a multitude of Angels came about him and said Francis get up quickly and go into the Church for Christ and his Mother wait for you there He standing up seem'd to himself to have upon him a miraâ—ulous bright and white Garment and having gather'd Twelve white and Twelve red Roses he went into the Church but a civil Saint would not have staid to do this when such Persons were waiting for him All the way as he went seem'd to him to be spread with Silken and Purple Tapestry Being then with great Reverence come into the Church he saw there the Lord Jesus Christ with his blessed Mother and a great multitude of Angels he thereupon falling to his Prayers said Our most holy Father Lord of Heaven and Earth and Saviour of the Generations of Men may it please you of your great mercy to appoint a particular Day for the Indulgence you have granted to this place Then the holy Mother of God praying also for him Christ said I will that the particular Day shall be that on which my Apostle Peter was loosed from his Bonds beginning from the second Vespers of that day and continuing to the Vespers of the day following including also the Night between both within which time all that come into this Church shall enjoy the Indulgence Then the Angels set up a singing the Te Deum with a great deal of Reason certainly for so great a Benefit granted to the World Many silly and riculous Circumstances more are mention'd in the Story but to be short He went to the Pope show'd his fine flourishing Roses in Winter and by Virtue of them obtain'd this Indulgence as the particular Order and Pleasure of Jesus Christ through the Intercession of his most holy Mother the whole Grant they state thus That all who from the Vespers of the first Day of August to the Vespers of the following Day shall come into the Church of our Lady of the Angels shall obtain full Remission of all their Sins committed from their Baptism to the Hour that they come into that Church having confess'd with Repentance and receiv'd Absolution of the Priest This Indulgence was a long time to be obtain'd only in this little Church call'd Portiuncula but perilous Times succeeding and it becoming very troublesom and difficult for those especially in Foreign Countries to come hiâ—â—or for it at length his Holiness Pope Gregory the Tenth in the Year 1622. upon the 4th day of July granted That the same Indulgence should be obtain'd by all Christians in all and every the Churches of the Minor Brothers Order through the whole World as fully as if they came to the Church Portiuncula it self That is to say the Order encreased and several Families of them came to be spread about in several Countries and this is one of the Tricks to maintain them by and therefore every House of them must be furnish'd with this gainful Privilege for we are not to forget that an Indulgence is not to be had without leaving some Offering of Alms as 't is call'd where that is obtain'd that is to say it is not to be had without Money Thus we see what Foundation they have for the Devotions of this great Festival and this is as good as that of many others Upon the Credit of this foolish absurd and impious Story do thousands of People run on this day to the Churches of these Monks to have their Sins pardon'd Princes Statesmen Physicians Lawyers Divines leave their important Business to attend the Devotions of this day especially those who are joyn'd to these Monks by being of the Brotherhood of the Cord of St. Francis Certainly the Doctrine of Implicite Faith and Blind Obedience must be very necessary to this
or Penalty to be suffered by our selves Or else he could establish a Commutation of a greater Pain for a lesser That is to say He could excuse us from the Eternal Pain due to our Sins and leave us bound to some Temporal Pains and this is that which he has done with relation to those who fall into Sin after their Baptism They must suffer some Temporal Pain tho the Eternal be remitted to them And it is not to be concluded thence saies he that Jesus Christ has not entirely satisfied for us but on the contrary that he having acquir'd an absolute Right or Propreity over us by the infinite Price he has given for our Salvation he granâ—s us our Pardon upon such a Condition or such a Law and with such a Reserve as he pleases It is therefore to satisfie this Obligation that we are subject to some Penalty which we ought to accomplish in the Spirit of Humility and Repentance And it was the necessity of these satisfactory Works which oblig'd the Ancient Church to impose upon Penitents the Penalties which are call'd Canonical When therefore the Church imposes upon Sinners the Works that are penal and laborious and it is so that they submit to them with Humility this is called Satisfaction and when having regard to the Fervour of the Penitents or to other good Works which she has prescrib'd to them she relaxes some part of the Pain that was due this is call'd Indulgence Those that go out of this Life with Grace and Charity but are nevertheless still indebted for some Pains which the divine Justice has reserv'd must suffer them in another Life that is in Purgatory This Purgatory Purgatory they make as frightful as they can devise to do they say the Pains are the same with those in Hell they set the place of it as it were on the Suburbs of Hell and represent it as incomparably more intollerable than all that can be endur'd in this World insomuch that if we might believe the Stories which they have of the Apparitions and Complaints of Souls tortur'd there it were more eligible and better to be endur'd to live quite through an ordinary Life on Earth under the most wracking and tormenting Disease than to lie but for a day in Purgatory But these miserable Wretches who are there have this Relief as the Bishop of Meaux says That God has so establish'd the Advantages of brotherly Charity and the Communion of Saints that oftentimes he receives the Satisfactions which we offer for one another So the Souls in Purgatory they pretend may be reliev'd and either eased there or deliver'd from thence by the Satisfactions of their Friends for them who are living on Earth These Satisfactions their living Friends must give for them either by doing some laborious Works or by suffering many hard and voluntary Penances themselves or else they must purchase a good parcel of Satisfactions for them out of the Treasury of the Church which the Pope at Rome and the Bishops in their respective Diocesses have as they pretend the Power to dispence and to communicate or apply them to whom they please This Treasure of the Church as they pretend is made up of the infinite Satisfactions of Jesus Christ and the Satisfactions of the Saints The Bishop of Meaux says He mentions those of the Saints because the Goodness of God is such that he is willing out of Favour to the more pious of his Servants to suffer himself to be for their sakes the more gentle and easie to others This saies he is the Foundation of Indulgences They are establish'd to relax the Rigour of the temporal Pains due to sin They are not design'd he says to discharge us from the Obligations we lie under to satisfie God our selves but because we have always Reason to fear that we are far from having satisfied occording to our Obligations we should be Enemies to our selves if we should not have recourse to the Favours and Indulgences of the Church which are design'd to aid those who have a good Will and do endeavour to satisfie for themselves to quit their Score and to supply their Infirmities Now these Satisfactions of the Saints which make up the Fund of Indulgences and the Treasure of the Church are reckon'd to be increas'd to a mighty Sum and Heap tho' an invisible one by any Works especially of Supererogation And so the vows of the Religious Orders of Poverty Chastity and Obedience to such and such austere Rules of living are things accounted mightily meritorious And then if the Treasure of the Church be mightily furnish'd from the meritorious and satisfactory Fopperies of the Religious Orders it is but reasonable that the Pope should grant Indulgences that is Communications of these Merits and Satisfactions to be obtain'd at their Altars and Chappels But methinks too it seems not a little hard or perhaps unjust that every Order should not have the keeping and dispensing of their own Merits and Satisfactions that they must depend upon the Pope for the Disposal of what is their own or work to enlarge his Treasure and have none of their own to dispose of without his leave Sic vos non vobis fertis aratra boves We shall observe in the following Relation that the Extent or Duration of the Indulgences granted to several Performances is very different some being granted for a certain number of Days more or less some again are called Plenary Indulgences the Explication of this matter I shall give here once for all in their own Words Through an Indulgence of forty days say they men obtain the Forgiveness of the Penalty due for their Sins all at once as if they had truly done the Penance of forty days according to the ancient Usage of the holy Church An Indulgence for a Year is a Forgiveness of Penalty so great as a Man could merit by doing penance for a whole Year A Plenary Indulgence is the Forgiveness of all Penalty that a Man owes for his Sins so that he who hath obtain'd a Plenary Indulgence if it were so that he should immediately die before he fall again into Sin he should go straight to Heaven without being oblig'd to suffer in the Fire of Purgatory Let us now observe how the Cheat of all this may be discern'd and upon a little Examination of the matter we shall find that this whole Frame of Stuff is a politick Engine to keep the People in Awe and Subjection to the Pope and to hold the several numerous Orders or rather Regiments of superfluous Priests in good pay and to pay them too with other Peoples Money In the first place we may observe 't is well known to those who are acquainted with the History and Discipline of the primitive Church that they did indeed injoyn publick Penance for those who were guilty of publick and notorious Crimes which they oblig'd them to endure and fulfil before they would admit them after such Faults to partake of
