Linguistic DNA - Concept Modelling Demonstrator

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	according_a	church_n	doctrine_n	2,019	5	6.0761	4	false

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19460	A iust and temperate defence of the fiue books of ecclesiastical policie: written by M. Richard Hooker against an vncharitable letter of certain English Protestants (as they tearme themselues) crauing resolution, in some matters of doctrine, which seeme to ouerthrow the foundation of religion, and the Church amongst vs. Written by William Covel Doctor in Diuinitie, and published by authority. The contents whereof are in the page following.	Covell, William, d. 1614?	1603 (1603)	STC 5881; ESTC S120909	118,392	162

of the SacrameÌ„ts the effect of the thing ordeined by Christ is not taken away or the grace of Gods guift diminished as touching them which receiue by faith and orderly the things offered vnto them which for the institutioÌ„ of Christ and his promise are effectuall although they be administred by euill men But to inferre heereupon that the same actions howsoeuer don scoffingly and in iest contrary or besides the holy institution of the Church are truly Sacraments It is a conclusion too violent and not warranted by any truth For howsoeuer the grace of Sacraments dependeth not vpon the Minister who maie faile of these vertues that are fitte to bee required in him yet it is necessarie that there should bee an intention to administer a true Sacrament least we put no difference betwixt that which either derision imitatioÌ„ chance or the Church doth For if the conuersion of Lucius first Christian king of this land were to be acted vpon a stage and that two persons were to represent â—ugatius and Damianus sent by Eleutherius the Pope to baptize Lucius could any man in reason thinke how orderly soeuer performed that this were true baptisme were not this to make the bare action all and the intention a circumstance not belonging to it But we must know as M. Hooker saith that SacrameÌ„ts are actions mysticall and religious for no man can truly define them otherwise which nature they haue not vnlesse they proceede from a serious meaning yet what euery mans priuate minde is as we cannot know so neither are we bound to examine for in these cases the knowne intent of the Church doth generally suffice and where the contrary is not manifest as circumstances will serue easily to discouer we must presume that he which outwardly doth the worke hath inwardly the purpose of the Church of God Now this beeing a discreet rule wisely to put a difference betwixt Sacraments holie actions and the like irreligiousâ—â—e and prophanely performed is that whereat your zealous wisdome doth take offence and which you pursue with that bitternesse of speech calling it meere Popery a humane inuention and inducemeÌ„t to fides implicita as though the dangers were neither few nor small which came vnto y e Church by this opinion Let me intreat your patience a little vouchsafe to be but aduised by him who in all humilitie wil be readie to follow y e sound directions of the meanest in Gods church and I doubt not to make it apparant that Maister Hooker hath deliuered that truth the contrary wherof is no way fit to be admitted or allowed by vs. Some are of opinion that no intention at all is required in the Ministers of the Sacraments but that if the thing and the words be present though either in â—est or otherwise performed yet notwithstanding it is a Sacrament The first Author of this as Bellarmine saith was Luther whose words I must needes say are violeÌ„tly wrested to make him speake that which he neuer ment It is like that heout of whom by misunderstanding you haue collected this opinion was Maister Caluin who rightly deriuing the vertue of Sacraments from the Minister to God himselfe the author of the first institution saith thus I refer so much to the holy institution of Christ that if an Epicure inwardely deriding the whole action should administer the supper by the commandement of Christ marke the words and according to the rule by him giuen which no man could that wanted the intention of the Church I would account them saith he the true pledges of the body and the blood of Christ Where we are willing to confesse with him and with truth it selfe that Sacraments for their vertue depeÌ„d not vpon the intention of the Minister though without the intention of the Church they are not Sacraments Where by intention we meane not a particular purpose of all that the Sacraments require a thing peraduenture aboue the capacity of many lawfull Ministers but a generall intention of performing that sacred action according to the meaning of the Church Where by church we mean not any one particular but the true Church or as M. Caluin saith Christs rule or that intention which Christians in that action haue and yet if one in this should follow the intention of a particular Church that did erre it were not a reason sufficient to make the Sacrament to be none at all for euen his intention in following that particular Church though erring were an intentioÌ„ of following the true Church that doth not erre Neither is it required as the scholemen say that this intention necessarily