Selected quad for the lemma: sin_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
sin_n	distinction_n	mortal_a	venial_a	4,934	5	12.1153	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A63008	Of the sacraments in general, in pursuance of an explication of the catechism of the Church of England by Gabriel Towerson ...	Towerson, Gabriel, 1635?-1697.	1686 (1686)	Wing T1973; ESTC R21133	404,493	394

which how useful soever they may be and are so esteemed by our selves yet will not be found to be any more than such I alledge as to the former of these the no precept there appears concerning it which is one of those things which induce a necessity to Salvation And I alledge too which is another the no appearance there is of any tendency in it to procure some blessings for which no other means are appointed For the Eucharist having for its end the confirming and strengthning of our Graces which is all that Confirmation as now in use professeth to intend neither can there be any necessity of the means to oblige us to the use of the latter or endanger our Salvation by the omission of it In fine I alledge what is with me of no small moment the no mention there is in Justin Martyr * Apol. 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. of it even where he takes notice of their bringing the New Baptized person to the Assembly of the Faithful and to a Communion with them in their Prayers and Eucharist For though that Father doth not obscurely intimate that they had a particular regard in their Prayers to the welfare of the new Baptized person as well as to the more general welfare of the other Yet he takes no notice at all of any Imposition of hands upon him or any other ceremony that may be supposed to be analogous to it Which in all probability he would have done especially when he mention'd the Kiss of Peace as well as both the other Sacraments if either the Church had then us'd the Sacrament of Confirmation or he look'd upon it as a Sacrament of the same general necessity with the other Which things I have said not in the least to detract from the use of Confirmation for I think this very passage of Justin Martyr doth sufficiently warrant the more material part of it even prayer over the new Baptized person but to shew that the Church did not then look upon it as a Sacrament or at least not as such a one as was generally necessary for Salvation as our Catechism hath taught us to speak But it may be much more may be said for Absolution than Confirmation and so no doubt there may if we consider Absolution as comprehending within the compass of it the whole power of the Priest in remitting sins For comprehending within it in that sense the Administration of Baptism and the Lord's Supper because the most effectual means the Church hath for absolving offenders from their guilt so far as those Sacraments or the Priests Administration of them is necessary to Salvation which no doubt they generally are so far also his Absolution must be look'd upon as such But so to consider Absolution is to make it the same with Baptism and the Lord's Supper and not as it is here propos'd a distinct Sacrament from them If therefore we will speak pertinently either to our own Catechism or the present Controversie we must consider Absolution as abstracting from those Sacraments which if we do we shall find it to consist either in declaring the word of reconciliation to Offenders or praying to God for their Pardon or pronouncing them absolved from their guilt or loosing them from the Censures of the Church If we consider Absolution in the first of these senses to wit as importing the declaration of the word of reconciliation to Offenders so we shall not stick to affirm that it is generally necessary to Salvation but then we must say withall that it is no Sacrament nor esteemed by the Papists themselves to be so If we consider it in the second sense to wit as denoting the Priest's praying for the Pardon of Offenders and in which form as Bishop Vsher (t) Answ to the Jesuits Chall p. 125. c. observes Absolution was antiently wont to be made so it will be found to have a respect to that Community over which he presides or to particular persons in it In the former of these regards it is no doubt as necessary to Salvation as it is for the Priest to celebrate or the people to joyn with him in the publick worship of God of which such prayers as those are a necessary part But as there is no presumption of that Offices being a Sacrament so it is not the Absolution our Adversaries intend That which they profess to advance being the Absolution of particular persons after a confession made by them of their particular offences And yet even here too they make a distinction because professing to restrain that Confession and Absolution to such sins only as are mortal But who taught them to distinguish in this affair between Mortal and Venial Or what is there in those words of Christ which convey the power of remitting sins which can be thought to restrain it to the former What have they to ground the general necessity of such a Confession upon but especially as to that form of Absolution whereof we speak For in praying for the pardon of Offenders the Priest is not to be considered as a Judge but as a person appointed to mediate between God and his People and whom that charity which belongs to him as such will oblige him to look upon as penitent if he knows them not to be otherwise especially if they beg his prayers for their own particular pardon And indeed neither is this the Absolution the Papists contend for nay they declare (u) Conc. Trid. Sess 14. cap. 3. those very Prayers which go along with their own not to be of the Essence of it Which will oblige us to pass on to A third sort of Absolution even pronouncing offending persons to be loosed from their offences A thing which though of signal use and comfort to men of afflicted minds and which no doubt such persons ought to seek when they cannot otherwise satisfie themselves yet cannot be look'd upon as generally necessary to Salvation Partly because none but desponding persons can be supposed to stand in need of it and partly because such an Absolution as that supposeth men to be already loosed from their offences and consequently not to want any thing but the sense thereof Which though it may be an infelicity yet is no sin in it self nor can prove so to him in whom it is unless it do otherwise take him off from the due performance of his duty Though even in that case such an Absolution will be necessary rather to prevent future offences than to procure the forgiveness of former ones And I shall only add that I conceive that form of Absolution to be such which occurrs in our Visitation of the Sick Partly because it is ordered by our Church to be applied to men of troubled minds and partly because it prompts the Priest to beg of God the forgiveness of the sick persons offences before it allows him to say I absolve thee from all thy sins That supposing the forgiveness of