l'Eglise The Church believes that she was after her death receiv'd into Heaven both in Body and Soul but he brings no Testimony for it He acknowledges that the little Treatise concerning the Assumption of the Virgin Mary among the Works of St. Jerom is none of that Father's Writings and that the Homilies on this Festival among the Works of St. Augustin are none of his He destroys too the pretended Testimony of Denis the Areopagite and so leaves the Story rather confuted than confirm'd Dupin Nouvelle Bibliotheque speaks of that Treatise among the Works of St. Jerome what is worth observing here The 10th Letter says he on the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is written by some Latin Author who liv'd when the East was infected with the Errour of the Eutychians who would acknowledge but one Nature in Jesus Christ as he observes himself and this was what came to pass long after the death of St. Jerom. He that wrote it says he set it out under the name of St. Jerome that what he says of the Blessed Virgin might be the more valued And the better to colour the Cheat he pretends to direct it to Paula and Eustochium persons to whom St. Jerome did truly write Altho ' he enlarges upon the Commendations and Prerogatives of the Virgin yet he says it was not certain whether she was risen from the Dead and her Body carried up into Heaven or not This Treatise says he further tho' supposititious was inserted into the Office of the Church by Paulus Diaconus and Alcuinus in Charlemaign's time And since that it has made up part of the Lessons for the Feast of the Assumption in the Old Breviaries of France and Italy Thus speaks Dupin of this matter But notwithstanding the uncertainty of this Fact the Church of Rome celebrates a Day to commemorate this to her Honour which is the 15th of August and a Plenary Indulgence is granted to encourage the Devotions of this Solemnity in this Church the form of the Publication of which in the Year 1696 was as follows Plenary Indulgence Upon the Feast-day of the glorious Assumption of the H. Mother of God Mary in the Cathedral Church of this City of Antwerp granted to all Faithful Christians by Innocent the 11 th Upon such a day the 15th of August being the Feast-day of the Glorious Assumption of the H. Maid and Mother of God Mary there is to be obtain'd Plenary Indulgence not only for those who are entred or shall enter themselves in the Brotherhood of the same Mother of God foremention'd but also for all other Believers in Christ who having true Repentance being confess'd and nourish'd by the Holy Communion shall visit the Cathedral Church and the Holy Maid in her Chappel there and there piously pray for the Union of Christian Princes the Extirpation of Heresies and the Advancement of our Mother the Holy Church Which Indulgence shall begin from the first Vespers and continue to the Sun-setting of the Feast-day it self Upon the Feast-day it self at Eight a Clock in the Morning shall a Sermon be preach'd by the Reverend Chanoine and Pleban of the same Church At half an hour after 10 shall the Solemn Mass be said in the aforesaid Chappel by Afternoon at two a Clock shall be the solemn Vespers at 4 a Clock the Sermon by of the Order of the Reverend Fathers the Brothers of our Lady After the Lauds of the most Reverend and H. Sacrament shall follow the solemn Laud to the Honour of the Holy Virgin and Mother of God Mary with extraordinary Musick Through the whole Octave and the followin Week shall the Service be perform'd as follows At 7 a Clock in the Morning shall be the solemn Mass At 8 upon working-days the Sermon shall be preach ' by c. Every Evening the solemn Laud shall begin at half an hour after 5 so that upon the Thursdays in the two Weeks the Laud of the Venerable shall be perform'd at 5 Clock and during the second Week the Church shall be kept open till Ten a Clock for the convenience of the devout Souls who shall walk the accustomed course to the Honour of the Holy Mother of God Recommending it to all devout persons that they would be found in this service Upon Sunday being the 19th day at 8 a Clock shall preach Upon Sunday the 26th shall the solemn Mass be said at 7 a Clock by the Illustrious and most Reverend the Bishop of Antwerp At 8 a Clock shall again preach the Reverend Chanoine and Pleban of the same Church and in the Evening after the Laud shall the Benediction be given by the same Reverend Person And the more to excite the Devotion of the Christian Catholicks his Reverence John Ferdinand Bishop of Antwerp hath granted to all Faithful Christians who shall upon the Feast of the Glorious Assumption and every day of the whole Octave with devotion of Heart hear the solemn Mass or to the Honour of the Virgin shall walk the way of the general Procession praying to Almighty God for the Union of Christian Princes the Extirpation of Heresies and the Advancement of our Mother the H. Church 40 days of Indulgence and that repeated for so many times as they shall have done what is aforesaid Upon Monday the 27th shall be perform'd in the same Chappel at 8 a Clock in the Morning a solemn Mass of Thanksgiving for all the Benefactors of the aforesaid Chappel of the H. Mother of God Note If any person whether Man or Woman shall have the Devotion to enter themselves in the Ancient and Renown'd Brotherhood of the Holy Maid the Masters of the said Chappel shall be at all times sitting ready to receive them in their usual place Upon which day of their entrance they obtain a Plenary Indulgence and Acquittance from all their Sins if having true Repentance and being confess'd they shall receive the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar Moreover Plenary Indulgences are there to be obtain'd also upon particular Feast Days of the Holy Mother granted by his Holiness Pope Innocent the 11th as also on all Saturdays to every Priest that says the Mass for the Souls departed is the priviledge granted for relieving and delivering out of Purgatory one-Soul of those who were entred in the aforesaid Brotherhood All to the greater Glory of God and his most Holy Mother Mary Thus is it confess'd that all this elaborate Devotion is design'd as well to the Honour of the Virgin Mary as of God And is all this no more than with the Spirit of Charity to desire her Prayers As much as this comes to is repeated 8 or 10 times a Year upon the several Festivals they assign to her Is all this necessary to engage her Assistance Are not here Divine Honours in the most solemn manner paid to her when all this is done for her Honour as well as for God's and even that which done as is pretended for God's Honour But let them know that
value themselves And to this purpose in their Acta Sanctorum they criticize upon them For which boldness the Carmes set to work and us'd their Interest so well in Spain that they got this Book condemn'd at Toledo by the Inquisition under a great many odious Epithets and burnt in publick by their Officer in the Year 1696. They are also hard at work to get it condemned at Rome and the Jesuites are labouring to prevent this The Carmes have not been able as yet to gain that point but they have perswaded the Pope to give them a Testimony of his Esteem and Favour and to do something to support their Esteem among the People Accordingly he has this Year granted to the general Chapter of these Carmes expressly for promoting their good success and the encrease of their Order as well as for the greater Glory of God and the Salvation of Men a Plenary Indulgence to all that shall visit their Churches upon the Feast of the Ascension of our Saviour and from thence to Whit-Sunday inclusively to be present at such and such Devotions specified The time that we came to Antwerp was within that compass and the place of our Lodging on the Mere being over against one entrance to their Church we could observe a great many People hasting in thither This drew us thither too believing there was something extraordinary and coming we found by printed Papers posted up as is usual that this was the occasion of the Concourse It was I think the time of Compline as they call it which is the last Office of the Day They commonly begin and end this Service on Festival-times as this was with the Benediction of the Holy Sacrament which is thus perform'd The Priest brings it out in a rich Benediction Remonstranter at the beginning and very gravely holding it before him turns himself a little successively towards both sides of the Chappel and so shews it to the People who all prostrate themselves and adore it This done he sets it up in a place fitted for it on the Altar and when the Office is done this formality is repeated again This they call the Benediction and those who cannot be present at the whole Service will sometimes make great haste to secure the Felicity of the Benediction at the end which they are warn'd of by a Bell as I now observ'd We saw now the Church-Yard which is not a small one full of Coaches and the large Church throng'd with People And three of their Priests were at the High Altar in very rich Copes which seem'd at a distance to be Cloth of Silver with a great deal of Embroidery upon them in Gold and Silver But as is usual with Copes this Embroidery was some of it perhaps laid on in the form of a Cross which reaches from the top to the bottom and from one side to the other of the Cope behind for these good Men are proud of bearing the Cross after Christ I fancy such a Cross as this would not be either to the Jews a stumbling Block or to the Greeks Foolishness tho' the Cross of Christ was so This is their Cross indeed and in hot weather somewhat a heavy one alas but little a-kin after all to the Cross of Christ These People have here on the North side of the Quire a pretty close Chappel dedicated to the Virgin Mary the Floor the Walls and the Arch'd Roof are all Marble the Floor black and white and the rest white On the Wall upon the Right-hand as one goes in there are two pieces of very curious carv'd Work in two Pannels as I may speak of the Marble the one is a Prospect of the City of Antwerp The other is an Army rang'd in its feveral Battalions of Horse and Foot where ones sees the Men and the Horses of the several Bodies distinctly cut In this Chappel over the Altar there stands an Image of the Virgin Mary crown'd as tall I believe as a Child of two Years old with a Child in her Arms and these seem'd and the Monk told us they are Massy Silver They shew too a small Effigies of a Man in a