vdder of his Cow more milke vnto my Neighbour yeeldes Our neighbours haue this our neighbours haue that and wee wantâ— these things Fie brethren for shame what neede this emulation of our neighbours and murmuring against our owne state And yet it is not altogether so neither for them the more is the pitie if it otherwise pleased God Neither for vs thanks be giuen to God for it and for that plentifull measure of the encrease and glory of the kingdome oâ— Christ in this our reformed Church of England and for the suppression of the tyrannie of Sathan and Anti-christe and of his Ministers and confederates Wee haue great cause highly to magnifie God for the woÌ„derfull and gratious works he hath wrought for vs aboue all our neighbours round about vs yea aboue all the particuler Churches néere or farre dispersed in the world at this day euen in this estate of Ecclesiasticall Gouernement established And all our neighbours where GOD hath anie Churche neuer so muche reformed doe I hope reioyce together with vs therefore yea not the beste of them but bee it spoken to the glorye of God and without vpbraiding to others haue found no small comfortable benefite at our handes and doe all most thankfully reacknowledge the same without condemning reprouing or grudging at our state of Ecclesiasticall gouernement established what other kinde of reformation soeuer in their Ecclesiasticall Gouernement they bee directed by Onelie we our selues murmur and grudge condemne and slaunder both among our selues and to all our neighbours our owne state which is so euill that woulde God were itaccording to his acceptable good pleasure the kingdome and glory of Christe and the suppression of Sathan and Antichriste though I had rather wish it did no lesse did but halfe as faste encrease and prosper then God bee glorified for it in our state it doeth And yet God graunt both in ours and in our neighbours states and all other parts of Gods true Church according as we al say in the Lordes Prayer Thy kingdome come these blessings of God may daily more and more encrease and prosper And so by Gods grace it shoulde still doe better and better Maugre Sathan and Antichriste if our owne brethren would not hindervs and all reformed Churches shoulde doe well inough notwithstanding we differ from them and they from vs Yea though both of vs differ from the state of the Primitiue and pure Church not in truthe of Faith and vnitie of Doctrine But in matter or manner of Orders Offices Rites and Ceremonies concerning Ecclesiasticall regiment so farre as they are not prescribed by any perpetuall rule other then for the time and state or for order and comelinesse For the difference of these thinges is not â—irectlye materiall to saluation neither ought to breake the bonde of peace and Chrystian concorde But they may thinke and wishe well to vs and wee in the name of the Lorde thinke well and wishe good lucke to them Yea to wishe that they had no better state then we haue on condition they had no worse and might alwayes haue as good I thinke all our neighbours reformed Churches woulde bee soone entreated to say AMEN For in what hard case God help them good neighbours they be their selues feele or feare it daily and we heare of it and cease not daily to pray for them and as we may put to our helping hands vnto them Yea our brethren their-selues vpon better aduisement since in their last supplication made to her gratious Maiestie to the high Court of Parliament assembled 1587. pag. 8. do confesse it saying The Churches of God rounde about vs goe to wracke in Fraunce Belgia and a great part of highe Dutche I woulde Scotland had continued in her first loue and that the hands of the builders were strengthened among you But in conclusion neither their state or ours howsoeuer they stande are bound to any perpetuall forme of all the orders and offices of Ecclesiasticall regiment Theirs may perhaps be better for them their aflicted state standing as it doth ours all things in our established state of Gouernment considered is best for vs. Away therefore good brethren with these disordered tearmes This disordred state of ours for they are not spéeches beséeming thankfull and faithfull ministers to God nor louing and obedient subiects to our Prince and Superiours so disorderlie cast forth on the state of Eccle. regiment Which toucheth not onely Eccl. persons against whome perhaps our brethren will make no seruple of coÌ„science though their mouthes runne ouer be they neuer so much their brethren their Pastors their betters their superiours their Bish or Arch. to whome their selues peraduenture haue sworne Canonicam obedientiam But these disordred speeches of theirs touch the Magistrate yea their Soueraigne very néere and therefore they are not onely disordred but daungerous speeches Neither ought our brethren to vpbraid our labours vnto vs that weâ— haue so long laboured with so little profit to discourage the painefull laborer in the Lords vine-yard and to make our handes weake beecause our worke prospereth not so fast in our hands as we would wishe it did And yet it prospereth God be praysed with more profit then either we see or our brethren like But profit or not profit let vs still labour and thankes be to God then we labour All are not so idle loyterers as afterwarde our brethren complaine wee labour notâ— and héere they finde fault with our labours But labour we or loyter we they must still labour infinding fault or else they should loyter for lack of matter in discoursing But howsoeuer they esteeme of our labours the Laborer saith the Lord Luc. 10. is worthie his rewarde And as their-selues afterwarde do note out of S. Paule 1. Timoth. â— The elders that rule well are worthie double honor especially they which labour in the worde and doctrine But they tell vs that sentence maketh for their gouerning and not teaching elders whether it doth so or no we shall God willing at large examine on their allegation of the same but admitting it had included any such Elders at that time were their labours to be honoured that ruled well among them and yet perhaps with as little profit And is the laborer in the word and doctrine to be despised and his labour to be left beecause we haue so long laboured with so little profit But for all this discouragement of our brethren let vs not be weary of wel-dooing and commit the euent profit to the Lorde and hearken rather to the Apostles exhortation 1. Cor. 16. Therefore my beloued brethren be ye stedfast vnmouâ—able aboundant alwayes in the worke of the Lord forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vaine in the lorde And this is our comfort against this perswasion of our brethren to leaue that state of ours wherein we haue so long laboured with so little profit And yet we hope we haue not all bene
or house of God ought to be directed in all thinges according to the order prescribed by the housholder himselfe Which principle is true within the boundes thereof that is to say in all thinges that he hath prescribed But if he haue not prescribed all thinges appertayning to the externall gouernment of his Church or house then are those thinges which are not prescribed by the housholder himselfe not to be so vrged as that they ought necessarily this way or that way to be alwayes directed The Apostle Hebr. 8. verse 5. saith out of Exod. 25. verse 40. Moses was warned by God when he was about to finish the Tabernacle See sayde he that thou make all thinges according to the paterne shewed to thee in the mount But the Apostle proceeding in the ninth Chapter verse 11. applying this first Tabernacle to the second which he calleth a greater and more perfect Tabernacle not made with handes that is not of this building meaning the naturall bodie of Christe referreth not this to the mysticall bodie which is the Church or house of God and much lesse to the externall forme of regiment in all matters ecclesiasticall or belonging to the Churches gouernment No not when before chap. 3. verse 1. c. he speaketh both of Christ himselfe and of his house or Church also Therefore sayeth he holy brethren partakers of the heauenly vocation consider the Apostle and high Priest of our profession Christ Iesus who was faithfull to him that hath appointeâ— him euen as Moses was in all his house For this man was counted woorthie of more glorie thâ—n Moses in asmuch as he that hath builded the house hath more honour than the house For euery house is builded of some man and hee that hath built all thinges is God Nowe Moses verelie was faithfull in all his house as a seruant for a witnesse of the thinges which should be spoken after but Christe is as the sonne ouer his owne house whose house wee are if we holde fast the confidence and the reioysing of the hope vnto the ende Here againe we sée that this faithfulnesse in all his house as Moses was faithful is not to be reckoned as though he went about to shewe vs that all pointes of the externall regiment of the house or Churche of Christe haue a prescribed order by which they ought to bee directed in all thinges but that in the inwarde and spirituall regiment thereof we should acknowledge Iesus Christ the sonne of God to be the Lord and owner of this house and to consider him as the Apostle and high Priest of our profession that is of our Christian faith and religion and to confirme our faith in him that wee are his house or Church if wee holde fast not this or that externall forme of Ecclesiastical gouernment but the confidence and reioysing of hope vnto the ende And thus farre foorth and not furder we admit this second principle or proposition And this is necessarie to be obserued because this principle is here set downe in such captious order as insinuating that Christ had prescribed an order in all thinges in his house or Church according to the prescription whereof all thinges ought to be directed In which sense it is no principle but a question betwéene vs which wâ— denie and our brethren affirme but as yet they haue not prooued it The thirde saye they is a manifest trueth beleeued of all them that acknoweledge the Scripture of God to bee a perpetuall rule of all our life and able to make the man of God perfect prepared to all good workes Here againe another caption is to be taken héede of in this their thirde principle which order is not to bee learned else-where but in his holie woorde For if they meane it of the order that in his holie worde he hath prescribed true it is that order is not to be learned any where else as anie necessarie prescription otherwise then as an exposition of the same order for our more cleare and fuller learning thereof And so alwayes kéeping the foundation the godlie fathers and expositors may builde there-on and the godlie gouernours of the Church may beautifie and adorne the same so that all be doone to Gods glorie and to the true edifying of the Church And so this third proposition is a manifest trueth beleeued of all them that acknowledge the scripture of God to be a perfect rule of all our life and able to make the man of God perfect prepared to all good workes But it followeth not héere-upon that all generall or particuler orders in the externall gouernement of the Church are not else-where to bee learned but in Gods holie woorde except they meane by Gods holie worde such as are inclusiuely comprehended and not expresselie specified in his holie worde For they their selues haue not all their orders expressely mentioned and in all thinges prescribed in Gods holy worde For example their owne communion booke entituled The forme of Common prayers administration of the Sacramentes c. They dare not auowe that all thinges therein conteyned haue not beene learned else-where but in his holie worde and are there to be founde eyther in plaine woordes or necessarie implication but because they thinke that they are not contrarie they dare auouch thus farre to call them Agreeable to Gods worde And yet as though the agreeablenesse also might be called in question they adde héere-to And the vse of the reformed Churches And as their owne booke of Common prayers vseth all these helpes to saue all vpright for feare they might be chalenged in this poynt euen so this booke which our bretheren commende vnto vs to be A learned discourse of Ecclesiasticall gouernment prooued by the worde of God wee shall finde in the discourse thereof that the learned discoursers learned not all the orders prescribed there-in out of Gods holie worde but somewhat else-where Except they will likewise say it is agreeable or not contrarie to Gods holie worde Wherein also we shall God willing sée how they faile But if that answer may thus serue them I sée not whie it may not as well serue vs if we haue no other gouernement established but such as is agreeable and not contrarie to the holie word of God although it be not in his holie word expresselie prescribed Neither dooth this text of S. Paule 2. Tim. 3.17 anie more infringe euerie order in the churches gouernement that it maye not be learned else-where but in Gods holie worde then it dooth infringe euerie other order in the ciuill policie or administration of euerie mans morall behauiour that their orders also are not to be learned else-where but in Gods holie word Bicause thiâ— is a manifest truth beleeued of all them that acknowledge the scripture of God to be a perfect rule of all our life and able to make the man of God perfect prepared to all good workes But it sufficeth for such orders as
foorth their heartes shoulde fayle them And many other toward Laborers that on the Lordes calling were but late entred into this Haruest begin to stande in a mammering and drawe backe except a number of these our too forwarde brethren And therefore indéede we had néede on all handes without ceasing moste earnestly to pray to God to thrust foorth moe laborers into his haruest and to comfort them that be thrust in by him least both Laborers haruest all waxe thinner and more backwarde than it dooth Praie Praie Now vpon all these foresaid meanes our brethren make their conclusion saying And in the meane time till God shall blesse vs with a sufficient number of learned Pastors to take some extraordinary and temporall order for ouer-seeing the Churches that although they cannot be all sufficientlie enstructed and gouerned yet so many shall not be altogether destitute of all knowledge and spirituall gouernement as there are nowe in this moste corrupt state of the Churche in which wee haue hetherto continued These are very hard spéeches against the present state of the Churche of Englande and in truth by no meanes iustifiable that it is a moste corrupt state of the Church and so hath hetherto continued For if it be now in a most corrupt state then was it not more corrupt in the time of all the popish superstitions If wee nowe as our brethren in their Preface to this Learned discourse confesse maintaine the true and holie faith and haue the Gospell freely preached as in this learned discourse they also graunt are we so corrupt as when manifest errors in doctrine and faith were maintained and the preaching of the Gospell suppressed and persecuted And yet we debarre them not altogether of the title of the Church though a Church exceeding much corrupted Or doth the most corruption of the Church lie in matters or rather in formes of discipline Admitting we haue a discipline that were corrupted notwithstanding professing the holy truth in all pointes of faith and doctrine The Saxon Churches haue in some pointes the like discipline to that our brethren contend for and yet in some materiall pointes of the Lordes supper they hold as grosse if not farre grosser errors and corruption than doe the Papists And is our state being in that and all other pointes of doctrine most sincere more corrupt than theirs Which I speake not as insulting vpon them but with pitie and reuerence but onely to note our brethrens vnthankefull not acknowledging of our exceeding more sincere and farre better estate than theirs and manie others as the Grecians Armenians Indians Aethiopians c. which are yet acknowledged to be the the Churches of Christ albeit all differ in discipline and are not free from errors euen in doctrine which God be praised we are by our breth owne confession But why doe our Brethren thus exclaime on the estate of our Church as a most corrupt state Forsooth because as they saie and doe imagine there are many that are altogether destitute of all knowledge and spirituall gouernment If they meane Papists and wicked worldlings where are not some and that too many intermingled in the Church of GOD And so there may be many we graunt lamenting it among vs but not of vs. And the more I feare by reason of these garboyles among our selues But if they bée the children of God and the true Church indéede and haue yéeres of vnderstanding I hope nay I am sure there is none no not one such as is altogether destitute of all knowledge and spirituall gouernment set a side naturall Idiotes which are as infants and without discretion Nay not the most of the worldlie hypocrites are altogether destitute of all knowledge of God and of his word and of all partes of spirituall gouernment although they knowe not all pointes or manie pointes not so exactlie as other doe or as their selues should doe I speake not this to defende anie mannes default and corruption in these thinges but to shew that this is a greate deale more aggrauated than eyther needeth or is true or than our Brethren haue anie iust cause to accuse so hainouslie the whole state of the Church of England to bee a most corrupted state But sée nowe howe our malecontented Brethren finding such a grieuous fault of this most corrupt state of the Church though they might haue all these meanes that they haue heere deuised to reforme the same graunted vnto them yet are they faine in the end to confesse that this their Learned discourse of Ecclesiasticall gouernment cannot take place but that they must take some extraordinarie and temporall order for ouerseeing of the Churches in the meane time vntill GOD shall blesse vs with a sufficient number of learned pastors So that they cannot for all these meanes helpes prouisions supplyes desires or anie other thing that they are able with all their learned heads consulting together imagine howe their Ecclesiasticall regiment should be set vp And yet wée must first downe out of hande and awaye with that Ecclesiasticall regiment that we haue cre euer not onelie theyrs shall come in place but or euer wee haue or can yet deuise how wée shall deale in the meane time till GOD shall blesse vs with a sufficient number of learned pastors Which when this till and this sufficient number will be filled vp to our Brethrens contentation is not héere limited by them nor we are able to coniecture But coulde not our Brethren haue forséene this before which héere now after all their debating and deuising they beginne to sée and are driuen to confesse And how then must all Pastors that bee not learned preachers be presentlie turned out and no longer retayned Or if they may lawfullie for a time which with all when it shall stint is vncertaine continue still and bée retained how then are these thinges either true or tollerable in them Shall wee tollerate such notorious and most corrupt wickednesse as they crie out vpon till God shall blesse vs with a sufficient number of learned pastors And till GOD shall thus blesse vs what extraordinarie and temporall order of ouerseers of the Churches will God blesse if hee haue flatlie forbidden all other than that onelie order which our Brethren pretend that God so straightlie hath commanded Or what extraordinarie or temporall order can or dare anie or all the Church auouch or presume to take vpon them to appoint or tollerate anie time If the ouerseers that our Brethren vrge and the orders of Ecclesiasticall gouernment which they set downe bee of GOD commaunded for ordinarie and perpetuall to all ages and Churches either they woulde haue vs wilfullie to transgresse Gods commaundement without anie speciall warrant on presumption of their dispensation for a time or else they must néedes graunt and that is indéede the verie truth which they dare not for shame openlie confesse although of fine force they are constrayned
