Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A17294
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A censure of simonie, or a most important case of conscience concerning simonie briefly discussed not altogether perhaps vnparallell for the meridian of these times. By H. Burton rector of little Saint-Matthewes in Friday-street London.
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Burton, Henry, 1578-1648.
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1624
(1624)
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STC 4139; ESTC S107062
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105,164
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152
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will plant my Seat vpon the North Pole What is this that the Deuil will pitch his Seat vpon the North But that euery proud and impious man doth either aspire or vsurpe principalitie ouer such as bee like him such as are remote from the heate of charity and from the light of wisedome This and much more this deuout man Now to draw all that hath beene said in this Chapter by those holy and ancient men of the Church to a corollary or conclusion If such be the Office of a Bishop if as Origen saith it makes the ambitious drunke with vaine-glory If as Saint Cyril to bee punished with fearefull flames if hee must render a strict account for himselfe and for all vnder his iurisdiction If as Saint Augustine nothing be more easie pleasant contentfull to men if perfunctorily and carelesly performed but nothing more vnhappy miserable damnadle with God for which that holy man wept at his Ordination If a Bishop bee a name rather of labour then honour and of dutie rather then dominion If not to be sought nor vndertaken but for meere charitie sake when necessitie compelleth If as Saint Chrysostome hee beare the burthen of all bee most inexcusable exposed to all tongues distracted with daily and nightly cares subiect to all censures liable to all iudgements if others sins bee imputed to his misgouernment if the losse of each soule so precious shall bee required of him if to affect it be to cast him out of Gods fauour if a priuate life be much more sweet more secure and safe if it be not a bed of rest but of break-sleepe if their preaching be most solicitous most assiduous if he be like a ship continually tossed with waues and driuen with contrary windes if not many Ministers bee saued but much more doe perish if subiect euen in despight oftentimes to bee diuerted and driuen from his owne disposition if onely pride in such be enough to cause an vniuersall decay and corruption if their account be most seuere both for their doctrine what and how with what diligence with what deuotion performed and for their life how answerable to their doctrine how holy how religious how euery way exemplary to their flocke how carefull in relieuing the poore how circumspect in electing good Ministers in reiecting the vnworthy if this Office make men rather greater then better hoysing vp the sayles of each passion to all winds of temptation especially when it findes pride auarice ambition and the like If as Erasmus a Bishop put on the person of a Father a Mother a Nurse all importing manifold Offices If as Aaron with his Bells hee must be euer sounding forth the word of Truth if for the multiplicitie and difficultie of the duties of this calling chained one within another many wise and graue men of God haue shrunke their shoulders from it if as Contarenus a Bishop must bee aboue a man of an Angelicall spirit if the very desire and seeking of it imply arrogancie auarice and ambition if it bee not enough to serue his Cure by a deputie if it giue him no dispensation to bee a Courtier and Negotiatour if thus hee bee vnlike Christ and his Apostles If as Poole it be so dangerous to be Non-resident if a Bishoppricke be rather to bee feared then desired If as Bernard it be vsually made rather a secular merchandize then a spirituall meanes to gaine soules vnto God if such be to bee abandoned as betrayers not shepheards hauing the seat not the zeale being successors not imitators if any ambitious Bishop be a Iudas a Deuill an Apostate Angel that would haue all like himselfe to domineere ouer if thus hee be excluded from inioying of Christ if this Office be a Ministration not a domination then to say no more but what so many holy graue learned Fathers haue said alreadie What reason can any reasonable man pretend to excuse not onely the purchase but the least pursuite of such a preferment from the imputation of extreame vnreasonablenesse CHAP. XIIII Of the Censures and Penalties of Simonie and Simonists COme wee now to obserue the censures and penalties which