Coffin with the Scapular on to be sure in which it must be supposed he died and was buried that he might assuredly be sav'd This is said to be the Man who erected this Chappel he was as I rember a rich Merchant of Antwerp But let us return to the Indulgences so often Indulgences mention'd which the poor People so eagerly run after and consider them a little upon this Occasion once for all that we may understand the Reason and Use and the Cheat of them Indulgences are the great Manufacture as we may say of the Roman Church that which supports their Trade and brings in their Wealth That which gathers and binds together the Fraternities who at their charge erect beautifie and maintain some Altars and Chappels and the worship of some particular Saints is that several Indulgences are granted to that Fraternity to be obtain'd at those Altars and Chappels That which draws the multitude to Church to be present at a Mass and other Devotions on their numerous Holidays is the grant of Indulgences to be obtain'd there at those times When any Church or Chappel wants repairing begins to be deserted or wants more Finery and Riches new Indulgences are granted to those that shall come to Mass at that Altar or Chappel When the Pope has a mind to favour any knot of Secular Priests or any Religious Order he grants them some new Indulgences to be obtain'd by those who shall come to hear them say Mass at certain appointed times at their Churches or Chappels But whatever other Preparation they have or want in order to partake of these Benefits they must not think to do it without an Offering So the Indulgences bring People the People bring Money and Money answers all things with them This is the real Use and Design of these things they are very profitable to the Priests but let us see what an Advantage they are pretended to be to the People and how groundless and false that Pretence is and how the real Cheat of all may be discover'd We shall strictly follow the Bishop of Meaux in taking an Account of the Doctrine of Indulgences whose Expositions are become Oracles in the Church of Rome He puts his Account of their Doctrine of Satisfaction for Sin and of Purgatory and of Indulgences together And indeed they are all as well as they can be joyn'd together in the Doctrine of that Church The Catholicks saies he meaning the Church of Rome do with one Consent teach That Jesus Christ alone God and Man was capable by the infinite Dignity of his Person to offer to God a Satisfaction sufficient for our Sins But he having superabundantly satisfied could apply that his infinite Satisfaction to us in these two different manners Either he could give us an entire Discharge without the Reserve of any Pain
the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper But these Penances were not design'd to satisfy the divine Justice for the Sins committed but to give the Church and the Publick Satisfafaction and evident Proof of the Sincerity and Truth of their Repentance And when the time of these Penances was shortned which was the usual Indulgence of the Primitive Church it was because the Circumstances satisfied the Church before the time appointed was all spent that the Penitent was truly such and was come to a due Sense and Detestation of his Fault Or else it was shortned because the Person was likely to die within the time prefixed In which case also he having continued his Task of Pennance was at the point of Death admitted to partake of that Sacrament for his Consolation and Support in that sad Hour Thus was the matter managed in the primitive Church And 't is well known also by those who are acquainted with the State and Management of the Roman Church at present that those good Men who would revive the ancient Discipline and do require the Evidences of a true Repentance before they admit People to that Sacrament are hated and persecuted by the prevailing Faction in the Church of Rome under the Dominion of the Jesuits and revil'd and reproach'd with the Names of Jansenists Arnaldists Novators Rigourists and Hereticks Among others who bestow upon them these hated Names the famous Traveller Henâ—epin whose Brains were bewildred in the Wildernesses of America if he ever had any has endeavour'd to signalize himself in a Railing Book against them which is full as wise as his Travels and perhaps the Relations of it much about as true Again we may observe this Variation in the Church of Rome from the primitive Church The primitive Church was to have the Satisfaction or give the Indulgence before the Penitents were admitted to the Sacrament of the Lords Supper But in the Church of Rome 't is always express'd and and requir'd as a Condition of enjoying the Indulgence that the persons shall have first confess'd and receiv'd the Communion The plain Reason of this is because the Offering at receiving of the Communion is the chief thing which the Indulgence is granted for and must be attain'd by And the primitive Church never pretended by her Indulgence to relax the Pains of Purgatory or to deliver any from it for they knew nothing of any such place or State as the Romanists have invented Further let us observe That the Bishop of Meaux confesses as indeed he is forced to do by the Evidence of holy Scripture That the Sufferings of Jesus Christ and his Meritorious Death are a full Satisfaction to the Divine Justice for the Sins of Men. But from hence we may conclude That at least there can be no need of Humane Satisfactions or that we must suffer severe penalties to satisfie for our Sins The Justice of God cannot be said to require more than is necessary unless he be very unjustly accus'd But if Christ has done all in this matter more than all is more than need to be a full Satisfaction must be enough and all Therefore whatever other Reasons there may have been for God's laying temporal Afflictions on Good Men notwithstanding that he has pardon'd their sins they are not laid upon them for any Satisfaction to the Divine Justice If the suffering of these were the necessary and requir'd Condition of our partaking in the Satisfaction of Christ Jesus yet it were not proper to call them Satisfactions to the Divine Justice for our sins He therefore in this Explication of the matter goes beside the true Doctrine of his Church and gives another Reason for these temporal punishments Besides the Holy Scripture no where teaches this Doctrine of his it says By Grace we are saved even through the Merits and Satisfaction of Jesus Christ not by any penal Works of our own And it is no where propos'd as a Condition of our partaking in the Satisfaction of Jesus Christ that we must pay a part of the Satisfaction due for our selves If the Goodness of God in condescension to our Weakness is content that we should satisfie for one another as Mr. de Meaux says Why may we not believe that the Goodness of God for that Reason will accept of and content himself with the Sufferings and Satisfaction of Jesus Christ for us all which indeed the Scripture plainly teaches and we justly believe he has done Further the Bishop of Meaux has been forced in his Explaining their Doctrine in these matters to destroy it as indeed it does like other Errors destroy it self To make Men depend upon Indulgences and keep up the Trade of them he has evidently taken away what he calls the Foundation of Indulgences and the Treasure of the Church so far as the Merits of the Saints are concern'd in it He says That Men ought after all that they have done in order to satisfie for their sins to fear still that they have fallen short of the full Satisfaction for themselves and therefore they must run from place to place to obtain the Benefit of Indulgences But then if any ought to fear this for themselves all ought to fear it concerning themselves And if this be the Doctrine of the Church all must submit to and believe it so that after all their pretended Supererogations those of the Religious Orders ought to fear that they have not made Satisfaction enough for themselves If they ought to fear this others may fear it too as well concerning those Monks as concerning themselves And then all may justly fear that there is no such a Treasure of Merits and Satisfactions from their penal and laborious Satisfactions as is pretended For he that may be fear'd not to have done enough for himself may be more justly fear'd not to have done enough for himself and others He that has not enough for himself has none to spare But the Scripture evidently determines this matter beyond all Contradiction by destroying the vain Opinion of Supererogations it teaches us evidently That no man in this life can perfectly fulfil what he is oblig'd to by the Law of God and for that Reason we all need the Satisfaction and Righteousness of Jesus Christ in order to find Acceptance with God The great Apostle St. Paul renounces his own Righteousness Philip. 3. 9. and says plainly That he could not in this Life pretend to be perfect in the 12th Verse The Apostle St. James of himself and all Christians in common says In many things we offend all James 3. 2. The Apostle St. John includes himself also with all Christians and says If we say that we have no sin we deceive our selves and the Truth is not in us 1 Epist Chap. 1. v. 8. But if no man can perform all that he is oblig'd to do certainly no man can do more than that Further No Man nor Company of Men can make a full Satisfaction by all the penal Works which they