of the Bishops howe were these Elders the praesidents or Gouernours or not rather the gouerned And hee speaketh of them that obtained the honour of their gouernment or Praesidentship not by price of money but by testimonie All which accordeth with our Breth owne saiâ—ngs for the election of Bishops and pastorall Elders And hee speaketh of such tried and approued Elders as Paule in pastorall Elders gaue charge to Timothie But when withall he vseth for their gouernment that verie terme which he vsed in other places speaking also of the Christian assemblies as in his booke de Corona militis where he saith Eucharistia Sacramentum et in tempore victus et omnibus mandatum a Domino etiam ante-lucanis coetibus nec de aliorum manu quam de praesidentium sumimus The Sacrament of thanksgiuing is commanded of the Lord both in the time of repast in al times yea also in our asseÌ„blies before the breake of the daie neither do we receiue it at the hand of anie other thaÌ„ of those that are our PraesideÌ„ts or Gouernors Whereby it is plaine that those of whom heere he saith Praesident probati quique Sentores the Seniors that are Praesidents or that gouerne are euerie one of them tried or approued men wer euerie one of them none other but such as ministred the SacrameÌ„ts of consequence teachers of the word And of such Elders gouerning in the Church of Christ of none other speaketh Clemens Alexandrius who also was an elder in office in time was somwhat elder thaÌ„ TertulliaÌ„ li. 6. Siromat He is in verie deed saith he an elder of the Church a true Deacon that is a minister of Gods wil if so be he do teach the things that are of the Lord not that as he is ordained of meÌ„ neither that he must be accouÌ„ted righteous that is an elder but that he which is righteous should be brought into the eldership c. Wherein making also afterward the degrée of Elder to be in dignitie different from placed betwéene Bishop Deacon he acknowledgeth no such kinde of Elder gouerning the Church in hiâ— time that is not a teacher of the word And the same also is manifest in Irenaeus who in his first booke against heresies ca. 12. saith against the heretike Marcus Wherefore iustlie and aptlie vnto such thy blindnesse the diuine Elder and fit preacher of the truth inueighed against thee c. And in the 2. booke cap. 39. speaking both of Elder in age and office he saith of Christ And so hee was a Senior or Elder among the Seniors that he might be a perfect master in al things not only according to the exposition of the truth but according to age sanctifieng together also the Seniors or Elders himselfe becomming an example vnto theÌ„ c. And againe But because the age of 30. yeres is of a young man of his first towardnesse and stretcheth to 40. euerie one wil graunt that from the 40. or 50. yeres he now declineth into an elder age which age our Lord hauing he taught as the Gospell all the Elders testifie which assembled together vnto Iohn the Disciple of the Lord. And the same thing did Iohn deliuer vnto theÌ„ Now although herein Iraeneus fouly ouer shoote himselfe in Christs age more regarding the relation and tradition of the Elders than exactlie considering the iust time yet still he acknowledgeth those that were called Elders not in yéeres but in office concerning the Ecclesiasticall state of Christ his Church to be such as taught the witnesse relation of those things that were deliuered them by the Apostles though they remembred not so well the Apostles reckoning And this he hath more plaine li. 3. ca. 2. when againe we chalenge them that are against the tradition to come to that traditioÌ„ which is from the Apostles which is kept in the Churches by the succession of the Elders they will say they being more wise not only than the Elders but also than the Apostles haue found out the sincere truth And li. 4. ca. 43. Wherfore it behoueth vs to heare these Elders that are in the Church those which haue their succession from the Apostle as wee haue shewed who with the succession of the Bishop haue according to the decree of the Father receiued a sure grace or gift of the truth And in the next Chapter But such as of many are supposed to be Elders but serue their pleasures c. froÌ„ all such therefore we must abstaine cleaue vnto these which as wee haue also said before keepe the doctrine of the Apostles with their order of the Eldership shew forth the sound word their conuersation without offence to the information and correction of the residue Wherunto alleaging the examples of Moses Samuel and S. Paul he saith Euen as the Apostle Paul when he was of good conscience sayde to the Corinthians For we are not as many are adulterating the word of God wee haue corrupted nâ—ne we haue circuÌ„uented none such Elders doth the church nourish Of whoÌ„ also the Prophet saith And I will giue thee thy Princes in peace and thy Bishops in righâ—eousnesse Of whom also the Lord said VVho therefore is a faithfull agent good and wise whom the Lord shall preferre ouer his familie to giue them meate in time Happie is that seruant whom the Lord shall find so doing when he coÌ„meth What can be plainer than this to shew that by the name of these Presbyters Priests or Elders in the gouernment of the Church Irenaeus alwaies meant such as were teachers of the word and none other Iustine the martyr in his defence of the Christians vnto the Emperour Antoninus mencioneth as we haue séene one onlie gouernor of the congregation whom he calleth the chiefe brother But he telleth withal that he maketh the exhortation to the congregation before the receiuing of the Sacrament he offereth the praiers and thankesgiuing first celebrateth the whole action of the Lords supper the Deacons deliuer the bread the cup to euerie one present of other Elders or Gouernors among theÌ„ that I can find he maketh no mencion As for Ignatius because our Bre. in their pamphlet of the learned mans iudgemeÌ„t for the 3. kinds of Bishops do allow of the Bishop mencioned in Ignatius by as good reason they haue also to allow of his Elders Deacons For almost in euery Epistle if they be the Epistles of Ignatius he mencioneth especiallie these thrée maketh the Elders the successors of the Apostles In the first Epistle to the Trallians he saith Be ye subiect to the Elders as to the Apostles of Iesu Christ concerning our hope in whoÌ„ perseuering we shal be found in him And therfore ye must by all meanes please the Deacons which are for the ministerie of Iesus Christ for they are not ministers in meate and drink but of the ministerie of the Church of God
A DEFENCE OF THE GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED IN THE CHVRCH OF ENGLANDE FOR ECCLESIASTICALL MATTERS Contayning an aunswere vnto a Treatise called The Learned Discourse of Eccl. Gouernment otherwise intituled A briefe and plaine declaration concerning the desires of all the faithfull Ministers that haue and do seeke for the discipline and reformation of the Church of Englande Comprehending likewise an aunswere to the arguments in a Treatise named The iudgement of a most Reuerend and Learned man from beyond the Seas c. Aunsvvering also to the argumentes of Caluine Beza and Danaeus with other our Reuerend learned Brethren besides Caenaiis and Bodinus both for the regiment of women and in defence of her Maiestie and of all other Christian Princes supreme Gouernment in Ecclesiasticall causes Against The Tetrarchie that our Brethren would erect in euery particular congregation of Doctors Pastors Gouernors and Deacons with their seuerall and ioynt authoritie in Elections Excommunications Synodall Constitutions and other Ecclesiasticall matters Aunsvvered by Iohn Bridges Deane of Sarum Come and See Ioh. 1.36 Take it vp and Read Aug. lib. conf 8. ca. 12. AT LONDON Printed by Iohn VVindet for Thomas Chard 1587 The Preface to the Christian Reader WHereas in a Sermon preached at Paules Crosse about two yeares past I had touched on occasion some part of this Learned Discourse then lately set foorth and for the peoples satisfaction I had aunswered some principall argumentes of the same in defence of her Maiesties supreme gouernment in Eccl. causes and for our Bishops iurisdiction as appeareth by the Sermon it selfe which for the further manifesting the occasion hereof I haue set forth also and recommend deare Christian Reader to thy fauourable interpretation which Sermon according to the diuerse affections of the auditorie tooke diuerse effectes some beginning to relent and be resolued which before had beene greatly carried away in the contrary perswasion of these matters and promising reconcilement vnto their Bishops whose state before they had misliked some on the otherside tooke such offence at that part of the Sermon which touched these thinges that they ceased not to deface it and to chalenge mee for it I then promised not only the anowing of that I had spoken but also God assisting me the publishing both of the whole sermon and the aunswering atlarge of all the Learned Discourse For discharge of which promise and because this booke pretendeth such a plausible title and withall is reckoned of so great account as I afterwarde could get oportunitie and leasure thereunto proceeding by little and little in the same and by the way taking withall some parts of the like argument that other our Brethren haue since composed and partly passing vp from them to the very fountaines as I take it from whence all our Brethren fetch their chiefest motiues or the groundes of them especially in these three reuerendâ— and learned Fathers Caluine Beza Danaeus I haue now thankes be to God at length after many delaies and stoppes thereof thus farre forth accomplished set out the same It is no small griefe to me I protest that on this occasion I was thus drawen into these questions with those whom otherwise in Christe I humbly acknowledge to be our deare Brethren And much gladlier the Lord knowes would I be to haue wholly obiected my selfe as before to my mediocritie I haue endeuoured against the publike aduersaries of Gods truth And would God all we which are of the houshold of faith professing the light and libertie of the Gospell would againe bende our forces that wayes against the errours and tyrannie of Antichrist In which course a while we did runne well but as the Apostle sayth to the Galathians who hath let vs For so long as we ioyntly followed the quest of that vncouth beast and of the purple Harlot on his backe God mightely prospered vs in all our affayres Yea it is wonderfull to consider if we haue grace to acknowledge it how God hath still hetherto aboue any Nation in the worlde in this last age thereof and yet doth not cease to blesse vs his name of vs againe ineessantly be blessed and magnified for it Howbeit the shadowe is not more concomitant to the bodie than enuie is aemulous of vertue and glory As there is no state so happy on all partes in this life but it shall euer be crossed with some or other daunger or disturbance so doth the enuious man in these our Alcions dayes labour nothing more than to impugne and to ouerthrowe this our blessâ—d state yea to haue bereft vs of the Lordes annoynted his holy handmayden our most gratious Soueraigne by whom vnder our Lord Iesus Christ God hath vouchsafed vs all these blessinges In which practise although the aduersaries attempts haue beene so perilous and vnnaturall that the very remembrance of them breedeth horrour yet the Lords continuall deliuerance from them hath bin so admirable and almost miraculous that we can not but all reioyce together breake forth into the prayses of our so gratious father our most mightie righteous mâ—rcifull God and cast all our repose vpon his prouidence But as the holy Apostle S. Peter prudently forwarneth vs be sober and watch for your aduersarie the diuell as a roaring Lyon walketh about seeking whom he may deuour so see the malice and craft of this old serpent That thing which he could neuer atcheiue by himselfe withall the subtleties of his smooth temptations nor by his grand deputie the man of sin sonne of perdition withall his stratagems violent forces SathaÌ„ eftsoones hath now not only crept in among the childreÌ„ of God but hath so broken a sunder the bondes of Gods peace hath sowen the cockle of such contentions diuisions among vs that are brethren wherby such discord hath also risen euen among those that sowed before the good seed wheat that no small hindrance hath growen therby to the course of the Gospell as great hazard to the state of all our Church Realme as could haue bin inflicted by the open hostilitie of the publike enemie Yea what could lay vs more open to his iniuries thaÌ„ to fall out thus amoÌ„g our selues into these garboyles Or how freely can we nowe oppose our faces to confront our aduersaries when euermore we must haue a skew eye to the awke blowes of our own fellowes Brethr. hard at our elbowes Which double fight is so daungerous so distrustfull that it maketh many amongst vs to râ—uolt or at least to hoouer and is such an incouragemeÌ„t aduantage to the enemies to be more coÌ„firmed in their errors strengthned in their confederacies that they insult vpon vs both yea they blaspheme the very gospel it selfe which we professe and all by occasion of these intempestiue but too tempestious disagrements When Abraham saw the falling out between his and Lots heardmen fearing the euill euent of such discorde he sayth vnto Lot let there be I pray thee no strife betweene