be actual nor it sufficeth not to be habituall which may be in men either drunke or asleepe but vertuall that is in the power of that intention which howsoeuer now distracted before was actuall Neither doe we meane that the Minister should necessarily haue the same intent of the end which the Church hath but of the action the end being perhaps without the compasse of his knowledg but the action cannot vnlesse we suppose him to be a Minister weaker then any church hath For it is one thing to intend what the Church intendeth and another thing to intend what the Church doth For those that intend by baptisme an vtter acquittance from originall sinne and those that doe not there is a diuersitie in the end but the action is all one and therefore not reiterated though the end be diuers Now to do the externall action and yet in iest is no more to doe what the Church intendeth to doe then their speech and action Haile King of the Iewes was any honor or true reuerence to our Sauiour Christ. The necessity of this intention not for grace but to make it a Sacramentall action will more euidently appeare if wee consider what kinde of instrument the Minister is Man may be the instrument of another agent many waies First in respect only of his bodily members his hand his backe or such like without any vse of the will Secondly in respect of his outward parts with the vse of sense as to reade to watch to tell what he seeth and to this also the will is no further required but to the outward action Thirdly in respect of the bodily members together with sense and reason as in Iudges appointed by Princes to determine causes wherein wisdome and the will are to be instruments Now the Ministers of the Sacrament must be of this third kinde And therefore saith Hugo if a father should take his sonne to a bathe and should say Sonne I wash thee in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost and so dip him in the water it were ridiculous to thinke that hee were thus baptized Where although such prophaners are without excuse for vnreuerend imitation of holy things yet these actions without the intention of the Church can no wayes bee tearmed sacraments For if those who hold a sermon read to be

of mans hart yet in his mercy he hath not left him altogether destitute of a better guide The first seruing to teach him that there is a God the latter what that God is and how he will bee worshipped by man This light wee call the scripture which God hath not vouchsafed to all but to those only whome he gathereth more neerely and familiarly to him selfe and vouchsafeth that honor to be called his Church that as men through infirmity seeing weakely prouide vnto themselues the helpe of a better sight so what man cannot reade by the dimnes of his seeing out of the creatures he may more apparantly reade them in the holy scriptures For as there is no saluation without religion no religion without faith so there is no faith without a promise nor promise without a word for God desirous to make an vnion betwixt vs and himselfe hath so linked his word and his Church that neither can stand where both are not The Church for her part in her choice allowance testifying as well that it is the scripture as the scripture from an absolute authority doth assure vs that it is the Church For as those who are conuerted haue no reason to beleeue that to be the Church where there is no scripture so those who are not conuerted haue no great reason to admit that for scripture for which they haue not the Churches warrant So that in my opinion the contention is vnnaturall and vnfit to make a variance by comparison betwixt those two who are in reason and nature to support each other It was a memorable attonement that Abraham made with Lotte let there be no strife I pray thee betweene thee and me neither betweene thy heardsmen and my heardsmen for we be brethren so vndoubtedly may the Church and the scripture say it is then to be feared that those who treacherously make this contentious comparison betwixt both are in very deede true friends to neither For though we dislike of them by whome too much heeretofore hath bin attributed to the Church yet we are loth to grow to an error on the contrary hand and to derogate too much from the Church of God by which remoouall of one extremity with another the worlde seeking to procure a remedy hath purchased a meere exchang of the euill which before was felt We and our aduersaries confesse that the scriptures in themselues haue great authority inward witnes from that spirit which is the author of all truth and outward arguments strong motiues of beleefe which cleaueth firmely to the word it selfe For what doctrine was euer deliuered with greater maiesty What stile euer had such simplicity purity diuinity What history or memoriall of learning is of like antiquity what oracles foretold haue bin effected with such certainty What miracles more powerfull to confirme the truth What enemies euer preuailed lesse or laboured more violently to roote it out To conclude what witnesses haue dyed with more innocency or lesse feare then those that haue sealed the holinesse of this truth This the scripture is in it selfe but men who are of lesse learning then these reformers are