it a Dutch Rhime signifying that The best means to drive away from our selves the Plague is to Honour St. Charles with Alms. There are Litanieâ— hang'd up in Frames before a place to pray at which the People are taught to say to St. Charles In the same enclosure are contain'd also as an Inscription tells us the Relicks of St. Dorothy who is there said to be a Patroness for breeding and Child-bearing Women I cannot find how this comes about or on what this esteem of her is built for she was as story says a Virgin Martyr The Church of Rome commemorates her on the 6th of February and in the Mass for the Day is this extravagant Prayer used Grant O Lord we may obtain the Pardon of our Sins by the Intercession of the Blessed Dorothy Virgin and Martyr who was always acceptable to Thes by the merit of her Chastity and by the Profession which she made of thy Vertue through our Lord Jesus Christ c. It is evident by this and many other of their Prayers that they even equal the Saints to our Saviour in the Office of Mediation Here they ask the greatest benefit Pardon of Sin by vertue of her Intercession and this Intercession of hers they expect shall prevail by the merit of her Chastity and Vertue Sometimes they mention the sufferings of Martyrs as what they hope shall prevail for them and even satisfie for their Sins Which things show how much they differ from true Christianity which as the Apostle has taught us acknowledges but one Mediator between God and Man the Man Christ Jesus At an Altar of the Virgin Mary in this Church these Compliments are given her by Inscriptions about it Sedes Sapientiae and again Virgo Maria Illuminatrix Let it be judg'd whether these are not Attributes that signifie something may be expected from the Virgin Mary her self and that it is not true what the explaining People of the Church of Rome pretend That they only pray to the Saints to pray for them When the Virgin Mary is call'd the Seat of Wisdom and an Inlightner would not any one who believes this of her think that he might expect Wisdom and Illumination from her And when a Saint is call'd a Patron in such and such particular Cases the People are led to understand that 't is the Saint that helps in such cases by vertue of a Power given him from Almighty God For if praying and interceding be all their business one Saint may pray for any thing as well as another In this Church there is an Altar dedicated to the Holy Trinity as an Inscription tells us in these words Deo Triuno Sacrum The Altar-peice is a Picture such as they usually make for the dishonourable and Impious Representation of the H. Trinity One sees painted an old Man sitting in the Clouds with a tripple Crown on his Head a younger Man sits by him on his right hand holding a Cross and over them is a Pigeon hovering with a Glory about it The Church of St. Michael is said to be the oldest in Louvain It stands upon the Innermost Wall and the Gate-way through the Wall goes under the Church For this reason one cannot think that this was the first Church built here because no People would have set their Church upon the outermost Wall of the City as this was at first By a Printed Paper posted up within the Portal of this Church it was said That a plenary Indulgence was to be obtain'd there by all those who shall come and offer at the Altar of the Holy Trinity on the Feast and Octave of the H. Trinity which was now approaching for the Redemption of Christian Slaves out of the hands of the Turks And those of the Fraternity of the Holy Trinity who should come hither for this purpose were to enjoy all the Indulgences Benefits Priviledges which belong and are granted to the Fraternity of the Cord of St. Francis or to that of the Rosary or that of the Girdle of St. Augustine Very much but perhaps not all worth two pence Within the Church is an Altar to the Holy Trinity which seems much out of repair and deserted for which reason perhaps the aforesaid bait is laid to draw People hither There is a wretched Image of an Old Man over it which was all I could make out perhaps because it stands somewhat dark This Church is but mean in all respects There are in it two or three Altars to St. Michael where we see an ugly Image of him treading upon a Dragon By one of these Altars is a Box to receive Money and by it an Inscription which says That Offerings of Chairty should be given there to the Angel St. Michael that he may stand by us in the time of our need And he is there said to be the Patron against the Head-ach and burning Feavers We had spent as much time here as we could afford and were endeavouring to get from hence to Namur We found that there was no stated Carriage between these two places That we could not hire our Carriage for our selves but at an unreasonable rate and no man cared indeed to carry us that way it being out of the Road of business at present But to Maestricht or Brussels we might go because this was the time of year for using the Waters of Aix la Chapelle and this occasion'd them a great deal of employment in that Road. We had not secur'd our places in the Coach for Namur from Brussels and must perhaps have been forc'd to stay there longer than we could afford if we had gone back thither and so we resolv'd to go from hence for Maestricht thinking that perhaps we might from thence go conveniently for Namur This passage they reckon'd to us at 14 Hours but by reason of the badness of the Ways and the slowness of their travelling we made it I believe near 20 hours for it took us up two long days to get to Maestricht Passage from Louvaine to Maestricht ON Whitmonday according to the Roman stile we took our places in a Charrette that was bound for Maestricht We were in all 6 or 8 Persons in the Charrette and were drawn by 3 Horses We paid each person for this passage two Pattacoons at 48 Stivers each which came to 9 Guilders 12 Stivers for two of us We began our Journey about 11 a Clock before Noon went through a great part of the City and out at the Thienen Port so we left Park Abby a little on our left hand This is a House belonging to the Order of the Premonstratenses who were taken notice of before at Antwerp The place still retains the Name it had before it was taken to this Use The House stands in a Park a place made very pleasant by a little Wood near it and fine Fish-ponds a little Brook and curious Meadows This account is given of the place and tho' we could not see it I think fit to mention
he who has said Mine Honour will I not give to another will not reckon there is any paid to him when that which is due only to him is communicated to a Creature And we may observe how undistinctly at least they speak to the People and how ill they must needs teach them when they speak so in this that they mention at last the most Glorious Deity without any Epithet of Honour but the Virgin is call'd most Holy Certainly if their Prayers for the extirpation of Heresies which are always excited on these occasions had any effect they would procure the removal of these gross Idolatries from the Christian Church In the entrace of the Office for the Mass of this Day they say Let us all rejoyce in the Lord and solemnly celebrate this Day in Honour of the Blessed Mary For the Assumption of whom the Angels rejoyce and glorifie the Son of God Mr. de Meaux produces a Collect for the Day which runs thus O Lord let us receive a Salutary Assistance from the Solemnity of this Day whereon the Blessed Virgin Mary Mother of God underwent a Temporal Death but could not be held down by the Chains of that Death c. On the day of this Festival and so through the whole Octave one shall see at this Church a number of Puppets dress'd up to represent her and hung by Wyres in a strait Line one above another up to the top of the losty Church and the highest of them are the least to make the distance appear the greater but they are all dress'd exactly alike Thus are the People taught her Assumption but while they are thus taught by Images and Pictures we cannot chuse but think that it would be much better for them if they had more of the Scriptures and less of these This is one of the many Instances of Devotion in the Roman Church which at least are groundless and without any Foundation or Warrant in the Word of God But if that which is done without Faith as the Apostle says be Sin and that which has no Foundation or Warrant from the Word of God must be done by consequence without Faith then 't is necessary that these Devotions instead of being acceptable with God must be sinful and an Abomination to him But there is yet a further Guilt in this matter and that is That this with several Honours and Devotions paid to the Virgin Mary are design'd and tend to parallel her first with our blessed Saviour and then perhaps afterwards they will advance her above him as in some things some of them seem to do already for these Evil Men and Seducers grow worse and worse Therefore as the Christian Church has observ'd a Day and still does so to celebrate our Saviour's miraculous Conception the Church of Rome keeps a Day to celebrate hers which the Bishop of Meaux expresly calls a miraculous Conception too As the Christian Church celebrates the Nativity of our Lord so the Roman Church celebrates on a particular Festival that of the Virgin As the Christian Church celebrates the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple as the First-born of his Mother and a Male so the Roman Church celebrates the Presentation of the Virgin Mary at the Temple having as the Bishop of Meaux says receiv'd it by a pious Tradition come from the East That the blessed Mary was consecrated to God from her Infancy and presented to him in the Temple This Story was very ignorantly invented at first For the Jewish Law ordain'd indeed that the Males should be presented to God which were the First-born of their Mothers but not the Females This is very evident in the Scripture and the Jesuit Menochius states the Law so in his Learned Book De Republica Hebraica They commemorate her Sufferings as well as those of our Saviour and frequently show her to the People as having a Sword sticking in her Breast as she stands by the Cross of our Saviour and sometimes they express their Reliance on her Sufferings for the Satisfaction of their Guilt as they do of those of our Saviour To conclude as the Church celebrates the Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord into Heaven so does the Church of Rome that of the blessed Virgin whom by a parallel Title they usually call Our Lady If all should be here produced which is practised in the Veneration of the Virgin Mary by the Church of Rome and is allow'd and encourag'd by the publick Authority of the same and taught by their Preachers and Writers without Censure yea with the express Approbation of the Censurers I doubt not but it would appear to any just and impartial Person to be no hard and unjust Appellation if one should call the People of that Communion rather Marians than Christians Antwerp is abundantly furnish'd with those call'd Religious Houses of several sorts both for Men and Women for these Renouncers of the World commonly flock to those places chiefly where there is most Wealth stirring and where 't is most pleasant living The chief Orders of Mâ—n here and whose Chappels