forsoothe hee being furnished with the testimonies of the Scripture and other helpes of the Holie-ghoste did as it were ouerwhelme all his aduersaries For the word of disturbing them that Luke vseth dooth signifie that when Paule pressed them beyonde measure they were so dashed that they were not their owne men The manner of his disturbing them is expressed in that Paule confirmed Iesus to be Christe For the sense is when the Iewes cheefelie would striue against it they were notwithstanding ouercome and confounded So that Paule by experience prooued that it was moste true which he pronounceth that the Scripture is profitable to reprooue 2. Tim. 3.16 And he performed that which in another place he required of a Bishop and a Doctor For he was armed with the word of God to auouche the truthe Tit. 1.9 And indeede Luke comprehends two things that Paule in disputing was a Conqueror in suche sorte that he made the Iewes to fall And yet their stubbernesse was not so broken and tamed that they would yeeld vnto the truthe Bicause for all this their consciences turmoiled within them and being dashed downe from the degree of their false opinion they neuer a whitte submitted themselues to Christe Therefore so often as heretikes doo arise to oppugne the right faith so often as the wicked doo enterprise to shatter all godlinesse so often as naughtie persons doo obstinatelie withstande let vs remember from hence to fetche our armour c. Thus dooth Caluine liuelie expresse the vehement moouing of affections to astonish the hearers that S. Paule vsed in his teaching and making it all one office in the Doctor and in the Bishop and applying his precepts to Timothie and Titus to this dooing of Paule and to the dutie of all true and zealous Teachers And héerévpon also dooth Gualter gather this generall rule This place saithe he admonisheth that the doctrine of the Gospell ought to be preached In which pointe the opinion of manie is that they thinke a simple and full explication of the mysteries of saluation dooth suffice and that they labour in vaine and are intollerable authors of dissensions which reprooue the tyrannie of Antichriste oppugne superstition and publikelie vndertake to enter into controuersie with the professed enimies of the truthe True it is that the simple doctrine of the truthe mought haue sufficed except there were suche as would endeuoure to lappe the same in errors and darkenesse and withdrawe the vnheedfull out of the pathe of truthe but sithe there haue beene suche bothe in times paste and at this daye maye commonlie be founde it behooueth the faithfull to be admonished that they should not giue eare vnto them Which thing you shall neuer bring to passe except yee make an euident proofe that they erre all the world ouer Againe when the impudencie of manie breaketh out so farre that openlie they dare gaine-saie the truthe they are publikelie also to be confuted least by their rashnesse they shoulde make the cause of the truthe suspected Wee read that not onelie the Apostles but Christe himselfe did either of these things Whose example all these worthilie ought to follow whosoeuer will be called and counted the Ministers of his Church Which is the cause that Paule would haue such kinde of Doctors which cannot onelie instruct the rude in sounde doctrine but also conuince those that speake against it Titus 1. And he testifieth also that the Scriptures are giuen to the same end that they may serue for rebuking of the aduersaries 2. Timoth. 3. Which seemed to the Holie-ghoste a matter of such importance that he would not onelie haue the Deceauers of that age to bee reprooued by the Apostles but hee would haue vs also to bee admonished of those that in the laste times should moleste the Churche By which generall rule of Gualter agréeing with Caluine héerevpon it appeareth that Paule applyed his doctrine and ioyned admonition and redargution as well as exhortation and consolation to his Teaching And that this Teaching is so little distinguished from the Pastors office that it is common with the office and dutie of all Bishops and Ministers of the worde And that except these applications be ioyned therevnto the simple declaration of the truthe although it be fullie set out dooth not many times suffice to ouerthrowe the malapart importunitie of the aduersaries And as Paule thus not onelie for the occasion of that time but for the example of our and all times made this introduction into his office of Teaching so hée continued in such feruencie till he met with Barnabas at Ierusalem after thrée yeares trauell in Arabia and all in this Citie of Damascus that the Iewes no doubte exasperated by his laying so hardlie their errors and obstinacie to their charges wente about to kill him From thâ— which daunger being escaped and come to Ierusalem after Barnabas had exhorted the Disciples to admitte him into their companie Hee was conuersante saith Luke verse 28. with them at Ierusalem and spake boldlie in the name of the Lorde Iesus and disputed with the Grecians But they went abouâ— to slaie him Belike he was still more earnest in reproouing them than all the resâ—due For the worde 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifieth not oâ—elie that hee spake boldlie or confidentlie but frankelie and freelie and that with liberty and reprehension Wherevpon the Geneua Margine noteth making open profession of the Gospell And saithe Caluine In which wordes Luke praiseth his fortitude in professing the Gospell For among so manie hinderances hee durst neuer haue hissed had not his brest beene endewed with a rare constancie In the meane season all are prescribed what they ought to doo to witte euerie one according to the measure of his faithe For althoughe all bee not Paules neuerthelesse the faithe of Christe must breed so muche confidence in our mindes that when it is needfull for vs to speake we waxe not altogither dombe We must saithe Marlorate héere be alwaies readie to render a reason to all that aske it of the hope that is in vs. And is all this freenesse of Saint Paules teaching and example to all men without anye application c. that so mooued the aduersaries that they still went about to murther him Loe saithe Caluine for zeale furie Neither can it be otherwise then that superstition should be fierce cruell Indeed it beseemeth the godlie to be kindeled with an holie anger when they see the pure truthe of God to bee corrupted with false and naughtie opinions but so that they moderate their zeale that they determine nothing excepte the cause be throughlie viewed that they maye reduce them that erre into the waye Laste of all if they see their frowardnesse to bee paste hope yet maye not they snatche the sworde bicause they should knowe that reuengement is not of GOD committed vnto them And therefore Paule peaceablie auoydeth from them whome hee had thus prouoked by his earnest teaching c. Therefore
life should euen bowe down their myndes to loue the Gospell of Iesus Christe and his sincere Religion Certes to perswade one in speeche and wordes to embrace Christe to inuite him to godlinesse to open the waye to faith but in doings to driue him from Christe to giue an example of doing wickedlie to bring forth no fruites of faithe is no other thing then as much as the daie before thou buildest vppe so muche the daye following to pull downe and with Penelope to vntwiste the webbe againe whiche thou wast minded to haue gone thorough More-ouer before them whose condition is of very diuerse sorts wittes are not al like to temper the manner of teaching to the profit of ech one of them is neede of singuler prudence Heere-unto therefore appertayneth that whiche Clement writeth in his firste epistle to the brother of the Lorde They that Catechise that is to say they that instruct beginners with the worde it behoueth that they them-selues bee instructed For it is a matter of the soule And it behoueth him that teacheth and enstructeth rude soules to be such an one that he may bee able euen to proportion or fitte himselfe and directe the order of his worde according to the capacity of the hearer He therefore himselfe must especially be verye well learned and skilfull blamelesse ripe vnfearfull And S. Augustine at large teacheth how a Catechist or Teacher ought to rouse vp oftentimes his mynde to diligence and labour to breake of all irkesomnesse in the difficulties that hee meeteth with How furthermore it should be his speciall endeuour to frame his speeches according to the diuersitie of the persons And to deale otherwise with those that are of the Gentiles Otherwise with those that come to the Churche from among the Iewes Otherwise also with those that are of the citie and politike men Otherwise with those that are husbandmen and altogether vntrayned vp Otherwise with those that are Gramarians Orators or Philosophers Otherwise with those that are vnlearned otherwise with those that haue beene before accustomed to foule offences and to treate on all thinges otherwise with them that are thought to liue vn-reproueable Besides this there are many that feignedlie and not from the heart come to heare the doctrine some desire diuerse places of Scripture and obscure questions to be expounded vnto them From whose mindes except the scruple be in time remooued it is to be feared least at some time they leape back againe from their holy purpose Therefore these men which were called to the office of catechizing or teaching had not onely neede of learning but also of no meane wisedome Of whiche things Augustine teacheth in his booke of Catechizing the rude in the third the fift and in eleuen chapters following And against Faustus the Manichaean the thirtienth booke the seauenth chapter and so forth vnto the ending And out of doubt such an other was Panthenus the first Doctor of the Ecclesiasticall schoole after the Apostles Maister of the Catechismes or of these manner of Teachings in Alexandria Whome Clemens in his firste booke 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of his scatterings or strawings witnesseth that he learned all of the Apostles Of whome S. Hierome writeth that he laboured muche in the Chruches with his liuelye voice Such an other was Clemens of Alexandria the successor of Panthenus in either function As also besides Hierome Eusebius witnesseth in the first booke the tenth and eleuenth chapters of the Ecclesiasticall Historie Such an other was Origen there succeeding in the thirde place Such an other was Heraclas vnto whom Origen deliuered vp the schoole Such an other was Dyonisius the Catechizer or teacher of the people of Alexandria Of whome Eusebius in his Ecclesiasticall Historie the 6. booke Chap. 16.19.22 speaketh Moreouer such an-other at Hierusalem was Cyrillus of whome mention is made before To conclude suche an other at Carthage was that godly man Deogratias whome S. Augustine greatly doth commend All this noteth Hyperius of these auncient Doctors Teachers or Catechists Whereby we may perceaue these Doctors Teachings and much more by their owne workes and treatises to be ful of exhortations applications Yea some of their Catechistical bookes are called by the name of exhortation as that of Clemens Alexandrinus his oration exhortatory to the Gentiles c. Neyther héerein did they inuade the office of other men For it speciallye appertayned to their owne office as Hypperius further noteth 499. For those which for the confession of the Christian truthe were deteyned captiues or ledde to punishment hee was woonte speaking of Origen and likewise of Cyrill with reasons brought foorthe out of the holie Scriptures to comforte them and to animate them vnto constancye and to many the children of the heathen vnto whom with the rules of Grammer hee had studiouslye beate vpon the points of religion to them was he an author to embrace Christianity c. And in the 3. Chap. what doctrine and poyntes of Religion should be taught in a Cathechisme fol 472. he saith The 4. heade is of doctrine but in the name of doctrine I take all those thinges which were proposed to them that were newly baptized and are exacted to be seuerely kept That is to witte of the newe life innocency of the regenerate For it beseemeth him that is baptized to become euen a newe man and by all meanes to die to sinne to liue afterwardes onely to righteousnesse and to shew himselfe to bee suche in all the actions of his life that it may be vnderstoode he vsed the mysteries trulie and with fruit Of the which newnesse of life after Baptisme Rom. 6. Knowe ye not that so many of vs as are baptized we are baptized into his death wee are buried together with him by baptisme into death that euen as Christ was raysed from the deade by the glory of the Father euen so we should also walke in newenesse of life For if wee bee grafted with him to the similitude of his death euen so shall we be to the similitude of his resurrection Knowing this that our olde man is crucified with him that the body of sinne might be destroyed that hence-forth we should not serue sinne c. Also to the Eph. 4. This therefore I say and testifie by the Lord that ye walke not heereafter as the residue of the Gentiles walke in the vanity of their mynde c. And a little after of the doctrine succeeding baptisme But you haue not thus learned Christe if so beye haue heard of him and haue beene taught in him euen as the truthe is in Iesus To lay aside according to the former conuersation the olde man which corrupteth according to the luste of error But be ye renewed in the spirite of your minde and put on the new man which is created according to God by righteousnesse and holinesse of truthe The like things thou readest Col. 3. 2. Pet. 2. In which the doctrine of
be lauashly cast forth to the blemish suspition and slaūder of the Ministers But our brethren yet thinke harder of the matter as it were euen in pronouncing the sentence of eternall condemnation on many whole Churches in the realme they say If there be no way of saluation but by faithe and none can beleeue but such as heare the word of God preached O Lord how miserable is the state of manye flockes in this lande who either seldome or neuer heare the word of God trulie preached and therefore know not how to beleeue that they might be saued I meruaile now lesse if our learned Brethren bee so hard hearted against all those learned or vnlearned if they bee not preaching pastors as to thrust them cleane out of all the Ministerie since that in this their too earnest zeale they thrust withall so manie flocks in this land and in many other lands cleane out both of the state of saluation also of the meanes to be saued For first loe heere what a number at a clap by this thunderclap of theirs are flatlie pronounced to be perpetuallie damned whom we charitablie hope and verilie beleeue to be as safelie saued as our selues If there bee no waie of saluation but by faith how well might we then crie out indeede O Lorde how miserable is the state of all our infants dying not onelie before but also after Baptisme in their infancie The Papists as they pronounce that none are saued but onely such as are baptized so for Faith likewise they holde this opinion that there is no waie of saluation but by faith albeit adding other things thereto and séeing their infantes not capable of Faith they affirme that they are saued not by their owne faith but by the Churches faith and by the faith of their Godfathers or Godmothers as we call them that in baptizing vndertake and aunswere for them Luther and diuerse other following him perceiuing the grosenesse of this error vpon which sundrie inconueniences depend to be saued by the faith not of himselfe but of other affirme that our infants haue theyr selues the substance of faith although it be not able in act to shew it selfe and that as Saint Paule saith out of Abakuk ca. 2. The iust liueth by his owne faith they are likewise saued and iustified by their owne faith But Caluine séeing further into this matter and that this properly and in verie déede is not faith which requireth both an intellectual knowledge and an actuall assured persuasion and confidence on the truth of Gods promises and couenant in the mercies and merites of Christ Iesus which act of the minde infantes haue not and considering that saluation properlie dependeth not on the act or on the habit of our faith but on Gods eternal election and the performance of his promise and that faith being the gifte of God is indeede the onelie meanes and waie of saluation to those that are capable to vnderstand by beléeuing the same applie the promise of Christ his merites saluation to themselues but vnto those that are not yet growen to this capacitie their naturall defect or rather vnripenesse maketh not the promise of God frustrate nor defeateth the election that was before the children were borne yea ere the foundations of the worlde were laide purposed in Gods eternal decrée this foundation is sure God knows who are his Caluine therfore willeth vs not to applie these sentences of Christ that recommend faith vnto vs vnto the infants but vnto those that are growne to capacitie by the gift of God in them to vnderstande and apprehend the same And for the infants of vs which are faithfull and so included in the couenant betwixt GOD and his people admitting our infants to receiue the Sacrament of regeneration because though they bee not capable of knowledge and faith yet are they capable of the thing signified and of the fauour of God the Father of the grace of Christ the sonne of the inspiration of the holie Ghost yea although they die before they receiue the outward signe yet not to presume to iudge them cleane debarred and bereft of these inward graces but to relie vpon the promise of the couenant that he will not onelie be our God and so our sauiour that haue faith in him but the God and sauiour of our séede also although yet they haue not faith in him and that we and our séede shall be his people Neither onelie in an outward sanctification whereby as the roote so the branches are holie but by the inward sanctification and by saluation so farre as accordeth with his eternall election in Christ Iesu. So then except this which our Brethren héere saie If there be no waie of saluation but by faith be restrained to such onelie as are both of yéeres and of discretion also to vnderstād at the least in some measure by faith to applie the word of God vnto them we should finde a manifest errour and too hard a iudgement contained in this sentence that there is no waie of saluation but by faith Secondly héere followeth vpon this an assumption farre more hard and peremptorie concerning the word of God than this former proposition concerning faith in him And none say our Bre. can beléeue but such as heare the word of God preached Indéede the ordinarie meanes to faith is the word of God which in the meane while debarreth not anie extraordinarie meanes for God fréelie to instill his spirit and to giue his gift of faith by inspiration as Caluine saith on the 14. verse Rom. 10. vpon these words How shall they beleeue in him on whom they haue not heard and how shall they heare without a preacher Hee placed heere no other word than that which is preached because this is the ordinarie meanes that the Lord hath ordained of dispensing the same If anie doo further contend thereon that God cannot instill into men the knowledge of him by other meanes than by the instrument of preaching we denie that is was the Apostles minde who onelie looked on the otdinarie dispensation of GOD but woulde not prescribe a lawe vnto his grace So that againe we sée that this saying of our Brethren heere is preiudiciall not onely vnto mens faith but vnto Gods grace thus flatlie to affirm that none can beleeue but such a◠heare the word of God preached But all this for faith and preaching our brethren thinke to warrant out of Beza in his Confession cap. 4. Artic. 35. where he saith thirdly sith that wihout faith entrance to Christ life aeternall is open to none and the preaching of the word is the ordinary instrument of the holy Ghost to engender faith in vs it followeth that the preaching of the word and the same effectual is to be required in all of ripe yeeres to this purpose that they may be saued except whē it hath pleased God extraordinarily to worke in their harts If our