haue been generally imposed vpon Simonie and Simoniacks Aquinas following his Ancients calls Simonie Haeresiâ— quaedam Gregory calls it The prime Heresie in the Primitiue Church Altare vel Decimas vel Spiritum Sanctum emere vel vendere Simoniacam Haeresin esse nullus fidelium ignorat To buy or sell the Altar as the Sacrificer doth his Masse or Tythes or the Holy Ghost there is none of all the faithfull that knoweth not this to bee Simoniacall Heresie Irenaeus calls Simon Magus The Father of all Heretickes Yea saith Aquinas The impious Heresie of the Macedonians and of those of his Sect impugners of the Deitie of the Holy Ghost is more tolerable then that of the Simonists For those in their dotage yet confessed that the Holy Ghost was a Creature and seruant of the Father and the Sonne But these doe make the same Holy Ghost to be their owne seruant For hee that takes vpon him to buy or sell any thing takes vpon him also to bee the master and proprietary of that which hee so buyeth or selleth Yea so odious is the sinne of Simonie that Pope Deodate said That no Catholike is to bee refused but for auouching the Truth and to make knowne the madnesse of Simonie is to bee exhorted with most earnest intreatie For saith he none is so vile or infamous which may not be admitted for a competent witnesse against a Simoniacke as being the most vile and infamous of all men Therefore euen a bond-slaue a whoore a criminall person may accuse a Simonist yea euen a seruant his master And euery sinfull man may sing a Masse But a Simonist may not So he But some will say This is but the Brutum Fulmen of a Pope Yea it ought so much the more to make vs whom the condition of so many Popes hath made to abominate the very name of Pope to bee afraide and to startle at the very name of Simonie more then at a cracke of Thunder If Heathenish Abimelech so highly honour Marriage and the sacred Lawes thereof as hee sharpely reproues Abraham for hazarding his faire wife how shall not faithfull Abraham and Sara blush the more at such a Mans reproofe Gregory saith Specialiter c. Let both the Clergie and people the Electors specially and absolutely know that that man is not onely vnworthy of the Priesthood but will bee found also obnoxâ—us and culpable of other crimes whosoeuer hee bee that pâ—â—sumeth to buy the gift of God with money So that the like punishment and penaltie is equally due both to the elected and to the Electors if they shall assâ—y to violate the sinceritie of Priesthood with a sacrilegious intenâ— So hee Whence we may learne that the sinne of Simonie neuer goeth alone whether in the Buyer or in the Seller but as the Master Bee
to the Interpretation of this Statute doth the Oath take place For vpon this impregnable Bulwarke of the Law positiue is mounted the Canon of the Church full charged vpon Simonists with powder and shot to batter downe this high towring conceite of all those that stand out in defiance of all opposition and in defence of their vngodly merchandise The charge of this Canon is heauier then Lead and harder then Iron and so planted against the Simonist that hee mâ—st of force receiue it into his verie mouth I meane that most fearefull Oath of Simonie But the Simonists Motto is Iuraui lingua mentem iniuratam gero The Oath may well touch the tip of his tongue but it shall not come neere his heart he hath some euasion some reseruation or tricke 〈◊〉 elude the Oath either by giuing it a false glosse oâ— by looking the face of his conscience in a false glasse vnlesse by way of commutation he decline it as other offenders doe the wearing of the White Sheete but neuer any by commuting or call it what you will is able to shift off his winding sheet Many may auoide the mouth of the Canon but when it comes once to the ryding of the Canon that will bee sure to pay his ryder For to bring it home to the conscience let mee borrow an example of a Simoniacall Bishop from Rome whereof that now step-mother Church is fruitfull and may spare enow to stand for sea-markes for our better direction Imagine you see him entring the Chancell of Saint Peters in Rome to receiue his consecration in all his Pontificalls and standing in the middest of such a congregation as at least themselues account most sacred To this man let that dreadfull and direfull Oath which our Church hath religiously prouided as a wholsome remedie and preseruatiue against this dangerous disease of Simonie be administred And before hee take it let some powerfull voyce such as came to Balaam to forbid him to goe to Balack for the wages of iniquitie or as came to Abimelech to forbid him to touch Abrahams wife summon and rowse his conscience as on this wife Come now O Roman Prelate who hast purchased