are the finest and most frequented are the Minor Brothers a Species of the Franciscans and the Carmelites who are call'd The Brothers of our Lady the Norbertines and the Jesuits The things which recommend the Orders to the People and make them run more after one than another are commonly these The Opinion which the People have of the Holiness of some Saints of such an Order whose Altars and Chappels they visit to partake of their Merits and Intercessions and the Indulgences granted to be obtain'd in the Churches of that Order together with the Festivals which they particularly celebrate We must add to these also the Fraternities which belong to them and sometimes an Image they have in their Chappels is famous for the Miracles pretended to be wrought there tho' perhaps they have hardly any Witnesses to these but the Monks that keep them and some hired Vouchers The Minor Brothers have a good House and Minorites a large Church here and a great Reputation among the People they go bare-legg'd but have Sandals on their Feet they have several Processions in a Year wherein they appear a great number and have a great Company of men marching with their Torches before the Host as if they wanted Light as I think they do and were groping at Noon-day as the Blind grope in Darkness They carry the Host then in very rich Circumstances with some large Silver Incense-pots before it under a rich Canopy in a large and costly Remonstrancer and the Priest that carries it does not fail to have a great deal of Gold and Silver upon his Back To these People are tied the Fraternity of the Cord of St. Francis which enjoys great Spiritual Privileges of the Pope's granting They have a great Festival founded upon a ridiculous Story which they call The Feast of Portiuncula That is a time of enjoying those Indulgences which were granted upon the
Intercession of the Virgin Mary by the express Command of Jesus Christ as is pretended to be obtain'd first in a little Chappel which St. Francis used which he call'd Portiuncula and after a time as it is now those Indulgences were to be had in all the Chappels of these good Men. They look very jolly by Virtue of these things and one may believe do not fail since they can afford it to indulge themselves I think it may not be amiss to detain the Reader here a little while with a more particular Account of these two profitable Privileges belonging to this Order which like the Goods of a Tradesman's Shop bring People to their Churches and Wealth to their Houses the rather because by these things as a Specimen it will appear by what base Tricks and palpable Cheats the Religious Orders as they are call'd in the Church of Rome are maintain'd and several large Families of idle useless supernumerary Priests live upon the Sweat and Labour of the meaner people and grow rich by draining away gradually from the greater their Wealth and Possessions I shall first give an Account of the Feast of Portiuncula as I have it from themselves In a short Relation of the Original and most Plenary Ingulgences of our Lady of the Angels nam'd Portiuncula granted the holy Francis by Christ himself which is yearly to be obtain'd in the Churches of the Minor Brothers on the second of August It is as follows At the distance of about a Mile from Assise in Italy where the holy Francis was born there stood an old ruinous little Chappel belonging to a certain Abbey of St Benedict to this place the holy Francis after his Conversion bore a particular Devotion and begun to repair the same after the best manner that he could and to take it for his ordinary Habitation chusing the same for the first Settlement and beginning of his Seraphick Order and call'd it Our Lady of the Angels for that he had often in that place heard the wonderful sweet Hymns of the Angels of God and had himself there oftentimes enjoy'd their Conversation He nam'd also this Chappel Our Lady of Portiuncula whether it were from a Village of that Name near which this Chappel might be built or for that he held this place for his little Portion in Latin Portiuncula which God Almighty had allotted him for his Order Altho' the Foundation at first was very small yet it is through the particular Dispensation of God greatly encreas'd and become exceedingly renown'd through all Christendom It was also held in such Estimation by St. Francis that no man was permitted to come in there but his Brothers only and of the same none might there dwell with him but such as excell'd in good and exemplary living This now was well enough thought on in a Story so silly as this will appear because under this pretence they can put upon the World what Lyes they please concerning St. Francis's Miracles and miraculous Entertainments here as it is the common Character of their feign'd Miracles by which they pretend to confirm and recommend their Fopperies and Superstitions and Idolatries that they are always done in a Corner and hid from the World there are none of them that ever appear'd in publick or in any great Concourse of People or to any impartial Witnesses But to go on with my Tale It came to pass they say in the Year 1221. about the Month of October as the holy Francis was in his Cell very zealously and heartily praying to God for Sinners an Angel appear'd to him who said That he must go immediately into the Church because that our Saviour and his most Holy Mother with an innumerable Multitude of Angels were waiting for him It was really very condescendingly done for this great Company to come first and wait for him or rather most impudently was the Story thus devis'd but this Honour which they give St. Francis is little to what the Alcoran of the Minorites ascribes to him I mean the great Book I have seen of the Conformities of St. Francis with Jesus Christ Upon this St. Francis went into the Church and saw there the Lord Christ on whose Right-hand stood his Blessed Mother encompass'd with an innumerable Company of Angels Whereupon he fell flat on his Face to the Earth and continued there his devout Prayers to the Lord and his Mother Was this an Exercise of Devotion in St. Francis to pray to the Virgin together with Christ or done only with the Bishop of Meaux's Spirit of Charity But the Lord Jesus said to him Francis you and your Brothers precious Men are extreamly solicitous for the Salvation of Men seek therefore of me for the Salvation of the People for the Comfort of Souls and for advancing the Honour of my Name all that which you desire and it shall undoubtedly be granted you St. Francis lay stretch'd out before the Face of God altogether transported in Spirit but being come a little to himself and being strengthned in the inner Man he took Courage and said O most Holy Father I a poor Sinner pray and intreat most humbly that your Divine Majesty will be pleased to grant Mankind this Favour That all those who shall come to this Church may be favour'd and indulg'd with a full Forgiveness of all their Sins which they have confess'd to the Priest I also pray you most Holy Mother Advocatress of the Generations of Men that your most gracious Majesty will be pleased to help me in my Request The most saving Queen of Heaven being mov'd by the Prayer of her Servant Francis begun immediately to entreat her Son saying Most Holy Almighty God I humbly entreat your Godhead that your Majesty will be pleased to hear and favour your and my Servant Francis Hereupon said the Lord to him Francis the thing you seek is truly very great but you are worthy of more than that I consent to your Prayer but I desire you would go to my Stadtholder and from him in my Name seek this Indulgence and thereupon did the Lord and his Company leave the Church and vanish The Brothers who were Twelve in number which is doubtless one of the Conformities of St. Francis with Jesus Christ and who dwelt with St. Francis in this place and were all of them in their Cells saw a mighty Glory in the Church and around it multitudes of Angels they heard also very distinctly all that passed but through Fear and Astonishment durst not venture into the Church nor indeed stir from their Cells The day following St. Francis with one of his Brothers travell'd to Perusia where the Pope Honorius the Third held his Court and being admitted to him he humbly said Most holy Father I have not long since repair'd a Church to the Honour of the holy Mother of God whereupon I intreat that your Holiness would be pleas'd to grant that a plenary and free Indulgence should therein be obtain'd without Offerings The
can do in this Life but after all every Man must according to their Doctrine go to Purgatory because the making Satisfaction for sin so as to escape the Punishment due is the giving something instead of that Punishment which is equivalent But they represent the Pains of Purgatory so much more grievous and intolerable than all that can be endur'd in this Life that no Penalties endur'd here can be equivalent to them therefore none can excuse a man's self from going to Purgatory therefore they cannot be of Value sufficienty to excuse others from it and then the Pope's Indulgences and the Privilege of delivering Souls out of Purgatory granted to such and such laborious Tasks of Devotion or chargeable Charities are an evident Cheat and good for nothing As for Purgatory it may be said the holy Purgatory Scripture speaks indeed of God's visiting the Iniquities of his People with a Rod and their Transgressions with Stripes even at the same time when he says His loving Kindness he will not utterly take from them But these Afflictions are constantly there referr'd to this present Life and the Scripture speaks of no sufferings after it but what the damned and reprobate shall endure in Punishment of their Wickedness The Afflictions of this Life are represented as design'd to correct and amend those who are exercis'd with them not for the Satisfaction of the Divine Justice They are Medicinal not Penal Dispensations the Exercises of Wise Mercy especially upon those who have repented of their Sins and are forgiven not the Exercises of Avenging Justice The Scripture evidently contradicts the Opinion of a terrible tormenting Purgatory after Death in representing that all who die in Faith and Chariâ—y that is all good Men and such whom the Papists send to Purgatory do go immediately upon their Decease to a Place and State of Bliss Blessed are the Dead says St. John Rev. 14. 