that thus farre forth besides heâ— commendable constancie and open profession of Christ she was neither improued of Christ nor discommended of anie protestant writer namely for lifting vp her voice beeing a woman in the audience of the publike congregation Likewise the woman that had the bloudie flixe Matth. 9. ver â—0 when as being a weake and bashfull woman by reason of her disease she durst not come openlie before Christ and in so great assemblie open her voice pray to him for succour but came behinde him and touched the hem of his garment For she said in her selfe If I may but touch his garment onelie I shall be whole Did Christ like this that she shuld receiue this benefit of him thus in silence because a woman might not speake in the congregation No saith Luke chap. 8. verse 44. VVhen shee came behinde him and touched the hemme of his garment immediatlie her issue of bloud staunched Then Iesus said who is it that hath touched mee VVhen euerie man denied Peter sayd and they that were with him Maister the multitude thrust thee and tread on thee â—nd sayest thou who hath touched me And Iesus sayd some one hath touched me for I perceiue that vertue is gone out of me VVhen the woman sawe that she was nâ—t hid she came trembling and fell downe before him and told him before all the people for what cause she had touched him and how she was healed imediatlie Was not this then the purpose of Christ that this woman should speake and declare this worke of God before all the publike assemblie of the people What shall we saie of that woman Matth. 15.22 the Cananite that came crying to Christ and said Haue mercie on me O Lord thou sonne of Dauid my daughter is miserably vexed with a diuell Here this woman cried out in an open praier and spared not to speake speake aloude before all the assemblie But he answered her saith Matthew not a word What Was he angrie that she being a woman durst make her praier so openly before the multitude of the people Indeede the Disciples were offended at her importunitie and came to him and besought him saying Send her awaie for she crieth after vs. But he answered and saide I am not sent but vnto the lost sheepe of the house of Israel So that hée findeth no fault for that she being a woman would presume to make this open praier but pretendeth that she was not such a woman as he was sent to help that if she had bene such a woman he woulde haue liked of her crie well inough and haue helped her Yet came she saith Saint Mathew and worshipped him saying Lord helpe me And he answered and sayd It is not good to take the childrens bread and to cast it to whelpes And she said Truth Lord howbeit the whelpes eate of the crums which fall from their Maisters table Did Christ here like her replying vpon him hauing such an answere Yea verilie and that most singularliâ— well Then Iesus answered said vnto her O woman great is thy faith be it vnto thee as thou desirest her daughter was made whole at that houre Neither is it vnworthie to consider the storie so diligentlie described by Saint Iohn chap 4. concerning the Samaritane Woman Not her bolde talke with Christ alone at the Well but that verse 29. she said of Christ vnto the people Come and see a man that hath tolde me all things that I haue done is not this Christ. Yea Caluine who compareth her so dooing to this saying in the Psalme I beleeued and therfore I spake Psal. 116. v. 10. And saith he this vehemencie and cheerefulnesse of the woman are so much the more to be noted of vs because an onelie small sparke of faith kindled them For shee had scarce tasted Christ when shee setteth him forth throughout all the Citie c. But this sayth he seemeth in the woman rather worthie reprehension that beeing as yet rude and not thoroughlie taught she passed the boundes of her faith The answere is she shoulde haue done inconsideratlie if shee had taken vpon her the parts of teaching but now when shee desireth nothing but to stirre vp her Citizens that they should heare Christ speake we will not saie that beeing forgetfull of her selfe shee proceeded further than became her Onelie she doth the office of a Trumpet or of a Bell to call them vnto Christ And yet was this a kind of preching to theÌ„ as Musculus calleth it saying The woman did so much by her preaching that the people of this Citie went out to Christ of whome as yet they knew nothing Yea Aretius saith But as concerning that she preacheth the name and the person of Christ she testifieth by example how much she had profited At the beginning she acknowledged him onelie to be a Iew after that a Prophet placing him in a higher degree at the length she perfectlie acknowledgeth him to be the Messias and such a one vnto her Citizens she preacheth him to be Which also is for an example of regeneration wherof the order is this First to come to the knowledge of ones owne selfe then diligentlie to search concerning the true worship of God Last of all to become carefull of the profite of our neighbour Thus she wherein she profited woulde haue her fellow Citizens to profite also least she should inioy so great a benefite all alone Thou hast therefore a woman an Euangelist She exerciseth the office of a Doctor or Teacher she that came for an harlot returneth an Euangelical mistresse This is the meruailous goodnesse of God choosing base contemptuous things in the world that he might confound the wise men of this world Héerevpon Marlorate concludeth out of Bucer Therfore there is not so much consideration to be had of the partie that speaketh as we must ponder what is spoken to vs. And Alesius the Scot hereon making this his 16. place doth saie The ministerie of the Gospell is not tied to the ordinarie power And the doctrine of a priuate man and of a woman which bringeth forth the worde of God is to bee preferred before the iudgement of the multitude and of them that take vpon them the name authoritie of the Church as the Samaritanes beleeue at the testimonie of a woman concerning Christ. To conclude these examples in the new Testament Luke mencioning Philip the Euangelist Act. 21 verse 9. sayth Now had hee foure daughters virgins that did prophesie But this example Caluine woulde séeme on the other side to cut off saying But how these maidens exercised the office of prophesieng it is vncertaine except the spirite of GOD did so moderate them that they troubled not the order of him set downe But when hee permitteth not women to sustaine a publike person in the Church it is credible that they prophesied either at home or in a priuate place out of the common
the most cleare light of his confession and aduanced with the honour both of vertue and faith who by his exhortation hath sent before him a plentifull number of Martyrs with stones fire Which ioyfully behâ—lde his wife that cleued to his side wheÌ„ as together with other she was burned He himselfe being halfe burned and ouerwhelmed with stones lefte for dead While that afterwardes his daughter with a carefull seruice of godlines seeketh the corps of her father where he being founde almost dead refreshed and drawen out from his companions whom he had sent before him remained against his will But this as wee see was the cause of his remayning that the Lorde would ioyne him vnto our Clergie and woulde adorne gloriosis Sacerdotibus with his glorious Sacred Priests the abundance of our Elders being desolate And verily he shall be promoted as time shall permitte vnto a more worshipfull place of his religion when through the Lordes protection we shall come in presence In the meane season let this be done that is declared that we may receiue this gift of God with thankes giuing hoping that by the mercie of the Lord such ornaments shall be also furnished that renuing the strength of his Church he wil make our so meeke and humble consistories to flourish in honour Whereby we plainlie see not onely the Bishoppes authoritie ouer the consistorie of the Elders in making this Elder Numidicus an Elder in the cleargie and consistorie of Carthage but also that he was a Preacher exhorter of the people And that Cyprian vseth the name of Presbyter and Sacerdos indifferently as betokning one and the same office for the which we in English wanting a proper name for Sacerdos vse the contraction of the other better and lesse offensiue terme Presbyter calling them Priestes signifying héere Elders ministring the woorde and Sacramentes And of other sortes whom Cyprian calleth Presbyteros Priestes or Elders assistent to the Bishop in the gouernement of the Eccles. discipline I finde no mention nor inkling of them in all the Epistles of Saint Cyprian Neither cite I him in those editions that the Papistes haue of late corrupted him And therefore I maruell not a little that such an excellent man as Beza is God be praysed for his gifts in him was so ouershot to cite these Epistles of Cyprian for a Consistory or Colledge of such Elders gouerned by a Bishop which together with him should haue the spirituall iurisdiction and the gouernment of Eccl. discipline that were not ministers of the worde and Sacraments As for that which Gellius Snecanus citeth also out of Cyprians Epistles Epist. 2. lib. 1. there is no mention there at all of any other of the Clergie then onely of Bishops or of such Priestes as hee calleth Sacerdotes Pastores Which Epistle being written to Cornelius Bishop of Rome by Cyprian and a great number of other Bishops of Aphrica ioyned in counsell with him he vseth there this terme Colleagues meaning other Bishops that were of his owne function But if sayth he there shall bee any of the Colleagues which when persecution vrgeth them thinketh the peace should not be giuen to our brothers and sisters let him in the day of iudgement render a reason to the Lorde eyther of his importune censure or of his inhumaine roughnes Is this any thing to any gouerning Elder in the Church that is not a minister of the worde and Sacramentes As for any other Colleagues eyther of those that hee wrote of or wrote vnto or that wrote with him in this or anie other Epistle I finde none Nor our Brethren can shew any such Elders as they vrge vnto vs in all these Epistles or any other worke of Cyprian But because Gellius Snecanus adioyneth also the testimonie of Tertullian in his Apologie against the Gentiles cap. 39. which wee haue likewise alreadie séene for the manner and forme of the primitiue Churche in their publike prayers neuerthelesse to the fuller serch of these Elders which our Brethren would haue let vs againe consider what Tertullian sayth especially he going not onely immediately before Cyprian about the yeare of our Lorde 200. but being in such estimation with Cyprian that he alwayes called him his Maister I will nowe my selfe sayth Tertullian set foorth the affayres of the Christian faction that I which haue refuted the euill thinges may shewe the good We are a bodie of the conscience of religion and of the truth of discipline and of the couenant of hope We come together into an assembly and congregation that praying vnto God as though by prayers wee strined for workes this force is acceptable vnto God We pray also for the Emperours for their ministers and powers for the state of the worlde for the quietnes of their affayres and for the prolonging of their ende We are gathered together to the reciting of the diuine scriptures if so be that the qualitie of the present time doe compell vs to giue fore-warning or to reknowledge it Certainely we feede our faith with the holy speeches we erecte our hope we fixe our confidence Neuerthelesse we thicken or encrease the discipline of the maisters or of the praecepts by prouocations or inculcations At the same place are also exhortations chasticements the diuine correction for the iudgement is giuen with great waight as among them that are sure that God beholdes them And it is the chiefest foreiudgeing of the iudgement to come if any man do so trespasse that he be banished from the communicating of prayer and of the assemblie and of all the holy partaking The Praesidents or Gouernours are all of them approoued Seniors hauing obteyned this honour not with price but with testimonie What is there here in any of these wordes to prooue that these Elders which as hee termeth it praesidebant did gouerne the congregations medlâ—d not with teaching Or rather doth he not ascribe teaching to theÌ„ When 〈◊〉 saith Wee are a corps of the conscience of religion of truth of discipline and of the couenant of hope When he saith their comming together was for praiers and for recording the Scriptures When hauing added how they fed their faith with the word of God erecting their hope and fixing their confidence they ioyne this withall that neuerthelesse they do increase the discipline of the maisters by their inculcations or often calling vpon them Or if we should conster these wordes Disciplinam praeceptorum for the discipline not of the maisters but of the precepts so that we take it not that they did increase the discipline of mens commandements And doth he not also ioyne exhortations together with castigations of the diuine censure By all which and much more we may well gather out of this place that these Praesidents or gouernours of these congregations were not such as medled not with teaching For if the Elders not teaching were gouerned as Beza said in their Colleges and corporaâ—ions
example of goodnesse or humilitie but with all his indeuour onely seeking honours promiseth him-â—elfe witte and wisedome to springe out of his power Whereupon that of Demosthenes is true to atchiue a matter luckily besides woorthinesse is an occasion for fooles to imagine and thinke euill But our Basill as he is made a rule and example vnto other of his other vertues so also of a Priest and of the Ecclesiasticall ordination For euen froÌ„ the first swathing-bands of the Sacerdotall offices he grew vp by little and little in-so-much that hee disdayned not in anie wise to be made a Reader of the holie scriptures and then to bee made an interpreter and expounder of them euen as Dauid sayth Let those of the chayre of the Elders prayse the Lorde and so at length deserued he to be made a Bishop Which place he neuer at any time sought nor euer wished In which sentence we not onely sée the complaint of Gregorie howe many came to be Elders yea and Bishops also in those dayes as in all ages like corruptions and complaintes haue béene but especially it grewe then of the disordered and factions elections of the people so for the purpose nowe in hande we sée heereby that these Elders were the sacred Priestes whose office consisted not in gouerning only but with â—ll in the ministerie of the worde and Sacraments And how by degrees 〈◊〉 â—xâ—â—cising theÌ„selues in matters tending vnto teaching they attayned or ought to haue attained vnto this Eldership from thence such as excelled were or ought to haue béen promoted to be Bishops Except it fel out otherwisâ— by extraordinarie occasion in some rare and singular men as in Ambrose and Thalassius euen in Caesarea where Basil was Bishop c. and of other Elders than these here is no mention Nowe when Basil was thus ordeyned an Elder Gregorie sheweth how he exercised himselfe vnder Eusebius B. of Caesarea how he laboured against the Heretikes in exhorting and teaching of the people how hée sent for Gregorie to come helpe him And here Gregorie setteth downe Basils example vnto him For sayth he euen as Barnabas in times past was present with Paule to make manifest the trueth of the Gospell and common conflict of the faith so came I then vnto my Basil as his fellowe against his fight with the Arians Listen to the Epistle where-with he called me Make readie thy selfe haue regarde to deliuer me in this present conflict and with vs to meete them which desire vtterly to ouerthrowe vs whose boldnesse thou shalt bridle onely with thy countenaunce and shalt cause that they shall not make our matters goe to wracke and therefore all shall knowe howe thou onely by the grace of God dost gouerne our congregation and that thou shalt eâ—sily represse euery wicked mouth and the insolencie of them that speake against God But sayth Gregorie to returne my speech to my purpose Basill returning to Caesarea regarded nothing more than to pacifie Eusebius to the end that he might ouer-throw the Heresie and wholly to serue him and be ready at his hande in all those thinges that were of God that hee might make apparant to all men that all thinges which hee had suffred of him for Eusebius had béene heauie before vnto him proceeded from the instigation of the Diuell that the common enemies of the fayth might haue the greater aduauntage by their