do not vnworthily make question how that which ought thus highly to be esteemed for it selfe commeth to be accounted of thus honorably by vs for the weakenes of mans iudgement doth not euer value things by that worth which they doe deserue For vndoubtedly out of that error hath proceeded your suspition of him whose inward worthines must now be content to receiue testimony from a witnes by many thousand degrees inferiour to himselfe To them of Samaria the woman gaue testimony of our sauiour Christ not that she was better but better knowne for witnesses of lesse credit then those of whome they beare witnesse but of some more knowledge then those to whome they beare witnes haue euer bin reputed to giue a kind of warrant and authority vnto that they proue Seeing then the Church which consisteth of many doth outwardly testifie what euery man inwardly should be to swarue vnnecessarilie from the iudgement of the whole Church experience as yet hath neuer found it safe For that which by her ecclesiasticall authority she shal probably thinke define to be true or good must in congruity of reason ouerrule all other inferiour Iudgements whatsoeuer And to them that out of a singularity of their owne aske vs why we thus hang ouâ— iudgements on the Churches sleeue wee answere with Salomon Two are better then one for euen in matters of lesse moment it was neuer thought safe to neglect the iudgement of many and rashly to follow the fancy and opinion of some few If the Fathers of our Church had had no greater reasoÌ„ to auouch their forsaking of the Antichristian Synagogue as you call it then this point wee might iustly haue wished to haue bin recoÌ„ciled to the fellowship society of their church For this point as it seemeth rightly vnderstood affordeth little difference betwixt them and vs and therfore there was no mention of it in the last councell their Church had And Bellarmine himselfe doth apparantly complaine that we wrong them in this point for doubtles it is a tolerable opinion of the Church of Rome if they go no further as some of them do not to affirme that the scriptures are holy and diuine in themselues but so esteemed by vs for the authority of the Church for there is no man doubteth but that it belongeth to the Church if we vnderstand as we ought those truely who are the Church to approue the scriptures to acknowledg to receiue to publish to commend vnto hir Children And this witnes ought to be receiued of all as true yet wee doe not beleeue the scriptures for this only for there is the testimony of the Holy-ghost without which the commendation of the Church were of little value That the scriptures are true to vs wee haue it from the Church but that wee beleeue them as true we haue it from the Holy-ghost We confesse it is an excellent office of the Church to beare witnes to the scriptures but we say not that otherwise we would not beleeue them We graunt that the scriptures rightly vsed are the iudge of controuersies that they are the triall of the Church that they are in themselues a sufficient witnes for what they are but yet for all this wee are not afraid with Master Hooker to confesse that it is not the word of God which doth or possibly can assure vs that we do well to thinke it is the word of God For by experience we all know that the first outward motion leading men so to esteeme of the scripture is the authority of Gods Church which teacheth vs to receiue Markes Gospell who was not an Apostle and refuse the Gospell of Thomas who was an Apostle to retain S. Lukes gospel who saw not Christ and to reiect the Gospell of Nicodemus that sawe him For though in themselues

vnfitly applyed euen by orators to the best things The next is these words In Baptisme God doth bestow presently remission of sins and the Holy-ghost binding also himselfe to ad in processe of time what grace soeuer shall be further necessasary for the attainment of euerlasting life Heere you aske of Maister Hooker what warrant he hath of present grace in the very work wrought of baptisme where by the way you cuÌ„ningly with a truth of his mingle an error of your owne for who euer doubted but that baptisme doth bestow the remission of sins and yet not this as we haue often told you for the very work wrought of baptisme The next in these wordes The signe of the Crosse as we vse it is in some sort a meane to work our preseruation from reproch and Christs marke It seemes that this speech hath made you to forget that ciuill respect which had bin fit to one whome worthily you ought to esteeme as reuerend for very rudely you say when where or how did Christ tell thee that the signe of the Crosse as we vse it is the marke of Christ and preserueth froÌ„ reproch Be not caried more violently then the cause requireth for Maister Hooker doth not affirme but saith shall I say and addeth surely the minde which as yet hath not hardned it selfe in sinne is seldome prouoked thereunto in any grosse and greeuous manner but natures secret suggestioÌ„ obiecteth against it ignominy as a bar which conceit being entred into that pallace of mans fancy the gates wherof haue imprinted in theÌ„ that holy signe which bringeth forthwith to mind whatsoeuer Christ hath wrought and we vowed against sinne it commeth