13. who die in the Lord for they rest from their Labours and their Works follow them They have no more to do to obtain their eternal Salvation no terrible Torments to endure with the Spirit of Humility and Patience not the hardest Work that ever they had to do as the enduring of Purgatory would be but their Works â— follow them what they have done they shall immediately find does redound now to their Joy and Reward And 't is to be observ'd from the Context that the Apostle says this of those good Men who should be dead before those times of Persecution which he there threatens the Church with and so they would escape the Martyrdom which must fall upon many in those times These he pronounces Blessed after Death but the Papists will allow none to be so but those good Men who dâ—e Martyrs We may observe another Absurdity in this Doctrine They say That altho' Mortal Sins are pardon'd upon Confession and true Repentance and Absolution and good men who live free from such shall never be condemn'd for what they have formerly committed yet they being liable to Sins of Ignorance or Surprise will be inevitably liable to some temporal pain to satisfie for these which they call Venial Sins and they must pay that Satisfaction to the utmost Farthing That is to say Mortal Sins are pardonable the whole Punishment due to them may be remitted that is Mortal Sins are not mortal But on the other hand Venial that is pardonable Sins are not pardonable but the whole Punishment due to them must be endur'd If we should follow their Doctrine on these points through all the Absurdities and Self-contradictions it includes we should digress too far out of our way let us therefore now return to the Course of our Relation which is design'd chiefly to give an account of Practices amongst them The fears of this imaginary Fire are industriously kept up among the deluded People by the most frightful Representations of it that can be invented I remember a Story I have read to this purpose in the Jesuite Eusebius Nierembergius's Book concerning the difference between the Temporal and Eternal This I shall relate here because 't is not very long for a Specimen of their Management in this matter A certain person says he lay sick of some painful wracking Diseases which made his Life a tedious Burden to him so that he wish'd rather to die than to endure such Torments Upon this an Angel was sent to tell him he must yet suffer more for the satisfaction for his Sins but he might chuse whether he would lie two Years more in this Torment and Misery in this World or lie three Days in the Fire of Purgatory The wretched man very sensible of present misery but not knowing what he was about to undergo chose to lie three Days in Purgatory so he was immediately sent thither When he had been there the space of 24. Hours the Angel came to make him a Visit and ask him I suppose how he lik'd his warm Lodging The miserable man was now almost beside himself with the excess of Torments which he endur'd and fell upon the Angel with Reproaches as having cheated and impos'd upon him with Lyes You told me said he I should lie here but three Days and I have been a Year here already and must I now endure it yet longer The Angel gave him good words assur'd him he was not deceiv'd and that he had not been here the whole space of a Day and since he found it so intolerable he said he might if he would return again to his Habitation on Earth to endure there the remaining two Years of wracking pains from his former Diseases The poor man with greatest joy accepted the offer and return'd to his torments on Earth and told this Story to I know not whom The Fears thus rais'd inhance the Rate and Value of Indulgences which pretend to remit the Punishments and Satisfactions due for Sin and so to exempt from or mightily alleviate the pains of Purgatory And how much soever these Indulgences are multiplyed and whatever must be done to obtain them they will still be follow'd by crouds of People so long as this Fable obtains belief who will think they can never be too safe from falling into this terrible Fire By this Doctrine of Purgatory they are Fraternities to secure a happy Death frighted into several Fraternities which pretend to be erected particularly in order to the securing a happy Death Such is the Association of the Holy Guardian Angels for that purpose of which I shall have something more to say in another place Such too is the Brotherhood of the Name and to the Honour of the most Holy Maid Mary and her Bridegroom Joseph establish'd and join'd to the Fathers the Carmelites at Antwerp which in the Account given of it is said to have been erected for promoting the Service of the Mother Ever-Virgin Mary and her Bridegroom St. Joseph and to quicken Christian People to the following of their Vertues and Example Also for the
Roman Church in the which are dead all the Saints that have ever been to this time and out of which there is no Salvation Inspire me with these Sentiments at the Pâ—â—nt of my Death and do the same for all my Associates I protest again O my Dear Angel That under your Guard and Protection I would depart this Life with a mighty confidence in your Succours and with a plain and entire hope in the Mercy of my God Combat in that moment the Enemies of my Salvation Receive my Soul at its going out of the Body Render Jesus favourable to me after Death I protest likewise my Blessed Angel That I demand moreover from the bottom of my Heart to partake of the Merits of the Blood of my Saviour I detest all the Sins I have committed by Works Thoughts or Words I pardon all mine Enemies I would die with the Cross fastned to my Heart to signifie that I found my Hopes upon the Merits of him who has stain'd it with his Blood I protest also O most faithful Friend who will not abandon me in this my last Passage that through the desire which I have to go to Heaven I am ready to suffer all that which the Justice of my God shall think fit to inflict See I am ready to quit my Parents my Friends and my Body to be eaten with Worms and one day to rise again See I am ready to suffer the greatest Evil the most grievous Maladies even the Pains of Purgatory that I may satisfie for the Enormities of my Sins I protest lastly O my most Dear and most vigilant Guide That I constitute you the Executor of the last Will of my Soul Say to Jesus at that Moment that which perhaps I shall not be able to say That I believe all that which the Church believes That I detest all my Sins because they displease him That I cast my self upon his Love That I hope in his Mercy That I die willingly because he is so pleas'd That I recommend my poor Soul and the Souls of all my fellow Associates into his Hands That I love him more than all Creatures And that I would love him to all Eternity Amen See here some Lines of the Character of a Modern Roman Saint One might search the Scripture long enough before one could find several of these But while Rome makes such Saints I doubt they are canonized too soon Yet at a venture this Man is become a Saint in much esteem in the Church of Rome and is honour'd with Altars Chappels Festivals Litanies Alms Communions and in a word with every thing that can be done by Man to the Honour of Almighty God These Protestarâ—ons the People are exhorted to renew and to make for themselves when ever they Communicate and are encourag'd thereupon to hope they shall die the Death of the Righteous An Indulgence of Forty days is granted to every one that enters himself in this Brotherhood on the day of entering the same An Indulgence of Forty days is granted to every one that shall recite these Protestations as often as he does recite them The same mighty Favour is granted to those that shall recite the Office of the Holy Angels which is too long to be inserted here or the Chaplet which has been mention'd before or the Litany of the Holy Angels for every day whereon they say it In time perhaps the Society may grow richer in this sort of Wealth It is time for us now to take leave of them The Great Church of the City was formerly St. Gudule dedicated to St. Michael but it seems the property of it is alter'd and the Angel has been forc'd for some years to give the Honour and the Place to the Saint for it is now called the Church of St. Gudule When Count Lambert and the Bishop of Tournay says Story translated the Body of St. Gudule from another Church in this City to this of St. Michael they enlarged this Church considerably at a great Charge and endowed it with a good Revenue and consecrated it anew dedicating it to this Saint who was as they say a Princess descended of the Family of Charlemaigne In this Church is a Chappel to the holy Sacrament which at the time we went in had the greatest number of People The Altar was very richly adorn'd There was standing over it a tall Portal which seem'd to be Silver under which the Sacrament is wont to be set when 't is produc'd only to be seen and ador'd but it was not then there Besides this several other things about the Altar seem'd to be Silver Six large Silver Lamps hung up before the Altar and two very stately Chrystal Candlesticks with many Silver Sockets round them for Candles these last were a late Present made by the Electour of Bavaria to this Chappel Here is kept in this Church in a little Golden Chest and is shown only upon a particular Holiday once a Year the Miraculous Sacrament Miraculous Sacrament as they call it which is such a Wafer as the Papists use in celebrating the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper to which the following Story belongs In the Year 1369. as some of the Historians of this Countrey put it one Jonathan a Jew with an ill Design bought of a Certain Curate of St. Catharine's Church a Box with three consecrated Wafers in it He being afterwards kill'd by some Persons his Enemies his Wife gave the Box to their Son named Abraham with the Hosties in it He upon a Good-friday took an Hostie out of the Box and in contempt of our Saviour went about to stab and cut it with his Knife when at every Wound he made in it there issued Blood The Woman his Mother admiring the Miracle immediately became a Christian And having discover'd the matter to the Messires Peter and John Valvius the former Curate of St. Gudule the latter of St. Nicholas the Wickedness of the Jew was publish'd so that Wencesleus then Duke of Brabant and Johanna his Wife having diligently examin'd the matter caused Abraham and other Jews that had joyn'd with him in the Impiety to be burnt alive before the Church of St. Catharine The Examinations about this matter and the whole Process are said to be kept in the Chamber of Accounts of Brabant The Duke and Dutchess in a solemn Procession attended this wounded Hostie to the Church of St. Gudule and reposited it there and a Holiday was appointed to commemorate the Miracle and a solemn Procession in which it should be carried about and be shown to the People This Day is kept in â—â—ly and we have at this present being the 24th day the fresh News at the Hague that a mighty Confluence of People came to Brussels to be present at this Solemnity insomuch that the City had scarce room enough to hold them It is said the Archbishop of Mechlin perform'd the Service attended by four Abbots that he carried the miraculous Hostie in the Procession and that