rageing as the Papistes get nowe by our Brethrens and our Bishops falling out though the Bishops doe all they can to pacifie them whereas Basilius laboured all that he could to pacifie his bishoppe but he when as he knewe very well the lawes of obedience and of a spirituall life hee was attendant on him in all thinges in hearing in consulting and in doing he employed his spirituall and diligent endeuour for the bishop And to say at one word he grewe as much into his fauour as before he seemed to be farre from it For which cause Eusebius helde indeede as bishop the chiefe place in the Church but Basill had the power of the Church and the authoritie The one fate in the chiefe dignitie the other went about all the businesse For there was a singular and wonderfull concorde betweene them The one helping the other and taking strength the one of the other the bishop growing strong by the counsell and wit of Basil and Basill by taking authoritie of the bishop To conclude the bishop had the people and he the bishop And euen as he that tameth a Lyon being inferiour in strength doth handle him gently and make him tame by a certaine arte by which meanes well neere he asswageth molifieth the violence and fiercenesse of the wilde beast so Basill the greate behaued himselfe about Eusebius For when he hauing ben of late a laie man and ignorant of Ecclesiasticall matters was exalted vnto this dignitie especially at the same time that the flame of Arius heresie did beare the swaie he was not fit inough for this burthen Wherevpon hee wanted Basil to be his guide and helper chieflie by whose vertue there was hope that the matters would haue prosperous and good successe And therefore it was not as some suppose that Basil was vnder the Emperor IuliaÌ„ but he was bishop after the death of Valens But wheÌ„ as he receiued the gouernmeÌ„t administration of the Church of Caesarea vnder the bishop Eusebius he appeased all discords hee remooued all priuie grudges he established their manners not onelie with his words and excellent Sermons that he vttered but also by the example of his life For hee endeauoured to helpe the people both with his spirite and his bodie with his body by labour and exercise careing for them by walking about euery waye by courteous behauiour and by helping theÌ„ with his riches spiritually by teaching by admonishing and by giuing to all men a measure and institutions of their life Thus doth Gregorie set foorth the ecclesiasticall gouernement of Basill and of his owne gouernement also being Elders vnder the bishopp in the Churche of Caesarea consisting as muche and more in teaching than in the correction and composing of manners and censures of discipline And that these were not distinct offices in the diuerse kindes of Elders but they medled with both together and both vnder the bishop â—nâ— hâ—wâ— God blesseâ— this ecclesiasticall gouernement vntill Basill him-selfe after the decease of Eusebius was made their bishop And then sayth Gregorie after hee had praysed Basill in this promotion â—s for mee all men thought when they hearde of his promotion that I would foorth-with departe he meaneth from the place where he then was and that I would goe to him and that I should haue equall power with him they knewe that there was such friendshippe and beneuolence betweene vs. But I when as I shunned enuie leaste I shoulde seeme to occupie the places of those that were neere him and with-all least they shoulde falsely iudge that Basil hauing
abuse and pollution beeing expreslie abolished and onely a good purpose and vse of them decreed the same are as much besides for the goodnesse of the purpose and vse for the verie authoritie of the decree to be for the time as farre foorth receyued as the other meates beeing otherwise lawfull in them-selues yet being for good purposes and vses of them by the authoritie of the decree for the time forbidden were then and for that time to be refused But that was done also say they for the forbearing the weaknes of the Iewes in abstinencie from eating bloud and strangled which was forbiddeÌ„ by God before Moses time to teach that childish age of gods people to absteine from crueltie As in Genes 9.4 Although the time before the comming of Christe bee called of the Apostle Gal. 4. ver 3. a childish age when wee were Children saith he wee were in bondage vnder the rudimentes of the worlde yet when the fulnesse of time was come and Christe reuealed receiued and the Gospell established in calling still that primitiue age a childish age we must take good heede that the Papistes and other Heretikes take not aduantage by these spéeches that say the Church of Christe in the Apostles times was but as weake as a Childe or babie and afterwarde grewe to ripe perfection And albeit I graunt these temporarie degrees were made cheefely in respect of some such persons among them that were but weake and as it were of childish age in the knowledge of Christe and the Christian libertie notwithstanding euen for these weake childrens sake the strongest and all for the time that those decrees were in force were bound to obey them And that priuate person which publikely had broken or controlled these degrees of the Church in these caeremoniall matters which onely for this expediencie were decreed though the matters otherwise in them-selues were such as might lawfully haue beene broken or controlled had greatly offended euen so whatsoeuer these caeremoniall matters that we and our Br. doe nowe striue for are otherwise in their own nature free and indifferent and so might bee receyued or refused or haue otherwise in the vse of them beene abused yet being nowe by the Church of God decreed to be well vsed and that with expresse cautions against all the former abuses of them and that with full freedome of conscience wherein the Christian libertie most consisteth what priuate person soeuer shoulde attempt publikely to breake or controll them shoulde offer manifest iniurie to Gods Church If we be the Church of God as I hope we be that thus haue decreed them They say such caeremoniall Constitutions are but temporall Neyther do we goe about to make them perpetuall And yet heerein wee must note also a difference from those Constitutions that were no longer in force then for a certaine time as the absteining from bloud and strangled and those that may perpetually bee kept if there be perpetuall causes of them And this their selues confesse that they are so long to be retained as the cause continueth sor which they were made And they say true herein But since the cause of the making of our caeremoniall constitutions doth continue howe are they not then to bee still reteined vntill the cause shall cease or that by the same authoritie whereby they were ordeyned they be also aâ—tered or remooued But say they so that if weakenesse cease or be turned to obstinacie they are no longer to be reteyned If the weakenesse say I cease generallie or generally bee turned to obstinacie that were in-deede another matter But if weakenesse cease in some and remayne in other or in some but not generally or in the moste part nor generally be turned to obstinacie but in some then the cause of the Lawe respecting not particulars doth not cease and therefore the caeremoniall constitutions decreed by the lawfull Synode are still as before to be reteined Also for order an comelisse and best aedification the Synode hath to determine what shall be obserued in particular charges as of time place and forme of preaching and praying and administring of the Sacramentes For who shoulde bee able to knowe what order comelinesse and aedification requireth according to Gods worde but they that bee teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others For it is absurde that they should bee taught by such these smaller thinges as ought to learne the trueth of them in all matters Vnderstanding the Synode in his proper sense for the orderlie and lawfull assemblie not of this or that particular Citie Shire or Diocesse but of the whole Prouince Realme or state and withall not preiudicating the supreme autoritie of the Christian Magistrate I grant that the Synode hath to determine for order comelinesse and best aedification what shall bee obserued both in particuler thinges and through out the whole state As not onely of the time place and forme of preaching and praying and administring of the Sacrament but also of Discipline and of Ecclesiasticall Regiment to the ends aforesaid As for the reason héere alleaged For who shoulde be able to know what order comelinesse and aedification requireth according to Gods Worde but they that bee teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others I allowe the same no further than by comparison that they which are the Teachers and Preachers of the same vnto all others haue better cause to knowe in generall what order comelinesse and aedification requireth according to the Worde of God than any other haue But to say simplie as heere our Brethren doe who shoulde be able so much as to knowe it but they that bee Teachers and preachers c. is a greate deale me thinketh vnder their correction too presumptuous a question May not a man bee able by Gods grace to knowe thus much as what order comelinesse and aedification requireth according to Gods Worde except hee bee his selfe a Teacher and Preacher of the same vnto all others Yes verily and to knowe much more euen in the greatest controuersies of Doctrine as God bee praysed there are many godly learned both men and women among vs that are not vnfurnished with such knowlâ—â—ge Yea what were the teachers and Preachers at first them selues Did they take vpon them to teache and preache the same vnto all others before they had the knowledge hereof or did they teache and preach immediatly vpon their getting knowledge or was the knowledge suddenly by inspiration giuen them with their entring into this function as S. Paules wordes to Timothie may be vnderstood Dispise not the gift that is in thee which was giuen thee by prophesy with the laying on of hands of the Eldership 1. Tim. 14. And yet Timothy was able to know these thinges before insomuch that S. Paule sayth to him 2. Tim. 3.15 And that thou haste knowne the holy Scriptures of a childe And some men can excellentlie dâ—clare their knowledge also of
not diuers of the Corinthians departe or fall from the true vse of these graces of the holye Ghoste As wee maye also say of Demas and others And euen of the apparant reprobate sayth Sainct Paule Hebrewes 6. vers 4. For it is impossible that they which were once lighttened and haue tasted of the heaueâ—lye gifte and were made pertakers of the holye Ghoste and haue tasted of the good woorde of God and of the powers of the worlde to come if they shoulde fall awaye shoulde bee renewed agayne by repentance seeing that they crucifie agayne to themselues the sonne of God and make a mocke of him So then vnderstanding these woordes euen for those that are not of the number of Gods elected neuertheles they may be such as God hath imparted great graces of the holy ghoste vnto and yet they departe and fall from grace But now which is the better and playner sence because the Article mencioneth rysing againe vnderstanding these wordes for the Elect of God so far as man can gather by outwarde tokens yet may the Elect departe from grace though not wholly and finnally as doe the reprobate For example Dauid and Peter departed from grace and fell into grieuous sinnes yet not so but that some sparkes of grace though ouerwhelmed for the time still remaine in Gods elected till God by his spirite reclaime them to repentance Sainct Paule writing to the Gallathians to whom as to gods elected chap. 1.3 he wisheth grace and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Iesus christ saith vnto them vers 6. I maruel that ye are so soone remoued away vnto another Gospel froÌ„ him that had called you into the grace of christe and chap. 3.1 c. O foolish Galathians who hath bewitched you that yee shoulde not obey the truth to whome Iesus christ before was described in your sight and among you crucified This onely would I learne of you receaued ye the spirite by the workes of the lawe or by the hearing of faith Preached are ye so foolish that after yee haue begun in the spirite ye would now be made perfect by the flesh haue ye suffred so many thinges in vaine c. Had not these lost the grace of God and S. Paule reclaimed them to repentance And so christ saith to the Angell or B. of the church of Ephesus apoc 2. I know thy workes thy labour thy patience and how thou canst not forbeare them which are euil hast examined them which say they are apostles are not and hast found them lyers thou hast suffred hast patience and for my name sake hast laboured and hast not fainted Héere are the great graces reckoned vp But what followeth Neuertheles I haue somwhat against thee bicause thou hast left thy first loue remember therfore from whence thou art fallen repent do the first works or else I will come against thee shortly wil remoue thy candlestick out of his place except thou repeÌ„t And is not this euen as much as here is said in this article after we haue receaued the holy ghost wee maye depart from grace giuen and fall into sin and by the grace of God we may arise againe and amend our liues And therfore there is no error nor anye suspicion of error in this saying nor as though it were doubtfully spoken any néede of further explication except our Bre. would euen seke to pick quarrels at words to make theÌ„ séeme suspitious that are sound plaine enough or except they be of a contrary opinion to this article thinking that if they once haue receaued the holy ghost his grace they be so pure sure euer after that they can neuer sin at least they can neuer fal into any notorious sin But although I pray both for them vs that we may not depart from grace by falling into any such grieuous notorious sin yet much more that we fall not into that presumptuous sin that we should be so puffed vp in coâ—â—â—it of our puritie as to think we cannot depart froÌ„ grace fall into sin notorious sin also For so our Bre. should themselues maintaine a most grosse and palpable yea a most dangerous error condeÌ„ned heresie For although we must not wauer in doubt betwixt feare hope distrust faith for our saluatioÌ„ but haue a firme hope ful confideÌ„ce in yeâ—ternal good purpose promises mercies of god in christ as the very first words of the article of predestination election witnesseth that we are of thâ— nuÌ„ber of his Elected to saluation whereof god hath vouchsafed vs good tokeÌ„s besides the pledge of his spirite certifieng our spirit that we are the sons of God and if sonnes heyres c. yet except the spirite helpe our infirmityes we should quickly fall into great temptations and enormities And therfore we are willed for our parte to woorke our saluation with feare and trembling to pray that we enter not into temptation and euer to checke our presumption with these such like sentences If we shal say we haue no sins we deceaue our selues and there is no truth in vs yea that the iuste falleth seuen times a day and yet riseth againe c. But I hope our brethreÌ„ are not sotted in this grosse error of the anabaptists neyther wee God be praysed do allowe of the other grosse errours oâ—â—he papists that the elected can finally vtterly depart froÌ„ grace But firmum stat fundamentum deus nouit qui sunt sui Neyther is there any error in any of these our articles nor any of the other articles of the booke And therefore I meruaile that they say diuers godlye and learned Preachers offered to speake against diuers grosse and palpable errours that had escaped the Bishops decrees If there were anye so grosse that they were palpable and so many too that there were diuers of them and that naming for example these two matters they conclude with this generalitie saying and such like matters though we haue cléered our selues sufficiently heerein and are by the grace of God ready to enter eyther into the apologie of our selues or to make the acknowledgement of all those diuers errors and disclaime them when they shal be specified and so proued yet is not this well done of our bretheren to burthen vs with any especially with grosse and palpable errors and those diuers and not so much as name them that we might see them and forsake theÌ„ For this leaueth in the readers mind a shrewde suspition of further errours in these articles But we craue in the feare of God and in the testimony of a good conscience all mens good opinion in this behalfe towardes vs till our bretheren or any other be he Papist Anabaptist or whosoeuer shall burthen vs expresly with this or that error by name and then if we cannot throughlye cleere our selues let them condemne vs but till then christian charity ought to hold vs
