stabiliend Rom. Eccles Vergerii Tom. 1. p. 95 96. And a little after he proceeds thus Certainly we scarce retain in our Churches so much as a shadow of the Doctrine and Discipline which flourish'd in the times of the Apostles but have brought in another quite different from it c Certe vix umbram quandam retinemus in nostris Ecclesiis ejus doctrinae disciplinae quae Apostolorum temporibus floruerunt prorsus aliam accersivimus p. 97. And in the conclusion they give the Pope this Counsel as the most weighty of all That he labour with all his might that as little as possible of the Gospel especially in the vulgar Tongue may be read in the Cities that are under his Dominion that that very little which is wont to be read in the Mass may be sufficient and that no mortal Man may be permitted to read more of it For as long say they as Men were contented with that little your affairs succeeded according to your wish which began to decline to the contrary as soon as Men took upon them to read more In brief this is the Book which hath raised the Tempests and Storms with which we are toss'd And the truth is if any Man shall diligently consider that Book and shall take a view of those things which are done in our Churches he will see that there is a vast disagreement between them and that our Doctrine is not only altogether different from that but which is more is often contrary to it d Denique quod inter omnia consilia quae nos dare hoc tempore Beatitudini tuae possumus omnium gravissimum ad extremum reservavimus oculi hic aperiendi sunt omnibus nervis adnitendum erit ut quam minimum Evangelii poterit praesertim lingua vulgari in iis legatur civitatibus quae sub tua ditione ac potestate sunt sufficiatque tantillum illud quod in Missi legi solet c. p. 102. 1. This was the Confession of Popish Bishops but made in the Pope's Ear and afterward divulged to the World by a great Bishop of that Church who a little before was so zealous an Advocate for the Romish Faith and so much the Popes Favorite that he made choice of him before all others for his Legate to reduce the Hereticks in Germany Forty years before this the Cardinals and Bishops in the Council of Pisa not only confess'd their Errors in Doctrine but decreed a Reformation in Faith as well as in Manners e Sess 3. Richer Hist Concil general l. 4. parte 1. p. 430. For though as I said before that Decree was made by them to serve a Design yet the serving of that Design was a plain Demonstration that such a Reformation was judged needful by many of the Roman Church Add to these the Emperor the King of France and the Duke of Bavaria who demanded such a Reformation from the Trent-Council as was in many points plainly repugnant to the received Doctrines of the Roman Church f Natalis Comes l. 14. Hist sui temp Soave l. 6. p. 513. p. 527. l. 7. 652. And was any thing done by the Council in compliance with these Confessions and Demands No not one of their Doctrines was so much as reflected upon much less condemn'd Yea so far was the Council from making any alteration in Doctrine that the Emperour with all his Authority could not obtain leave for the Protestants so much as to propose their Doctrine g Soave l. 4. p. 359. 360. Vergerii Secret Pontif. Actio 1. And to make all sure against any such kind of Reformation the Pope provided that his most learned Prelats might not come acquainted with any other Doctrine than what their Mother the Church had taught them For he prohibited not only the Bishops but the Cardinals too to look into the Books of the Lutherans h Verger secret Pontif. Act. 3. p. 77 78 82 83. And were not they think you likely to be equal Judges who were to condemn those Doctrines which they were not permitted to examine But 't is needless to shew that no Reformation was made in Doctrine since R. H. confesses That the Tridentine Fathers were unanimous in condemning the Protestant Tenets i Considerat on the Counc of Trent s 150. And that the Pope had no need of the Italian Bishops to that purpose because the whole Council did concurr in condemning them k S. 167. Nor did the Fathers so much as pretend to any such Reformation the very notion of Reformation being by them limited to so narrow a compass as not to reach it Nor could they extend it further without quitting their claim to Infallibility Secondly Nor was any the least Reformation made in matters of Divine Worship No not so much as in the Language in which it was celebrated though earnestly desired by the Emperor the King of France the King of Poland the Duke of Bavaria c. But notwithstanding the importunity of these great Catholick Princes back'd with the most persuasive Arguments in plain contradiction to Scripture and to the Practice of the ancient Church in defiance to Reason and the common sense of Mankind the Church-service was still continued in a Language not understood by those that heard it No nor many times by those that read it and an Anathema denounc'd against