Rosary was at first found out by Mary her self and through her Command instituted and order'd by St. Dominick and was at the first Institution and Beginning of it attended with such miraculous and wonderful Signs at Tholouse 2. Whoever is enter'd in this Brotherhood will be a Partaker of innumerable Merits that is to say of all the good Works Fasts Vigils Prayers Alms-deeds Martyrdoms Disciplines Sermons Masses and the like which are perform'd by the whole Order of the Dominicans which consists of so many Religious and of those also which are done by so many millions of Persons as are enter'd in this Brotherhood Certainly you would be happily provided for if it were so that there were but only one H. person that would at all times pray for you But now in this far renown'd Brotherhood there are a great many holy and perfect persons in whose Merits and prayers you might be a Partaker 3. You can no way take a more effectual care that your Soul may be helped in Purgatory with many Prayers and Indulgences than by entring your self into this Brotherhood for I dare say and can assure you that there is no King nor Emperour nor Pope nor any Monarch whatever that has so many Prayers said for his Soul as one departed Brother or Sister of the holy Rosary which may be very easily made appear from all the Masses and annual Solemnities which are perform'd and observ'd for the Brothers of this Society For you must know and it is a matter well worth Observation that through the whole World in all Places Cities Corporations and Villages where this Society is erected there is always every year at four Seasons a Mass perform'd for the deceased Brothers and Sisters This has been mention'd before with the times of it Now all these being added together and reckon'd according to the multitude of places where this Brotherhood is maintain'd as well in all the Kingdom of Spain as in France Poland Italy Germany the Netherlands c. would make out every year more than twelve hundred thousand Masses To which may be added all the Rosaries and Vigils that are read and observ'd every Week and also all the good Works that are daily done in the whole Order of the Dominicans consisting of so many thousand Religious and in this Society also wherein are so many millions of Brothers and Sisters All which good Works and Prayers come to the account of the Souls enter'd in the Society and do extend to the making Satisfaction for them I think what Comfort and Consolation this is for a poor Soul the which otherwise perhaps might be left lying in the Fire of Purgatory without having any person to say one Pater Noster for itâ— 4. In the last place it is greatly to be esteem'd that in this Society there is no Obligation or Burden and that so great a Treasure may be obtain'd as it were without labour by reading only once a Week a whole Rosary that is one hundred and fifty Ave Maries and fifteen Pater Nosters which may be divided into three Garlands each containing five of the aforesaid and these may be said in any time of the Week as men will either going standing sitting c. Thus is this recommended here as a fine easie way to Heaven and yet the easiness of it is forgotten when these Tasks of Devotion are enjoyn'd as Penance and Mortification In truth these things are easier to humane Nature than the necessary Care and Endeavour to lead a truly good a virtuous Life and this is the real Disparagement of them that are devised and used to excuse such Care and Endeavour and pretend to bring Men to Heaven by another and an easier way Further He that has forgotten or neglected to say his Rosary in one Week may say it in the Week following the which if he does he shall perfectly recover his Loss And if any man will not do that and so will let slip one reading of his Rosary he does not sin in transgressing the Rule of the Society So that no man can excuse himself for not entring into this Society and for neglecting so great good and depriving his Soul of so great Indulgences and Privileges Note All sorts of Persons young and old may be enter'd herein and also the dead provided any one will perform the due Task and read weekly a whole Rosary for them And no man is bound to continue this longer than he pleases but so long as he does continue to do it he makes the deceased person Partaker of all the good Works which the living Brothers perform and shall obtain for him all the Indulgences of this Society per modum Suffragii that is no one knows how A world of Indulgences are granted to this Society to draw them to the Chappels of the Rosary and drop their Offerings often in a Year I shall not trouble my self or my Reader with the mention of any of them for I think it now high time to direct to somewhat else The Jesuits have here a Colledge and a School they were in the year 1604. encreas'd from small Beginnings to the number of 70 persons Their House escaped the Bombs or perhaps the Bombs avoided that We shall meet these People wherever we come and if we meet them they will not take it well if we do not take notice of them Passage from Brussels to Louvaine WE were somewhat straitned in time and and were willing to see as many places as we could therefore we went from Brussels the next day but were not fully resolv'd whether we would return thither or not to go from thence to Namur This we design'd to see but could not go from hence till three days after this time and we could not afford to spend so many days here The Waggons go from hence for Namur only twice â—a Week that is on Tuesdays and Fridays On Saturday Morning then being the 17th of May we took our places in the Waggon that goes for Louvain there goes one every day from hence thither and one every day comes from Lovain to Brussels This Waggon is very long and drawn with four Horses that go two and two a-breast There is a sort of Coach in the middle but capacious enough to hold ten People and at least four more may be disposed in the Baskets at the two ends We paid for our Carriage to Louvain each person 26 Stivers It is reckon'd a Journey of 4 Leagues or Hours but we made more of it because the way was much broken by reason of some Rain there had been We set out at 8 a Clock in the Morning staid to refresh our selves an hour by the way and came to Lovain about two After-noon Our Road was upon a high Country for the most part Champion with wide Fields plow'd and bearing Corn. The common Mould of the Countrey is a good fat Clay a little yellowish We saw several Villages at a distance but went through I think not
this or greater with that which Men or Maid-Servants bear to the Livery of their Master or Lady To which end the Brothers and Sisters shall very profitably observe these Five Exercises following 1. When they rise in the Morning as also when at Night they go to sleep they shall kiss the Scapulary and making a Cross with it shall bless themselves saying May the Holy Maid Mary and her sweet little Child so they represent our Saviour for the most part still bless us Or at least they should looking upon the Scapulary offer up to God the Works of the Day under the Guidance and Government of this Holy Patroness 2. In all Occasions of Danger both of Soul and Body and in all Temptations they must in Heart turn themselves to the most H. Mother of God imploring her Assistance 3. They must endeavour to avoid all that is contrary to Modesty as very displeasing to the Queen of Virgins and Mother of the King of Virgins 4. Often in the Day as they begin any Work they should Offer it up to God and recommend it to the most Holy Maid as a good Governess and must perform and bring it to Perfection to her Honour 5. They must be careful to merit and obtain the Indulgences granted to the Brotherhood of this Holy Garment that especially was not to be omitted because for these they must go to the Churches of these good Fathers and there drop their Offerings I shall conclude the Account of this matter with certain Elogiums of the Scapulary deliver'd by a Zealous Carm in a Sermon preach'd within the Diocess of Arras on the 21st of July 1697. The 20th day of this Month is with them the Feast-day of their Holy Father as they call him the Prophet Elias who first wore this Garment and instituted this Order and so this was within the Octave of that Festival The Propositions are these following 1. The Blessed Simon Stock has receiv'd the Scapulary as a certain mark of his Predestination and of that of the Religious of his Order and of those others too who in process of time shall receive and wear it 2. The History of the Blessed Simon Stock is in a degree of certainty which approaches that of the Faith and it cannot be doubted of without being guilty of a sort of Infidelity into which all wise and pious People ought to be afraid of falling 3. Among all the Practices of Devotion found out to Honour the Holy Virgin that of the Scapulary is the most certain mark of Predestination and the most assured sign of Salvation 4. The Children and Brothers of the Scapulary ought to say to the Holy Virgin Be it unto me according to thy Word with the same Submission to her which she her self paid to to the Promises of God which were made to her by the Angel 5. If the Holy Virgin should permit that the Children and Brothers of the Scapulary should be Eternally Miserable their Loss would afford Triumphs to the Enemies of the Honour of her Name