giltlesse And of these I trust we haue sufficiently acquit our selues as for other we are to aunswere in our defence when we shall haue heard their accusation But and they be such as these bicause they tel vs before hand such like I hope in God we shall do well enough and had those matters that they suppresse bin worse than these I suppose they would not haue opened these and folded vp those on this fashion But if they be foorth comming wée neede not long to héere of them we shall haue them I warrant you with a recumbentibus all in tyme in the meane time welcome be the grace of God But let vs now sée how our brethren conclude and rattle vp our Bishops for these articles and for all the other matters that they haue charged them with If this say thâ—y be not to practise Lordship ouer Faith to set downe decrees of religion which must be accepted of all men without eyther reason or testimonie of the scripture to prooue them and no man permitted to shewe any reason or scripture that enforceth his conscience to the contrarie but onely to hang vpon the authority of bishops let some other declare what Paule meaneth 2. cor 4. where he denieth that he woulde exercise anye Lordship ouer the Fayth of the Corinthians Our bretheren shewe heere a manifest proofe howe true that Article is which they saye was set dowâ—e by the Bishops and the conuocation that the elect maye departe from grace For I account of our bretheren as of the number of Gods elected Yet if they had not in this their learned discourse departed or fallen to much from grace woulde they or coulde they haue so fallen from the truth heerein by such vntrue and notorious sclaunders thus to seeke the vtter disgracing and defacing of the Bishops haue they prooued or can they prooue anye one article or decree of Fayth and Religion wherein the bishops haue taken vpon them any such Lordeship or anye Lordeship at all ouer our Fayth doth not euen the very former article of these two last cyted by our bretheren themselues against the Bishops for the distinction of the Canonicall bookes fully discharge the Bishops of this sclaunder that holy Scripture conteyneth all thinges necessary to saluation so that whatsoeuer is not read therein nor may be proued therby is not to be required of any maÌ„ that it should be beleued as an Article of Fayth or be thought requisite or necessary to saluation Doe they which with their bretheren in the conuocation doe set downe this decree for faith and Religion practise Lordeship ouer our fayth or set downe decrees of religion which must bee accepted of all men without eyther reason or testimonie of the Scripture to prooue them and no man permitted to shewe anye reason or Scripture that inforceth his conscience to the contrarie but onely to hang vpon the authoritie of Bishops When the Bishops in most plaine woordes renounce all such authoritie and referre it onely to the canonicall Scripture who may not see if he will not wilfully of too too much affection blindfold himselfe the apparance of this sclaunder But our Bretheren say they haue set downe the decrees without eyther reason or testimony of the scripture to proue theÌ„ I graunt it that for some they haue so done neyther is it the nature of briefe suÌ„marie Articles which in Synodes are agreed vppon after that they haue bin by reason and Scripture cléerely proued and are apparant to haue them set out with their proues annexed to them which is another point beside the Articles In the ordinances Ecclesiasticall of the Church of Genena and the orders of the schole of the said Citie set out in french An. 1578. of the which many are of faith and religion and in their summarie of the Christian Doctrine annexed do they still adioyne their prooues by reasons testimonies of the Scripture And haue not all the most auncient councels which are greater than our conuocations in all their articles and decrees kept the selfe same order most briefely and plainely to set downe the naked article by it selfe so thus haue they set downe also the articles of their créedes And so is the summary of our Faith commonly called the Apostles Creede set downe in most short plaine and simple wordes and sentences without annexing the reasons or testimonies of Scripture that confirme them For when these 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or principles gathered as capitall conclusions and resolutions of the scripture are thus set downe if they bee not such nor haue the cléere proofe and grounde of Scripture for them they will quickelye appeare in this their nakednesse and quickelye shewe their shame to all the worlde as doe the Papistes decrees whiche they set foorth so soone as euer they come to the touchstone to bée examined and prooued by the Scripture they molter away and resolue to vanitie Let our bretheren nowe a Gods name take this our booke of articles and whette all their wittes and with all their learned discourses set vppon it examine and trye it peecemeale thorowe and through euerye sentence woorde syllable and tytle in it if they finde anye thing contrarye to good and sounde reason yea contrarye too our dissonant from the Canonicall Scriptures then saye our Bishops practise Lordeship ouer our Fayth and set downe orders of Religion which must bee accepted of all men without eyther reason or testimonie of Scripture to proue them and no man permitted to shewe any reason or Scripture that inforceth his conscience to the contrary but onely to hang vppon the authority of Bishops But if they cannot finde anye thing in these decrees orders and Articles nor anye coulde finde it then nor coulde euer since nor euer shal be able and there was then in the conuocation libertye enough and hath euer bin since and still is being vsed in that lawefull and reuerent manner that is requisite for the treaty of such matters which yet coulde neuer nor I hope shall euer be conuinced of errour then let our bretheren for verye shame or rather for loue of truthe yeilde and reuoke these soule sclaunders on the Bishops and indeede on all the conuocation and on all the realme and Churche of Englande that hath established the allowance of these articles or rather on the Articles themselues which they sclaunder to bée decrees of Religion without eyther reason or testimonie of the Scripture to prooue them and that they onely hang vppon the authoritye of Bishops and so are méere doctrines of men and that they are Errors grosse and palpable Thus through the sides of the Bishops are these Articles and our Faith and Religion wounded by these our Bretheren as though not onelye our Bishops but all the Cleargie the realme the doctrine and all were as ill or woorse than the Papistes so farre hath this immoderate beate of their inconsiderate zeale inflamed their passions and patience
they renounce they vaunt of long studie in which they could not for shame make any comparison therfore they flie to the example of yong Elihu to the reuelatiō of gods spirite as though their learning and these platformes came by reuelation to thē on a sudden and doe they now vpon the smattering of a little learning or for the small time beit of their earnest studie come in as it were vying withall the B. making exception of none but obiect to them all that they are not all of the best learned nor all of longest studie But what néede long study for greate or best learning among them when their gouerning Elders in euery congregatiō shal go for men learned in diuinity that haue little leasure to studie long or perhaps at all and euery Pastor holden for a learned diuine andfor a learned Preacher although he were but new made a Pastor And as for sound iudgement they measure that after their own iudgement and conceite esteéeming euery mans iudgement albeit he be of neuer so long studie or greate learning to bee no sounde iudgement if it sounde not soundlie in their forestalled Iudgement As also their ouer great preposterous zeale condemneth all the Bishops and all vs their bretheren in the Gospell of Christ to be but Popish and without all zeale if wée yeilde not straight way to them in all the deuises of these newe platformes And no maruell then if the shoue in this among the residue that the Bishops be not all of the best example Would God both they and wee and all our bretheren were if not of best yet of better example than wee be For to say the truth the better of both yea the best of vs all therein may be amended Neuerthelesse though it be an offence vnto the weake and a steyne vnto the authoritie yet not so but that the authoritie it selfe is good and maye stand euen in those persons that are not all of best example no nor all of the greatest zeale nor all of soundest iudgement nor all of longest studie nor all of the best learned neither but if the Bishops were in these thinges inferiour to some other or to them or any of them haue any defecte therein yet ought not out bretheren thus to insult vpon them being their fathers that made them Ministers of the Gospell and hauing authority ouer them in the Church were it but for the reuerence and dignitie of their authoritie except indeede they were open enemies to the Faith or manifest wicked in the example of their conuersation It should better me thinkes beseemeour brethren to followe the shame fastnesse of Sem and Iapheth than the shamelessenesse of Cham in deriding and reuealing his fathers shame But what do I speaking this of those Children that are growne into such disdaine that they will not acknowledge them to be their Fathers If they saye that in these words they do not thus accuse them all in saying they are not all of the best learned nor all of the longest studie nor all of soundest iudgement nor all of greatest zeale nor all of best example What then do they meane by these so intricate speeches bicause they still place this word all so cunningly in the middle that as it may be called in question whether they referred it to these matters as when we saie a thing is not all of the best that is to say it is but meane or base not all of the soundest that is to saye rotten or corrupted not all of the longest that is but short not al of the greatest that is but little or els that they referre the worde all not to the matter but to the persons as they are not all of the best that is to saye some of them are not of the best and so for the residue of these qualities In which later sence if they shall meane it that though they bee not all of thē of the best learned yet some of thē are of the best learned of the lōgest studie of the soundest iudgement of the greatest zeale and of the best example as it is apparant they cannot for very shame denye these things or the most of them in some of our Bishoppes why then doe they not follow those fewer some than thus for some not so good in these things to shake off all And yet it is well knowne also that there are many other God be praysed besides the Bishops that may compare with any of these our Bretheren the learned discoursers in any yea in all these things But their quarrell is here pretended onely or chiefly at the Bishoppes concluding agaynst them vpon these premisses And therefore not meete to be the onely determiners in Ecclesiasticall matters to the preiudice of the whole Synode This conclusion wee may safely admit were the Bishops neuer so excellent It is not meete neither doe they nor can they take this vpon them which were indeede to the preiudice of the whole Synode Nor the Synod receiueth this preiudice by them nor giueth such authoritie to them to be the onely determiners in Ecclesiasticall matters For euery one that is any particular member of the whole Synode hath both his deliberatiue and determinatiue voyce except wee shall speake of such determination as recollecting all their seuerall determinations pronounceth publikely the sententiall and finall determination of the matters in the name and authoritie of them all as Iames did being Bishop of Ierusalem And yet neither so all the Bishops doe it but one and the chiefest among them as the full resolution of the whole Synode But how will our Bretheren cléere themselues of this whereof they accuse our Bishoppes for they pretending to be Pastors and that Pastors and Bishops be but al one they will then be Bishops euery one that pretendeth to be a Pastor Now though these Bishops admit their gouerning Elders to come to the Synode and to be parts also of the Synode with the Pastors saying that the Synode consisteth principally of Pastors Elders Teachers and men of wisedome iudgement and grauitie as it were of necessarie regents pag. 113. And hereto they vrge the assemblie Act. 15. the Apostles and Elders came together to consider vpon this matter c yet when they come to the determination euen where they say pag. 117. the Synode hath to determine what shal be obserued in particular charges as of the tyme place and forme of preaching and praying and administring of the Sacraments they so make themselues to bee the onely determiners in all Ecclesiasticall matters that disoayning any other should so much as knowe them they say For who should bee able to knowe what order comelinesse and edification requireth according to Gods word but they that be teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others for it is absurde that they should bee taught by such in these small things as ought to learne the trueth of them in all matters Doe
they not here make their Ecclesiasticall Gouernours and Elders to be no teachers and yet principall parts whereof the Synod consisteth and necessary regents yet when it commeth to the regencie indeede to be cleane excluded from all regencie and determining of these matters except they should determine that they knowe not What shall we say then whatsoeuer is decreed amongst them that is to say among these Bishops that must be called the determination of the whole Synode So that no man must be suffred to speake any thing agaynst it be it neuer so reasonable or agreeable to the word of God pag. 135. Tush what reason you any longer of reason or of agreeablenesse to the word of God Haue ye not your aunswere alreadie Who should bee able to knowe what order comelinesse and edification requireth according to Gods worde but they that be teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others What and will you take vpon you to bee teachers and preachers because ye are Ecclesiasticall gouernours and because ye are parts whereof the Synode consisteth or are ye so cranke that ye be necessarie regents What of all this we tell you agayne that since ye bee not teachers and preachers and so no Pastors nor Bishoppes It is absurd that they should bee taught by you which ought to learne the trueth of vs the Pastorall Bishops in all matters And therefore whosoeuer of you all will not subscribe to all such things as we the Bishops decree must bee excluded out of the Conuocation If this bee not to practise Lordship though not ouer the faith yet ouer al the Synode and ouer all the Churches in these matters no man being permitted to shewe any reason or scripture that inforceth his conscience to the contrary no not their Gouernors themselues to quitch for feare they should heere be snatched vp for halting but onely to hang vpon the authoritie of these newe vpstart Pastorall Bishops let some other declare what this meaneth and how farre this differeth from tyrannicall dominion from ordering all things at their pleasures as though the Gospell sprang from them or had come to them onely It sauoureth of nothing so much as of Popish tyrannie except of somewhat worse whereas otherwise it is well knowne that they are not all of the best learned but many of them very simple schollers nor all of longest studie but méere children or no students in Diuinity euen the other â—ay nor all of soundest iudgement nor able to iudge of many controuersies nor to iudge of or sound to the depth of these nor al of them sound nor soundly agreeing together in iudgement of them Nor all of the greatest zeale though it bee the greatest thing in them but according to knowledge not so great as testie Nor all of the best example but some good some bad and one with another as all other men and what followeth And therfore not meete how fayne soeuer they would and take it heâ—evpon them to bee the onely determiners in Eccl. matters to the preiudice of the whole Synod and of all the gouerning Elders that are parts of the whole Synode with them So playnly in all these thinges doe our Brethren euen in their owne words with a very little windlasse turning theÌ„ home agayne while they would powre out all these reproches on our Bishops reaching short of them spill them by the way and all to defile and beray them selues therewith As for our bishops as they neither take any such authoritie in the Synod vpon them ouer the Pastors as these Episcopall Pastors take vpon them ouer their gouerning Elders and so our Bishops preiudice not the whole Synod nor any part thereof as they do theirs nor our Synodes finde themselues preiudiced or agreeued with the authoritie of our Bishops but both our Bishops and our whole Synodes finde themselues sclaundered iniured defaced and so much preiudiced by these speeches and deuises of our Bretheren As among other this conclusion following is a great sclaunder of them Wherefore it is greatly say they to be desired that our Synodes also which are so farre out of order may bee reformed according to the Scripture and the example of the Primitiue Church That our Synodes are so farre out of order as our Bretheren pretend except they haue some fresh proues to come they haue not yet proued it This is but an apparant vntrueth and infamie of them The refourming of Synodes according to the Scripture and the example of the Primitiue Church so farre as the Scripture giueth either rule or example of them is alreadie in practise if our Bretheren would bee thankfull to God for it As for the particuler abuses they may much more easily be refourmed than by such Synodes and Councels as are heere deuised That all things say they may bee done with such modestie grauitie and iudgement as they were by the Apostles and Elders Act. 15. Yea forsooth this at length is a good finall conclusion and determination of this matter I am glad our Bretheren yet after all these ruffling stormes end thus caulmelie with this wholesome aduice of modestie grauitie and iudgement Which three poynts if they had all this while set before them at least wise if they had followed them they would neuer thus lauishly haue defaced all our Synodes and Conuocations with all the Bishops the Pastors and other officers in them albeit there had bene some defects or abuses of them which might with modestie grauitie and iudgement bée well reformed the lawes and orders of them already established with the Bishops Pastors and officers authorities reserued remayning intier and still continuing The argument of the 16. Booke IN this last Booke after their profession that they haue now set forth the whole Ecclesiasticall Ministerie with all the dueties and authorities perteyning to these fower tetrarches they here graunt that the place requireth to treate of the Ciuill Magistrates authoritie in Ecclesiasticall matters First of the right vnderstanding the title of the Princes supremacie and how farre forth they will moue no controuersies thereof Of their graunt to the Princes supremacie ouer the Ecclesiasticall persons with their cautions of the Popes supremacie and of Princes casting off the Popes yoke Of the Princes supremacie also in the matters Ecclesiasticall and of the Pastors supremacie therein aboue the Prince and of the Popes presumption in these matters Of the Princes authoritie in making lawes of Ecclesiasticall matters and of their exception for not confounding the Princes and the Pastors offices and of the Pastors consent VVhether the Princes authoritie reach no further than to make ciuill lawes for Ecclesiasticall matters And how farre the Pope also allowed Princes to make such lawes VVhether the Princes authoritie stretch not to their dealing in the making of Ecclesiasticall lawes but onely for the charge to obserue them that by the Clergie are alreadie made and for the bodily punishment of those that violate them whether this bee