hereby to passe that Christian men neuer want a most effectuall though a silent teacher to auoid whatsoeuer may deseruedly procure shame Let vs not thinke it superfluous that Christ hath his marke applied vnto that part where bashfulnes appeareth in token that they which are Christians should at no time be ashamed of his ignominie The last words misliked by you in this article are these Assuredly whosoeuer doth wel obserue how much al inferiour things depend vpon the orderly courses and motions of these greater orbs wil hardly iudge it meet or good that the Angels assisting them should be driuen to betake themselues vnto other stations although by nature they were not tyed where now they are but had change also else where as long as their absence from beneath might but tollerably be supplyed and by descending their roomes aboue should become vacant Heere wholy mistaking Maister Hooker you run into a strange discourse of Angels of their attendance vpon the elect and aske where it is reuealed that they attend vpon celestiall orbs and whether it be not sinne to leaue their naturall charge and here you aske whether he meane not the Angels that fel These and such like are those collections which your iudgement thath gathered wholy mistaking the scope of this excellent speech For he sheweth here that there may be iust reasons of non-residence in Vniuersities in Bishops houses and last of all for their imployment in the families of noble men or in princes courts For assuredly whosoeuer doth well obserue how much all inferiour things depend vpon the orderly courses and motions of those greater orbs will hardly iudge it either meete or good that the Angels assisting them should be driuen to betake themselues vnto other stations although by nature they were not tyed where now they are but had charge also else where as long as their absence from beneath might but tolerably be supplied and by descending the roumes aboue should become vacant Who vnderstandeth not now that by orbes are ment those great persons which by their motion do carrye inferiours with them And by Angels assisting them are ment those graue diuines which are by their wisdome holinesse and direction to moderate their motion Why then being but a parable or an allegorie run you to examination of orbes of Angels of motion and yet these are things so well knowne in the Philosophers schooles as that Maister Hooker had no reason to feare to take a similitude from them without being called to examination of the truth of the thing it selfe And this may suffice for a moderate answere to those things which in this article are tearmed by you speculatiue doctrine Only I must ad this which Maister Hooker noteth in a troublesome aduersary with whom he had to deale that in this article as often in this letter besides there are two faults predominant which would tyre out any which should answeare to euery poynt seuerally first vnapt speaking of schoole controuersies secondly a very vntoward reciting of M. Hookers words that as he which should promise to draw a mans countenance and did indeed expresse the parts at least the most of them truly but peruersely place them could not represent a more offensiue visage then a mans owne would be to himselfe so haue you dealt with M. Hooker where your misplacing of those words which he hath vttered hath framed a picture which as you direct men to looke at it little differeth from the shape of an vgly monster for answeare whereunto this labour is sufficient wherein I haue set downe both his words and meaning in such sort that where your accusation doth depraue the one or that either you misinterpret or without iust cause mislike the other it will appeare so plainly that to the indifferent reader I shall not neede to ad any further answeare for any man may see that you haue iudged his words as they doe colours which looke vpon them with greene spectacles and thinke that which they see is greene when indeede that is greene whereby they see The best remedy will be to vse charity where iudgment wanteth ARTICLE XIX Of Caluin and the reformed Churches WHere the persons of particular men is the subiect of our discourse we cannot well either be too short or too charitable for of the best if we speake much something will be wrested to a hard construction if vncharitablie we shal seeme to follow the practise of those which haue no other skill to ouerthrow a generall cause but by wounding of some particular men And howsoeuer that cause must needs be weake which either hath his beginning or his greatest strength from one priuate man yet doubtles in common reason it is no small policie to blemish a truth by detracting froÌ„ the sincerity and religion of such as are the principal defenders of it How much this part of the world hath cause to esteeme of Luther and Caluin there is no man of any learning that can be ignoraÌ„t in which respect notwithstaÌ„ding by some meÌ„ a threefold wrong is don vnto our Church First to make theÌ„ authors of that religion amongst vs which by many huÌ„dreth yeers was far more ancient then they both were Secondly to lay the infirmities that were in theÌ„ as being meÌ„ it were too great ignorance

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