a Bishopricke as the Centurion did his Burgeship for a great summe I dispute not now about the manner it makes no matter a purchase it is But now thou art come to the place of thy Consecration take heed it proue not thy Execration Now thou standest in the middest of an assembly of Prelats and Priests on a day in a place all sacred the seruice sacred praying praising preaching communicating expecting also the presence of the Holy Ghost with his manifold gifts to bee conferred vpon thee by imposition of hands now thou art set in the presence of Men and Angels who stand about thee as so many eye and eare witnesses of this dayes deed All these weightie circumstances considered might be of force to put thee to a stand and because I haue knowne that a desperate fellow comming before a Iudge in open Court armed with a strong and obstinate resolution to take a solemne oath in the maintenance of a wrong cause which the Iudge hauing smelled out first wisely admonished him to bee well aduised what hee would doe laying before him the fearefulnesse of an oath wrongfully taken Hee thereupon feeling the remorse of conscience openly confessed the whole truth of the businesse Therefore bee aduised before thou commest to take thine oath first to read the Oath that weighing the tenure of it thou mayest rather timely preuent the danger then afterwards repent thee when it is too late The wordes of the Canon prefixed stand thus To auoyd the detestable sinne of Simonie because buying and selling of Spirituall and Ecclesiasticall Functions Offices Promotions Dignities and Liuings is execrable before God Therefore the Archbishop and all and euery Bishop or Bishops or any other person or persons hauing authoritie to admit institute collate install or to confirme the election of any Archbishop Bishop or any other person or persons to any Spirituall or Ecclesiasticall Function Dignitie Promotion Title Office Iurisdiction Place or Benefice with Cure or without Cure or to any Ecclesiasticall Liuing whatsoeuer shall before euery such Admission Institution Collation Installation or Confirmation of election respectiuely minister to euery person hereafter to bee admitted instituted collated installed or confirmed in or to any Archbishopricke Bishopricke or other Spirituall or Ecclesiasticall Function Dignitie Promotion Title Office Iurisdiction Place or Benefice with Cure or without Cure or in any Ecclesiasticall liuing whatsoeuer This Oath in manner and forme following The same to be taken by euery one whom it concerneth in his owne person and not by a Proctor The words of the Oath I N. N. doe sweare That I haue made no Simoniacall payment contract or promise directly or indirectly by my selfe or by any other to my knowledge or with my consent to any person or persons whatsoeuer for or concerning the procuring and obtaining of this Ecclesiasticall dignitie to wit the Bishopricke of c. Nor will at any time hereafter performe or satisfie any such kind of payment contract or promise made by any other without my knowledge or consent So helpe mee God through Iesus Christ. Hast thou now duely and seriously weighed the substance and circumstances of this most solemne Oath Then let it summon and assemble thy saddest thoughts in counsell together all mouing thee thus to argue with thy selfe I am now in a place sacred in the open view of Men and Angels all Spectators all Expecters of what I am to doe Here I come to bee consecrated a Bishop a great honour but a greater burthen which taking vpon mee I must ouer-top many here present and many more absent all deseruing this honour farre before mee So that I pull vpon my selfe and that iustly the most insupportable burthen of Enuy yea more if this Bishopricke had fallen vnto mee by Lot as that fell vpon Mathias or had beene cast or inforced vpon mee as Bishoprickes were once wont to bee vpon good men in the time of the Churches innocencie I might better beare and brooke it yea it would diminish all the Enuy But my conscience tells mee yea and others also can too well witnesse for ambition is not hid in a corner how eagerly how ambitiously how vnbeseeming the grauitie and modestie of a Priest yea the ingenuitie of any honest man by cap and knee by soothing and flattery by often visiting and long attending the Court when I should haue beene at my sheepe-coat haue I at length attained to this reuerent Dignitie Nay more though the world perhaps know it not as yet my conscience failes not to charge me what a summe of money I haue and am to pay for it that which my kindred and friends may one day rue if the lease of my momentanie lent life be not all the longer besides the faire and goodly liuings I haue parted withall into the bargaine yet