those thinges do appertaine onely to him and the generall Councell And here we beséech our Brethren confessing thus much against the pope as it becommeth good subiectes to their prince to aduise theÌ„selues withall of their former vnaduised spéeches pag. 9 10.84.85.117.1â—8.119 in which places besides their hard termes of Christian princes doe they not giue vnder the name of the Church her authoritie the knowing the hearing the examining the determining the iudging and the punishing of all matters and causes pertayning to discipline gouernment of the Church either to their pastors and teachers or to the Seignories of their gouernors And what differeth this from forbidding princes to meddle with reformation of Eccl. matters or to make lawes pertayning to causes of religion aunswering them that those thinges do appertayne only to them and to their consistories and to their particulaâ— Synodes or generall Councell But when he say they meaning the pope coÌ„meth to debate any thing with his Clergie theÌ„ all lawes and knowledge are inclosed in the closet of his breast And is this any more than to say not onely to the Prince but also to their owne consistorie gouernors of whom their Synodes consist as well as of themselues pag. 117. who should be able to knowe what order comlines aedification requireth according to Gods word but they that be teachers preachers of the same vnto all others For it is absurde that they should be taught by such in these small thinges as ought to learne the truth of in all matters This authoritie therfore can not be graunted vnto any ciuill Christian Magistrate that without consent of the learned Pastors and Elders yea against their consent of whom as in some respect he is a feeling member he may lawfully make ceremoniall constitutions whereby the Church must bee gouerned in meere Eccl. matters Sith therfore they turne al this against the Prince is not this as much as when they come to debate any thing with their Clergie Gouernors that theÌ„ all lawes knowledge is inclosed in the closet of their breasts both from the Prince and from their owne Clergie and Eccl. Gouernors Is not this as much as when they holde their generall Counsels or Prouinciall that all the authoritie must come from them For except they doe allow it it is nothing And how farre differs this froÌ„ the Popes conceit that they also are growen so wise that neither with counsell nor without the Councel they can erre or think amisse in Eccl matters Had they a generall Councell of all those that they call the faithfull ministers that composed this Learned discourse of Eccl. gouernment Well yet there is here some good hope that when our Brethr. shall haue better bethought theÌ„ of these things which they mislike in the Pope debarring the right interest of Christian Princes the verie vggly sight thereof will be as a glasse vnto theÌ„ to sée mislike their owne spéeches and doings in taking vpon them though not the verie same yet so like presumption and vsurpation especially so many and so little states as they are farre inferiour to the Pope and at the verie first péeping out of them yea before they are come to that they would haue thus to insult not onely on the Bishops and to come and set out lawes before themselues are called vnto such authoritie but also thus to blemish and deface the Christian Princes authoritie to abase and debarre it to examine and determine yea to encroch vpon the right and interest in these matters of all Christian Princes and of their owne most godly and gracious Soueraigne But since the sight of their own description of the Popes presumptioÌ„ vsurpation doth begin here to make them stoupe somwhat to the Princes supremacy let them now in good time likewise remember their own sayings pag. 77. 78. where speaking also of the Pope whose intollerable presumption say they as we haue long since banished out of this land so wee wish that no steppe of such pride and arrogancie might bee left behinde him namely that no Elder or Minister of the Churche marke these your owne wordes well good Brethren and turne them not so off against our Bishops that ye forget your selues should chalenge vnto himselfe or accept it if it were offered vnto him any other authoritie than that is allowed by the spirit of God but chiefely to beware that he vsurpe no authoritie which is forbidden by the word of God For wherefore do we detest the Pope and his vsurped supremacie but bycause he arrogateth the same vnto himselfe not onely without the warrant of Gods word but also cleane contrarie to the same Now if the same reasons and authorities that haue banished the Pope do serue to condemne all other vsurped authoritie that is practised in the Church why should not all such vsurped authoritie be banished as well as the Pope we can alleage against the Pope and rightly that which S. Iohn Baptist did aunswere to his disciples No man can take vnto himselfe any thing except it be giuen him from heauen Ioh. 3.27 and that saying of the Apostle to the Hebrewes No man can take vpon him any honor in the Church of God but he that is called of God as was Aaron in somuch that Christ himselfe did not giue himselfe to be an high Priest but he that sayd vnto him Thou art my Sonne this day haue I begotten thee He sayth in another place Thou art a Priest for euer after the order of Melchizedech Now seeing these rules are so generall that the Sonne of God himselfe was not exempted from them but shewed foorth the decree wherin he was authorized by what rule can any man reteyne that authoritie in the Church of God that is not called therunto by the word of God All these words haue our Brethren alleaged triumphantly against the Bishops whose authoritie we haue séene to be throughly grounded on the word of God But for their Consistorie Gouernors to whome they giue such great authoritie we haue as yet after all this shuffling coniecturing pulling and haling of the Scripture of the auncient Fathers and of the old Churches practise to found it vpon we could not yet finde vpon better view therof so much as one good and substantiall proofe or authoritie for it or the example but of one such man And as for their Pastors if none be Pastors but such as are ordeyned after the forme by themselues set downe Pag. 125. saying this is the right election and ordeyning of Pastors grounded vpon the word of God when we come to search better in the word of God we finde not one Pastor so elected and ordeyned And as for their selues these faithfull Ministers none of them neyther that I can learne of were so elected and ordeyned and so they haue eyther no right calling nor authoritie at all but are méere intruders yea méere lay men or else that authoritie that they
persons being Protestants being faithfull Ministers being learned discoursers would God they would better bethinke themselues It is beyond my learning and a great scruple it is in many mens consciences that think our Br. haue set their conscience on the tenters much charged it rather then any whit discharged it do not according to their dutie therein nor that this their doing is any true or good way of reformatioÌ„ but if ought were amisse to make it much worse if not to marre it quite and to giue licence vnto such a way as would or might bring all things to an vtter deformation and confusion And here it followeth prettely at the hard heeles that might set the matter well forward And to mooue them say they that haue authoritie to put it in practise and to seeke by all lawfull and ordinary meanes that it may take place that it may please God to giue it good successe What meane they here by these perilous spéeches And is this also a part of conscience dutie and the true way of reformation to mooue them that haue authoritie to put it in practise Who are these that haue authoritie whom our Br. would by this their writing moue to put in practise this forme of reformation Would they haue any that haue authoritie in the Realme committed vnto them by and vnder the Queenes most excellent maiestie to attempt this without her maiesties authoritie therevnto whom they called before our most gracious soueraigne when they made their last protestation No wee hope there is none that in her maiesties dominions hath any authoritie committed vnto him will be moued by this writing or by any other writing or solliciting of our Bretheren to put this forme in practise without â—e haue her maiesties authoritie so to doe she hauing now God be praysed long continue it the supreme authoritie of these matters Neither should they that haue but inferiour authoritie to her maiestie yea all the Magistrates in the Realmes of her dominions holding all the authoritie that they haue immediatly or mediatly from her Maiestie and her Maiestie immediatly from God seeke any lawfull and ordinary meanes but vnlawfull and beyond extraordinarie if they should practise that this may take place without her authoritie thereunto especially it being with all the direct ouerthrowe of her chiefe authoritie They doe well to say that they would haue them do it by lawfull and ordinarie meanes wherein our Bretheren differ from the Papists that seeke vijs modis by all meanes to put in practise their desperate resolutions Which as God defeateth and our Bretheren detest so what lawfull and ordinary meanes can they imagine to put this their forme in practise agaynst her Maiesties will that may stand with her supreme authoritie And therefore in my opinion this is very ill done and daungerously spoken of our Br. to cast foorth such suspitious words as to moue them that haue authoritie so to abuse it or as though they would or should be mooued to this practise And for my parte I protest that I like all this whole learned discourse the worse that in the ende and conclusion of all it should come to this drift which verely is not pleasing vnto God nor God will euer I dare warrant it giue it good successe if the winde begin once to blow in at that doore which God forbid that euer we should see that tyme. But what is the tyme that here they speake off At this tyme to be imbraced It should seeme to be at the time of the Parliament as may appeare by the last part of their protestation saying We protest before the liuing God c. and the whole assemblie of all estates of this Realme I meruell much at this practise of our Bretheren that they are so eager in their pursuite to haue their platformes put in practise that they see not how they crosse in this doing their owne writings They are still at euery Parliament offering vp their little bookes for I forbeare to call them Libels to auoyde offence of the reformations that they call vpon vnto the high and most honourable Court of Parliament Wherein although if wee should lay together and conferre all their bookes and formes of reformation that they haue offred vp vnto the Parliaments wee should finde great varieties and some contrarieties among them yet let them agree or disagrée in other things how they shall what doe they meane herein by putting them vnto the Parliament Would they haue these controuersies to bee disputed vpon and determined by the Parliament That is cleane contrary to the chiefe materiall poynts of the very bookes themselues that they offer vp vnto the Parliament For except they will make all the Burgesses in the nether house and all the Lords in the higher house to bee Ecclesiasticall persons and either Doctors and Pastors whom also they make all Bishoppes teachers and Preachers of the word and Sacraments at least wise such Presbyters Priestes or Elders not teaching whom they call Gouernours if they shall be present as any parts and members or necessarie regents of the assemblie and not only as spectatores or auditores tantum if they shall remayne still as lay ciuill or politicke persons so that they can not by their owne Canons haue any voyces at least not determine any thing in Eccl. matters especially so great and important matters as they make them And what would they haue the Parliament then to doe in these things Nay whaâ— will they suffer them to doe Yea what would the Parliament doe when they should finde that in the very bookes offred vnto them of these matters they are prohibited to deale in these matters Yea how can they deale in these matters and allow these Pastors to come in and take them vp for their labour saying vnto them yea my Lords and Maisters dare ye take vpon you or are ye able to deale in these matters or so much as to knowe them For who should be able to know what order comelinesse and aedification requireth according to Gods word but they that bee teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others For it is absurd that they should bee taught by such in these small things as ought to learne the trueth of them in all matters pag. 117. and much more absurd that they should be taught by such in greater matters Yea they ought to learne the truth of them in all matters If the Parliament once heare this thunder cracke conticuere omnes intemtique ora tenebunt If some one among them perhaps doe replie and say If they will not suffer vs to haue any thing to doe in debating and determining of these matters why then a Gods name doe they put them vp to vs or what would they haue vs to do in them except they will giue vs some authoritie of them But they are so farre from giuing vs any such authoritie that they