those who shall dare to say that Mass ought to be celebrated in the vulgar Tongue l Concil Trident. Sess 22. Can. 9. And could it be expected that they should reform any Abuse in the Object or matter of their Worship who would not remove that which defeats its very end and makes it instead of a reasonble a brutish Service especially considering that it might as one would think have been done without the least detriment to any of their worldly Interests I know that R. H. in his Catalogue of those Grievances which he says the Council took into consideration and rectified what they judg'd amiss so far as that iron Age would permit m Considerat on the Counc of Trent c. 12. s 209. mentions the withholding of the Cup as if this had been one of the Grievances rectified That the Council took this into Consideration is granted but 't is certain they did not rectifie it and therefore it seems judged nothing amiss in it for had they done so the obstinacy of the Age could not have hindred them from rectifying it for that Iron Age how stubborn soever in other matters as to this piece of Reformation was so flexible that excepting the Spaniards it generally inclined to it And yet after all the consideration the Council had about it they at length determined not to determine it but to refer it intirely to the Popes Judgment n Hoc decreto Sancta Synodus refert ad Pontificem Max. sententiam judicium integrum illorum duorum Articulorum quos antea propositos nondum discusscrat nimirum an Consuetudo Catholicae
Persons was now out of doors But when the next Lateran Council came the case was quite alter'd the Pope was then mounted above a Council and his Supremacy and their Subjection owned by them and by the succeeding Council of Trent The sum of what hath been said may be reduced to these four Heads which quite evacuate the force of the Objection 1. That in the Councils of Pisa and Constance the case with respect to the Pope was as different from what it was and ever will be when there is a Pope whose Right is not disputed as the case of Subjects under a Prince whose Title is unquestionable from what it is under many Pretenders who are not able to make out their Claim The Subjects are oblig'd in Conscience and usually by Interest to obey the former but by neither to obey the latter 2. Suppose their Title was at first unquestionable yet they lost it by Heresy Schism and their prodigiously scandalous Vices 3. In the Councils of Constance and Basil it was reckon'd a Point of Faith That the Bishops change their place in relation to the Pope when united in a General Council and by consequence were no more bound by the Oath they had taken to the Pope than a Servant who swears Obedience to his Master is in case he cease to be his Servant and his Master become Servant to him And 4. In the Council of Basil the Pope himself had set the Bishops free from their Oath of Subjection to him by voluntarily subjecting himself to them By this time it is I think evident enough that notwithstanding this Exception in an extraordinary case the Reasons before mentioned stand good But what need I prove that the Sun is up at Noon The Reason the Sense and common Observation of Mankind do all tell us that as Men who have any Religion cannot but have a great Veneration for an Oath so on the other hand that they who have none cannot but be sway'd by their worldly Interests Where the Carcass is thither will the Eagles resort Since therefore the governing part of the Church of Rome were so miserably enslaved to the Roman Bishop could there be any hope of Reformation when there was no reason to hope that the Bishop of Rome would consent to it Obj. Some perhaps may say that I wrong the Popes in representing them as so obstinately set against Reformation For as many of them pretended a Zeal for it so 't is certain there was one at least viz. Adrian VI. who did himself earnestly endeavour it Ans But what kind of Reformation was it he endeavoured to make In matters of Faith and of the Sacraments he would allow no Man liberty so much as to dispute what had been once decreed by General Councils l Soave l. 1. p. 25. Sleid. Comment l. 4. that is by any of those Councils which he called General many of which were no more than Italian or Papal Councils Whosoever was so bold as to call any such thing in question he was to be dealt with as John Huss and Hierom of Prague m Soav ibid. so that if any Man denied the imaginary Fire of Purgatory he must presently be confuted by real Flames The Popes usurp'd Power and Greatness the source of numberless other Corruptions so far was he from retrenching that he rather endeavoured to set it higher The Princes of Germany were looked upon as too sawcy and thought to entrench upon his Prerogative for desiring only that a Council might be called with the Emperor's Consent n Soav l. 1. p. 28. What then was the Reformation Adrian aimed at Why the Church-men were in their Morals so monstrously degenerated