and would furnish Pretences for their Blasphemies 6. The Church has been willing that the Believers should understand that they are to expect no less Favours from the Blessed Virgin than from the Merits of Jesus Christ 7. A Brother of the Scapulary who shall obstinately set himself to go on in Wickedness to his Death may die in Impenitence but he cannot die in the Scapulary And if the Holy Virgin cannot withdraw him from his Disorders and Sins she will find means to deprive him of his Scapulary and will rather take it from him her self than suffer that he should die a Reprobate in it These are very pretty things and but what is commonly said in Commendation of the Scapulary by these Fathers whose Interest it is to recommend it But these things however seem'd at least to displease the Bishop of Arras and he has taken upon him the Boldness to Censure and Condemn them But his Condemnation looks a little forc'd and hardly in earnest while he speaks of the same Matters very near with the same Extravagance He says We cannot too much exhort the People to Devotion to the Holy Virgin That this is a great Source of Blessings and Graces for those who have a true and sincere one He says too that the Brotherhood of the Scapulary ought to be regarded as a Christian Bond and a Holy Association of several Persons to Honour the Holy Virgin by wearing a certain Habit by which they testifie their willingness to Dedicate and Consecrate themselves to her Service And if this be done in Truth and Fidelity one may expect by the Succour and Assistance of the Mother of Mercy not only particular Favours during this Life and at Death but also that the Pains which our Sins have deserv'd shall be diminish'd and our Eternal Happiness be advanced by the Merit of the Indulgences which the Church has granted to this Brotherhood for all those to partake of them who shall be found in the Condition which she requires for the gaining them It behov'd the Bishop to speak thus tenderlyâ— for this Folly and Superstition has been own'd and authoriz'd and is encourag'd by the See of Rome But all this now is admirable Divinity and they must needs deserve to be call'd Hereticks who do not believe and teach such Stuff as this yea and as Hereticks they ought to be persecuted to the Death against all the Obligation of Oaths Promises Covenants and even Humanity it self But Lord how long This time when we were at the Chapel of these Carms at Aix being the Eve of that great Day wherein they pretend the Scapulary was given to Simon Stock the Devotions upon the Occasion were according to Custome then begun A great Concourse of People throng'd the little Church We came there just at the beginning of a Procession It march'd down â—he South Isle of the Church and crossing the West end went out at the bottom at a North Door and then turn'd round in a Passage that went round the Church and came into the great Street at the West end again fetch'd a little compass in that and went to the opposite side of it and from thence cross'd again and came in at the great Western Door A Company of Queasils led the Van of this Procession all of them with their Veils over their Heads tho' the Weather was good and it was not for fear of Rain but out of Reverence to the Virgin In the head of them Four of their Company carry'd upon their Shoulders a little Image of the Virgin Mary very richly cloath'd with a Robe of Cloth of Silver and a Crown on her Head The Crown was Silver and her Robe flourish'd over with an Embroidery of Gold The Queasils sung as they went along they were follow'd by a great Company of other Women who went Two and Two in great Order After these march'd about Forty of the Carmes in their Habits and they were all singing too Then
Coats was almost hid with the broad Silver Lace laid upon it The Cloathing of the Kettle-Drums as I remember is Cloth of Silver a deep Fringe of Gold and Silver went round the Drum at the top and a lesser one round about the edge of the Cloathing I never saw any thing of the kind so fine as these all were And this is a particular Affectation of this Prince The reigning Religion here is the Popish Popish Religion here and the Papists are in Possession of the publick Churches We went into some of their Churches and saw nothing in them very fine nor any thing peculiar or worth taking notice of In the Yard belonging to the great Church stand Three Crucfixes with Bodies on them as big as the Life to represent the Crucifixion of our Saviour between Two Thieves There is a large Penthouse over them By the side of another Church we saw the same Representation To these many People in passing by paid a profound Respect but without a distinct Interpretation of these Books the People must be liable to pay the same Respect to those which represent the Thieves as to that which is design'd for our Saviour so that in these Books there are certainly some things as dangerous and as liable to betray People into damnable Error and mortal Sin as are pretended to be in Scripture If that be then an Argument for taking the Scripture out of the Peoples Handâ— it is an Argument for taking their extravagant Pictures and Images out of their Sight Or if any Preference may be allow'd of the Ordinance of Jesus Christ himself before that of his Pretended Vicar the Scriptures should be given to the People and this sort of Books taken away because Christ has given the Holy Scripture for their Instruction and only the Pretended Vicar has instituted these When we came to the City after we were enter'd within the new Ditch we saw several of those little Oratories or Chappels mention'd before standing about in the Fields in each of which is an Altar and Image and for the most part of the Virgin Mary Among the Papists in these Parts the Controversie is now hotly pursued about the Immaculate Conception Immaculate Conception of the Bâ—essed Virgin of the Virgin Mary the head Managers of which are the Franciscanâ— and the Do minicans This has been a long Controversie in the Church of Rome and is likely to continue for both Sides pretend to Miracles Visions and Revelations to confirm their Opinion yea both Sides have drawn the Blessed Virgin to testifie for them and so against her self Besides the infallible Guide of the Church cannot tell what to do in this Case and Bishop Meaux says The Church has not yet defin'd whether the Virgin was born in Original Sin or not The contending Parties are indeed so hot upon their Opinion that they would either of 'em be apt to despise the Pope's Authority if he should venture to decide The Pope's Authority is for a Scare-crow set up against the Protestants but upon Occasion the Papists can make little account of it themselves as Scare-crows are never wont to fright them that set them up Bishop Meaux says 'T is neither Heresie nor mortal Sin not to believe the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin and yet he says 't is Pious to believe it But if this be Pious surely the contrary must be impious If any Proposition be true the direct and full Contradiction to it must needs be false and if any Opinion be pious another which fully contradicts it must deserve a contrary Character and consequently be accounted impious Such poor Shifts is tâ—is shuffling Expounder of the Church of Rome put to that he may render its Doctrines and Practices plausible There are in this City Two Congregations of the Reformed Religion the one Calvinist the other Protestant or Lutheran We spent Lutherans here the Morning of the Lord's-Day in the Protestant Congregation They have not a very large Church but it was well fill'd It stands a little inward from the Street I think they call their People together by a Bell. The Place is Oblong with the Altar or Communion-Table at the East end and a good Gallery over the Entrance at the West end Above that is a little Gallery set up for a small Organ that they might lose no Room by it The Church was very neat but not fine There were but Three distinct Pictures in it and all very free from Popery or Superstition On the South Wall hung a Picture of Moses holding the Two Tables of Stone on which there was only a Scrawl to represent the Writing of the Ten Commandments The Communion-Table was large and very high It stood against the Wall upon a flat of Boards raised a little Step above the Stone Floor of the Church and which goes out at a good distance from the Table Over this Communion-Table or Altar is a good Picture which represents our Blessed Saviour in his Agony in the Garden with an Angel come to encourage him There are Three of the Apostles asleep not far from him and at a distance the tops of the Torches of those who are coming to apprehend him appear from behind a Hill The History is well represented Behind the Picture of our Saviour are black Clouds well drawn and amidst them appears a bright round thing which looks almost as if they design'd to represent the Sun veil'd with these Clouds but it being a Night Piece it must be understood as it is intended to represent the Wafer which they give and receive in celebrating the Sacrament of the Lord's-Supper for they administer the Bread in that Form Over this great Piece of Painting is another lesser one which represents our Saviour with a Glory about him as rising from the dead and treading upon a Dragon to signifie that he had now overcome Death and him that had the Power of Death as the Scripture speaks that is the Devil This is a fit Representation of our Saviour but it is an impudent Blasphemy to attribute this to the Virgin Mary as the Papists do in Pictures and Images of her with which I have often seen a Snake or Dragon put under her Feet as dead The Pillars on each side of these Pictures were wreath'd their Chappiters handsomely carv'd all the Work is very neat and decent but the matter is not Marble but Wood painted in Imitation of Marble some of black and some of white Marble streak'd and it is very well done The Altar or Communion-Table was cover'd with a large Velvet Cloth which reach'd to the Ground of a deep blew Colour Before the Worship began I had time to see what Books lay at the Reading Desk and at the Desks of the People The Reader had before him a great Folio Bible in High Dutch and another Book in Folio which had for its General Title Spiritual Songs I look'd into it and observ'd there the Book of Psalms and other of the