say wee are not able so much as to knowe them No nor yet their owne Consistorie gouernors able to knowe them but onely the teachers and preachers of the same to all others And what will they then allowe to vs If the Parliament heare this man speake thus may they not thinke that man speaketh reasons and that there was little reason in troubling them continually with those matters in the Parliament house whereof they may not according to the libertie of that most honorable assemblie speake their mynds in reuerent maner pro contra freely and no man debarred of his speech or iudgement or els the house would better aduise themselues how they permitted such fellowes to come among them or to bring in such billes or bookes among them of which they must be restrained of their libertie both of speech and iudgement Yea what if now another waxing bolder in the Parliament house would tell these faithfull ministers that the matters conteyned in this learned discourse being Ecclesiasticall matters were to be consulted vpon and determined by those that were the Bishops Pastors of the Realme and Church of England and that they had a Conuocation Synodall assemblie among themselues and that they must go to them and be tryed by theÌ„ and bee as well content to submit themselues to the determination of the Bishops and Pastors lawfully and orderly there assembled as they would to haue it tryed in the ParliameÌ„t if they were all such Eccl. persons as were the other And that if they would flee froÌ„ their owne coate Eccl. company to such as were but ciuill and politick persons saue that they were ChristiaÌ„s as other of the people were they should giue an ill example preiudice their matters and make themselues and their bookes to be more mistrusted as not daring to abide the censure of the chifest professors of those matters Tractent fabrilia fabri Ecclesiasticall matters to be tryed by Ecclesiasticall persons And that this is according to their owne â—ositions For who should be able to knowe at least wise who ought better to knowe what order comelinesse and edification requireth according to Gods worde than they that be teachers and preachers of the same vnto all others For it is absurd that they should be taught by such in these small things and much lesse in greater things as ought to learne the trueth of them in all matters And therfore go to theÌ„ and let theÌ„ determine those controuersies If our Bretheren shall heare this tale and their owne words thus duelie returned on themselues may they not then thinke they haue well helped themselues by putting vp these matters to the Parliament And if the Parliament should aunswer them thus should they not aunswer theÌ„ aright But if now they had rather reuoke some of their positions giue the ParliameÌ„t authority to deale herein than to haue them be determined by the Bishops what on the other side would they haue the Parliament do without the authoritie of the Prince Yea how chaunce they put not vp their bookes writings first to her Maiestie mooue her first for if they accounted her Maiestie indeed the supreme gouernor of all persons in al her dominions in all causes so wel Eccl. as temporall would they haue the Parliament decree those things without her Maiestie Or the Parliament wherof her Maiestie is the supreme gouernor to determine these things without any debating of them Or if they should be debated vpoÌ„ who should rather do it theÌ„ the Clergie And haue not al that haue bin assembled together alreadie both the Bishops the whole Conuocation consulted debated and determined alreadie on the matter And if they would haue her Maiestie the Parliament to deale further therein haue they not done that also Hath not her Maiestie ratefied and authorized al their articles that the Conuocation agreed vpon And hath not the whole Parliament also approued allowed so ratefied and confirmed al the Communion booke besides the acknowledgement of her Maiesties supremacie all the articles agréed and decréed vpon all or the most or chéefest of the lawes and orders Eccl. now standing in force and established amongst vs And would they haue them reuoke cancell all that they haue doone in these matters or what else would they haue the Parliament herein to doo If they offer to dispute of these matters either before the whole Parliament or before anie by the Parliament deputed to heare the disputation betwéene vs of these controuersies doo they hope to dispute better and with more deliberat iudgement of that they shall saie ex tempore than that they haue with aduisement written or can write thereon or that we can dispute woorse or not so well as they persuade themselues they can Or doo they thinke as Aeschines said Quid si ipsam belluam andissetis they shall better persuade and mooue the hearers of them more by their liuelie spéeches than by their learned writings and so win it that waies Verelie wée refuse no waie what it shall please our most gratious souereigne and hir most honorable counsell or the high court of Parliament to appoint if that would serue the turne for anie further triall of renewing neuer so often these matters by disputing and calling them in question againe and againe for God be praised in so good a cause we néed not feare the euent they that could so win the garland let them weare it But we maie easilie sée before the disputation shall begin that all this would not serue their turne in these controuersies which the word of God hath not expreslie decided but in generalitie referred to these thrée heads comlinesse order aedification Who shall iudge and determine of our disputation they haue before hand debarred the prince and all that are not teachers and preachers and both the parties in controuersie are teachers and preachers and they saie it were no reason that we being the parties in controuersie on the one side though we be teachers and preachers should be determiners iudges what is comlinesse order and edifieng in these things and maie not we saie the same to them againe that they being also parties in controuersie on the other side though they be teachers and preachers it is no reason that they should be determiners and iudges what is comlinesse order and aedifieng in these things and when shall then these matters be iudged and determined Except we would yéeld to them or they would yéeld to vs or both to some other as to hir maiesty and the ParliameÌ„t But if they shall so doo they should conuince themselues before hand that the forme is vntrue and false which they haue alredie before hand not onlie auowed to be true but so determined alredie and so before hand peremptorily prescribed both to vs and to the Parliament to the Quéens maiestie also that we must all yéeld of
the present age when they conclude thus that they either desire this or the like forme to be receiued Can this present age or doo theirselues in this preset discourse see the vttermost of these indefinit desires of the like till they shall further open it or till experieÌ„ce the mistresse of fooles shall reueale it They saie that the reformation which they desire hitherto for lacke of such a publike testimoniall meaning as this learned discourse hath beene subiect to infinit sclanders deuised by the aduersaries of Gods truth and hinderance of godlie proceedings vnto reformation If our brethren haue cause to take offense for sclanders as they say deuised against their reformation doo they not see here what a foule and intollerable sclander they cast vpon all the professors of the Gospell that are not of their opinion in this their deuised reformation to terme vs the aduersaries of Gods truth that fauor the truth of God as much by the grace of God euen for their liues as they Are we not their brethren in the profession of the Gospell Haue they not confessed that in substance of religion we agree and it is resolued publikelie mainteined for our true and holie faith Were we thus professors of Gods truth in the preface of this learned discourse andare we now in the peroration of the same the aduersaries of gods truth Indéed in the verie first title to the booke of this forme discoursed vpon they began roughlie and set it out to serue for a iust apologie as they said against the false accusations sclanders of their aduersaries there also they mentioned sclanders and false accusations and called vs aduersaries All which were heauie words and a rough beginning of such as are or should be brethren It was but malum omen to stumble on such foule terms at the verie threshold it did prognosticat we should haue some storms and so we haue had indéed in passing through this learned discourse and yet this is but a mild booke in comparison of manie other of theirs albeit our brethren haue not béene verie meale mouthed but haue vsed verie brode language God wot and all the world maie see too vnséemelie for ministers faithfull ministers learned discourses against their brethren in Christ for no greater matters than these are But we haue borne them off with head and shoulders as well and with as much pacience forbearance as we mought saue that we haue turned againe now and then for our necessarie defense and laid I trust in modestie before our bretheren onelie how ill they haue doone therein and how the most of the same sclanders were such stones cast as could rebound But now when we haue got out of the whole plotforme and building of this learned discourse bearing off all the blowes taunts in the seuerall lodgings of all these new Eccl. officers and thought now on the backside of this building all had béene past and doone naie soft we shall haue like farewell to our hansell yea where we were called before but their aduersaries we shall now be driuen out with another maner of peale as not onlie hinderances of their proceedings to reformation but to all the present age that the posteritie maie know it too as a perpetuall blot of infamie we are now hissed out cried out vpoâ— not for their aduersaries onlie but for the aduersaries of gods truth they complaine of our false accusations and infinit sclanders to let go all their other complaints on vs this one is vnum prâ—mille To whom shall we complaine of this so apparant vntrue and withall so hainous an accusation made on vs It deserueth indéede for the indignitie thereof to haue shaken our garment with silence as cléere therefrom to haue gone our way But because it toucheth God his truth in which case we maie yet at least returne saie with Christ our sauiour ego daemonium non habeo we are not the aduersaries of Gods truth It is vntrulie and vnbrotherlie spoken neither toucheth it vs alone but all the holie and ancient fathers in the primitiue church whom we haue plainlie shewed to be of the same opinion in all or the greatest of these coÌ„trouersies that we defend in our own daies present age it spotteth the fresh memorie of our late godlie fathers Cranmer Latimer Ridley Hooper Ferrar Philpot c. all blessed martyrs and all that consented vnto them and diuers reuerend godlie Confessors of later memorie as Bishop Iuell Horne Pilkinton Grindall Cox Bentham Parkhurst and others which were all notablie known both on this side and beyond the seas to be great professors of gods truth and no lesse earnest impugners of the aduersaries of the truth of God And albeit they liked not these desires and deuises of our brethreÌ„s forms of reformation yet for their great learning and sinceritie in the gospell the most notable men of late in the reformed churches beyond the seas doe highlie honor them and thinke and speake well of them giuing full testimonie of their liking Yea both Bucer and Peter Martir two chéefe lights and pillers of Gods church in these our last daies forsooke their owne countries and all other reformed churches liued vnder the forme of reformation of this our English church with all due reuerence both to the state than being to the bishops then liuing without any impugning or defacing of theÌ„ Yea Caluine himselfe as we haue shewed alloweth well both of the ancient bishops and Archbishops before the tyrannie and eâ—rors of the pope began and of the bishops of these daies to continue still in their bishopriks so they be professors of Gods truth and not aduersaries to it How vnaduisedlie then is this spoken of our brethren and how reprochfullie to call our Bishops and all vs that ioine with them the aduersaries of Gods truth Could they bestow any fouler terme vpon the rankest of al the Papists or vpon the Pope himselfe For they indéed are the aduersaries of Gods truth And so S. Paule saith 2. Thes. 2. of that man of sin son of perdition which is an aduersarie and exalteth himselfe against all that is called God And this terme as a parting blow for a token of remembrance our bretheren vouchsafe to giue our bishops vs to be the aduersaries of Gods truth this is too too bitter zeale Mors in olla there is Coloquintida in this pot that boils ouer such froth Gods truth is not in this accusation no brootherhood of Christ no linke of loue no bond of peace no bowels of mercie no affection of compassion but all of passion in this too blacke Rhethorike But it sufficeth vs to cleare our selues GOD forgiue it our bretheren and wée doe And whereas withall they burthen our Bishops and vs that we are an hinderance of godlie proceedings vnto reformation this is another great vntruth and sclander These procéedings indéed of our bretheren our Bishops and
new obedience and of the fruites of faithe which ought chiefly to be regarded in the late baptized is as it were in a painted table set before our eyes And wee see the Apostle in the moste of his Epistles proceeding in that order that in the former parte he treateth of the Faith of those that are to be iustified where all things runne to this head of faith in God and of Baptisme the Sacrament of Faith but in the later parte of the faithe and charity or workes of those that are iustified To witte where he handleeh the offices of a Christian life and all things that are there expounded are rightly referred to that head of doctrine that followeth Baptisme To conclude therefore all the precepts the exhortations the rebukings which are extant in the Apostolicall writings concerning the charitie iustice innocency purity of those that are by faith Iustified baptized were comprehended and such teaching as in times past was in the fowrth place expounded before the learners What is héere left out for the Teaching of the Pastor that is not common with him vnto the Doctor And in the 4 Chapter of the manner of this Doctors Teaching After he hath again at large declared how hauing his audience of all kindes of persons he must apply him-selfe vnto them euery one fol. 488. Hee saith To conclude if there were among the hearers some learned as Philosophers Rhethoricians they were gently warned that they should not dispise nor heare with lothesomnesse the doctrine of the gospell Which in shewe and in the manner of the deliuery seemeth base and somewhat rusticall Nor that they attribute more then is right to mans wisedome and to the bookes of the Philosophers that they were before inured withall But that they should more attentiuely consider the matters themselues and the reuerent largenesse of the mysteries And that they should religiously examine all their rules by the squyre of the holie Scripture And if they had redde ouer any good authours they should constantly cleaue fast vnto them But vnprofitable and stayned with euill opinions they should in time lay them out of their handes And if any thinges were more at length and groselye expounded they should not be grieued thereat for that was not for them who alreadie partlie by priuate reading partly by conference with godly men were pretily entred but ought many times to be done for the ruder sorte And if they seemed to require a more full explanation of any certaine Chapters it was by the waye declared vnto them the reading of what writers was able to satisfie them Which things that they were wont thus to be done S. Augustine in his booke of Catechizing the rude in the 8. and 9. chapters doeth declare According to this manner therefore did the Catechists or Teachers when they did publikely teach applie them-selues wholly vnto all men And as the Apostle saide to become all vnto all to the intent to winne the moste part vnto Christe and to giue no man occasion of starting backe of erring or so much as staggering And if moreouer they perceaued it were expedient oftentimes they asked the Bishops themselues to the ende that of some certaine more difficulte pointes or more needefull to be expounded they might also publikely more fully preach vnto the people Whereunto no doubte those thinges are to be referred bicause the fathers oftentimes do intermingle in their Sermons exhortations c. 497. Againe speaking of their diuersitie in teaching of children and those of riper yeares he saith For children also the same forme of sownde wordes is well vsed which in little bookes that are borne about we see prescribed But with those that are elder there must be a freeer course of speeche and place by yeelding to examples similitudes descriptions amplifications and to the mouings of the mindes If at any tyme anye vices are to be reckoned vp and reprehended which muste needs bee done in the expounding the tenne commandementes those things in children shall bee noted and chastifed with gentle woordes which we know are familier to that age In young old persons verilie it is meete that other vices bee cured with another medicine And euen as these thinges fall out more and more in the eyes of men so muste the reprehension be tempered for they are able to susteine a sharper reprehension In Exhortations the like moderation must bee vsed and duties prudently prescribed that are agreable to euery age and perswasiue argumentes aptly applied vnto them What neede many wordes Whatsoeuer shall be offered to tender mindes that muste bee as though it were milke or delicate pulse Those thinges that shall bee distributed to them of full age they must expresse after a maner the nature of strong meate Generally the Catechist or Teacher must often admonish all his hearers that they often deeply in their mindes consider with him what they once promised to God to the Church in their baptisme What confession of their faith they made How haighnous a thing it is for those that haue geuen their names to fall from their Emperour Christe What life Christe requireth of those that are his Finallye by what bayte arte prudence and counsell so-euer hee can he shall diligently studie to drawe them to the true feare of GOD and loue of vertues and hatred of vices And thus muche of the manner of his teaching in publike All this at large and much more writeth Hyperius of these Doctors and Teachers which in the Primitiue Church were called Catechistes bicause of the sounding of their voice in their teaching And other Ecclesiastical Doctors then these from the Apostles times except the Deacons Priestes Pastors or Bishops I haue readde of none in al the Churche of Christe But what Teachers soeuer haue béene none haue béene debarred till now of exhorting and applying of their doctrine No not the best of the Doctors Teachers Readers or Catechists what name soeuer they shall be tearmed by that God in these our laste dayes hath raysed vp in his Church to reforme the same and to restore the true Teaching of the Gospell which the enemies had suppressed No not one that I can yet reade or heare of but that nowe and then hee exhorteth rebuketh or applyeth in his teaching as appeareth in all the woorkes of Luther Zuinglius Oecolampadius Bucer Musculus Martyr Bullinger Simlerus Gualter Caluine Danaeus Zanchius Hyperius Oleuianus Vrsinus Sadeelus Beza Tremelius Iunius or any other learned godly and famous Doctor Teacher Catechiste Reader interpreter Expositor c but in their teachings by mouth you should haue hear◠and in their teachings by writing yee shal finde more or lesse erhortations reprehensions admonitions consolations and applications c. Only the néerest that mee thinkes I speake it vnder correction doo drawe to this imagined Doctor that these our brethren and Learned discoursers would set vp are the Scholasticall Thomisticall Scotisticall Sorbonicall Cherubinical Seraphical or cal them