that in almost all places they were become abominable The Abuses in Discipline were grown so intolerable that the Princes of the World were resolved no longer to endure them That therefore which he designed was to reduce the Clergy to somewhat better Manners and to correct some gross Enormities in Discipline which were most offensive This was all the Reformation he endeavoured for other Corruptions so far was it from his intention to reform them that he was resolved more firmly to establish them And yet this piece of Reformation he did not effect tho he much desired it Which leads me to another Consideration which further shews how hopeless the Reformation of the Church of Rome was For 6. Let us suppose That such a Man had been advanced to the Papacy who would have set himself in good earnest to make an impartial Reformation one of the most unlikely things in the World as the state of that Church then was and for a long time before had been he would have fail'd in his Attempt and not have been able to accomplish it And that for these two Reasons 1. Because he could have made no such Reformation unless he first made void those Obligations by which the governing part of that Church both in point of Conscience and of Interest were held in subjection to him 2. Because of that opposition which they being so let loose would for the generality have made against him 1. Because he could have made no such Reformation unless he first made void those Obligations by which the governing part of that Church both in point of Conscience and Interest were of held in subjection to him The great holds he had upon their Consciences proceeded from several corrupt Doctrines and those Practices of the Popes that were built upon them For instance That the Pope is by Divine Ordination Head of the Universal Church that all other Bishops are his Subjects and that he hath power to impose an Oath upon them as their Soveraign that he is the Supream Judg of Controversies and all Men oblig'd to stand to his Sentence These and several other Doctrines of a resembling nature have been defined by the Popes themselves and with great Zeal asserted as unquestionable Truths by their Flatterers and had been so far owned by the governing Clergy that they had bound themselves by solemn Oath has as been already shew'd to be obedient to him But now no Reformation to purpose could have been made but the Pope must condemn these Doctrines and divest himself of those Prerogatives which by virtue of them he lays claim to Because these are not only great Errors themselves but productive of all other the grossest Corruptions o Richer Hist Concil General l. 1. c. 13. Nor must he only loose the tie of Conscience but that of Interest too which with the generallity of Men is the stronger of the two He must no longer assume to himself the sole power of erecting and pulling down of Bishopricks of electing confirming deposing and restoring of Bishops of disposing of all the greater Dignities and Ecclesiastical Benefices of conferring those that are incompatible upon the same Person In a word of trampling upon all the ancient Canons And should the Pope have once parted with these Prerogatives together with
which yet will not pass for much among many Men of his own Church But suppose they are is it a thing granted that all is true that is in the Vatican Manuscripts He frequently quotes the Acts of the Council the Vatican it seems is furnished with plenty of them the Acts of Paleottus of Mensottus of the Bishop of Salamanca c. O how thankful would many Men be to his Holiness would he bless the World with the sight of these Yea what would they not willingly give to purchase them If then they are such as will abide the Test why are they still kept under Lock and Key Is it not to be suspected that the Wares are adulterate when the Merchant will not be persuaded to bring them into the Light Is the Court of Rome so self-denying as not to publish those things which make for their advantage May we not then conclude That either they are such as will not endure the Trial or in case they will that besides what makes for them they contain those matters also which make more against them Besides It is a thing known to the World that the Legats in the Council had two sorts of Instructions one Letter was to be shew'd to give satisfaction to the Bishops and Ambassadors another ran counter to it and was to be concealed And may we not suppose that those Letters which the Cardinal so frequently cites were of that sort only which were to be communicated which were direct contrary to those that were concealed What credit then is to be given to his Proofs For these and many other Reasons which to avoid tediousness I omit the Cardinals Counter-History hath not met with that esteem among learned Men of the Church of Rome as was expected and instead of blasting the Reputation of Father Paul's History hath made it to be more highly valu'd by many Men than it was before CHAP. III. The Vanity of the pretended Reformation of the Council of TRENT HAving given Father Paul his due I shall now proceed to treat of the Reformation made by the Council I might premise several general Considerations by which all impartial Persons will be abundantly satisfied that no Reformation to purpose could be made by it viz. such as these 1. The Pope and his Court were very averse from such a Reformation 2. The Pope by his Legats presided in the Council 3. The proposal of all matters to be treated of was reserved to the Legats 4. The Legats in doubtful matters confulted the Pope before they proposed them to be discuss'd 5. After matters had been discuss'd in the Congregations before they were proposed in the Session the Legats sent to Rome to know the Pope's Pleasure 6. The Bishops of the Council were generally such as were addicted to the Pope either as they were Italians or as they were his Pensioners or both And therefore such as would not contradict him except in such rare Cases in which the Pope's Interest and their own could not be reconciled such as the Exemption of Regulars and the Divine Right of Episcopacy 7. When any considerable opposition was like to be made all Arts were used the most disingenuous not excepted to bring over the Dissenters to the Pope's Party 8. Nothing was proposed in the later Sessions to be defined till they were before secure of a Party to carry it that way which the Pope desired He that considers these things cannot expect any good from this Council But passing over all these I shall at present consider matter of Fact only what was done and what was not done by the Council which shall be reduc'd to these three general Heads 1. That in those matters in which a Reformation was most necessary not the least Reformation was made or so much as pretended 2. That in those matters in which a mighty Reformation was pretended little or rather none was really made 3. That instead of Reformation the Council produc'd a greater Deformation what it found bad it left in many respects worse SECT I. In those matters in which a Reformation was most necessary not the least Reformation was made or so much as pretended First That in those matters in which Reformation was most necessary not the least Reformation was made or so much as pretended And these things were of two sorts matters of Doctrine and matters of Worship In which I say Reformation was most necessary because Errors in these are of the most dangerous consequence First That the Romish Errors in Doctrine were numerous and many of them in points of the highest moment I have already shew'd (a) Part. 1. and therefore shall spare the labour of mentioning them here That the Protestants with one Mind and one Mouth demanded a Reformation of these especially as absolutely necessary I need not prove it being a thing notorious to all Men who have read but so much as the Ausburg Confession Yea That many Errors in Doctrine were so gross that those very Romanists who in compliance with their worldly Interest resolv'd not to reform them were not able to shut their Eyes so close as not to discern them we may conclude from that Counsel which the Bishops assembled at Bononia gave to Pope Julius III. for the establishment of the Roman Church viz. The Lutherans receive and confess all the Articles of the Athanasian Nicene and Apostles Creed The same Lutherans refuse to admit any Doctrine except that only which hath the Prophets Christ and his Apostles for its Authors and wish that we would imitate the ancient Churches and not think of receiving any Traditions which it is not more manifest than the Noon-day light were dictated and instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ and the Apostles But we on the contrary following the opinion of your Holiness will have all Traditions Constitutions Rules and Ceremonies which have heretofore either by the Fathers or Councils or even by any private Man with a good Zeal been introduc'd into the Church to be believ'd and accounted necessary to Salvation And particularly as to Tradition we intirely believe and confess as a true Article of Faith That which the Council of Trent hath determin'd in the Decree of the third Session And although we cannot prove this for we plainly confess between our selves that we cannot prove that which we hold and teach concerning Tradition yet we confess it to be true because the Roman Church holds it But that we may confess the Truth which must be kept as a secret in the time of the Apostles and for some Years after the Apostles there was no mention of the Papacy or the Cardinalship much less were there these Doctrines these Laws these Customs no nor the Empire over the Nations that we now obtain But all Ministers of all Churches of the Roman no less than of others did voluntarily obey Kings and Princes and Magistrates b Lutherani Symboli Apostolorum Nicaeni Athanasii Articulos omnes recipiunt c. Consil de