of religious worship so is He onlie Directour and Iudge of it Next Pastors are not Iudges but Indices or interpreters to point out that that God hath set downe in his Word Thirdlie Princes are neither Iudges nor â—ndices but Vindices or Promoters of true Religion They are neither the Rule nor exponers of it but Vrgers of men to doe according to the Rule proponed of God and exponed by faithfull Pastors Constantine the great made this distinction to Church-men God hath made you Bishops of the inward things of the Church but hee hath made mee Bishop of the outward things That is ye haue a calling to discerne betweene Truth and heresie in doctrine hurtfull or wholesome in worship or maners To preach the word minister the Sacraments and lead people in religious Worship to deale with the Inner Man and instruct the Conscience in the Truth But my place is to maintaine Religion in the Professors and their maintenance to deale with the outward Man and to see that my Subiects worship and obey God according to the Rule that hee hath given and yee point out of his Word All his businesse about the Councell of Nice was nothing but a Commentar of that distinction hee saw the Church poysoned with the Heresie of Arrius and rent with the Schisme that followed therevpon And not beeing able of himselfe to iudge and determine these questions hee conveened the most learned and godlie Church-men to whom that inquitie appertained and when they had determined the matter hee repressed the Heresie that they damned and maintained the Truth that they proponed So Theodosius the great curbed the Macedonians in the Councell of Constantinople Theodosius the younger the Nestorians by the Councell of Ephesus And Marcianus the Entychians by the Councell of Chalcedon And when the Nestorians raised vp their head againe Iustinian curbed both them and Pope Vigilius their Patrone both by a Councell and by his Edicts against their tria Capitula the summe and marrow of Nestorianisme Synods and Councels assembled in the Name of the Lord are as Counsels to Kings in matters of Religion and the Word of God is to rule both Princes and Synods So though David was a Prophet yet hee did nothing of himself in Gods house but with consent and advyse of Gad the Seer and of Nathan the Prophet for so was the Commandement of the Lord by his Prophets He had Gods command for the warrant of his Command And Iehoshaphat sent through the Cities of Iudah and they taught the People and had the Booke of the Law of the Lord with them This was their Directorie Concerning the extent of their power some Princes got wrong of others and some did wrong to themselues They got wrong most of the Pope who after hee affected Antichristian greatnesse closed vp Kings within civill affaires and counted them but profaine Laickes who had no intresse in matters Ecclesiasticke If they medled with Investitures of Benefices it was called Simonie and oppressing of the Ecclesiasticke libertie And the discharge of that duetie which God hath founded in their Thrones and Scepters was called the Henrician heresie and a fighting against God On the other part they bewitched Princes by the show of Canonizing This was a deepe policie by the hope of that baite to steale from Princes their authority as the best way to that Canonizing and to turne them Babes in this life vnder hope to bee Saintes after death It was too superstitious simplicitie for that hope to disgrace themselues and their places by surrendering their power to the Beast He knew that Princes were ambitious of honour and there was none greater than they had alreadie except it were to bee sancted Hee perswaded them that there was no way to that honour of sancting but by his Canonizing who had the Keyes of Heaven at his Girdle Therefore when Princes were tickled with that Ambition they cared not how baselie they prostitute themselues and their dignitie to him for that Imaginarie Advancement Or rather shall wee say that God in this politicke abusing of Princes was discovering a part of the Mysterie of iniquitie For about thâ—se times when Kings were made Sainctes the Popes were Monsters In the ninth and tenth Ages Ignorance reigned in the Church barbarous Crueltie in Popes everie one disgraced his Predecessour and abrogat his Ordinances then Princes abhorring that wickednesse were the more stirred vp to Pietie and so comparatiuelie they seemed to be Saincts in respect of these monstruous Popes It was the complaint of these times That it was easier to finde many Lay-men turne good than one religious man grow better And that it was a rare fowle on earth to find one ascend but a little aboue the degree that he hath taken in Religion The Chaire of Peter was some time broodie of Saincts but then it became so barren that it brought out none but Monsters and that justlie for the Popes loathed that Chaire and affected the Throne of Princes And holinesse beeing banished that Chaire found her place more in Princes than Popes This was Gods Iustice that since Popes would bee Kings that Kings should bee counted Saincts And yet both of them were but vsurpers for neither did God admit these Saincts in Heaven for intercessours whom the Popes thrust on him neither did hee allow the Popes kingdome which hee threw from Princes Againe some Princes wronged themselues concerning Religion that in Policie Superstition Neglect For Policie some of them harboured Religion in their Kingdomes but abused it politicklie to their owne ends They measured it by the persons of Preachers and seeing them in worldlie things the meanest of their estates did thinke as baselie of Religion it selfe so served themselues of it as the fairest colour to lustre their foulest purposes Iehu in shew was zelous for God but indeed all his zeale was to stablish the Crown of Israel in his own house So soone as hee obtained that end his zeale for God was quenched and he followed the idolatrie of Achab It was the Authoritie of Achabs house not their Idolatrie that made him zealous So Ieroboam followed the counsell of his owne heart in making two calues and sparing the peoples paines in going to Ierusalem But indeed he cared neither for Gods glorie nor the people but for stablishing his owne house Hee pulled the hearts of the People from God and from the house of David So Iulian when he thirsted for the Impyre he gaue vp his name among the Cleargie and frequented the Assemblies of Christians to mak him mor acceptable to people as Basile obiecteth vnto him So Mahomet made himselfe great by the colour of Religion though hee neither beleeved nor keeped these Precepts which he fained to bee of God and the Popes seeking a Monarchie haue vsed Religion for a cloake as Leo the tenth in his last words tolde
while the desire of profaine and new curiositie cannot containe it selfe within the marches of sacred and pure Antiquitie And they speake directly like the Pelagians by vs as Authours as beginners and expounders condemne the things that yee held afore and hold these things that yee condemned cast away your auncient Faith and receiue another And what faith I shrinke to speake it they are so proud that I thinke they cannot so much as bee rehearsed let bee refuted without some guiltinesse in like manner Abelardus said All men thinke so but I thinke not so And Bernard posed him iustlie What then art thou Tell vs what is that that seemeth to thee and to none others What hath the Law What hath the Prophets and Apostles or Apostolicke men preached vnto vs but that that thou onelie denyest And Hilarie speaketh like an Orthodox These things I haue beleeved by the holy Spirit so that beyond this Faith of our Lord Iesus Christ I cannot bee taught And a little aboue I hold fast that that I haue received neither doe I change that that is Gods I demand of them as Pacianus did the Novatians VVho teacheth so Did Moses or Paul or Christ No none of these Who then Novatian commanded it after three hundreth yeares So I may say That Socinus hath both invented new heresies and renewed old heresies after a thousand fiue hundreth and eightie yeares And I charge them as Ierome did Vigilantius If any before thee hath received this thy Interpretation let it bee true thou sayes But if the Church of God never heard of such wickednesse and Sathan hath spoken by thee then repent in sack-cloth and ashes and wype away such great wickednesse by continuall teares This is the damnable fruit of liberty of prophecying and professing after that God hath blessed a Church with a bodie of sound Doctrine according to the paterne of wholesome words The mindes of people are shaken from the Truth made susceptible of any opinion and inclinable to the worst When Arianisme and other errours had shaken the Church for a time the ambiguous mindes of people received Mahumetisme greedily For keeping of true Religion it is necessar to keepe Peace in the Church Schisme bringeth heresie and these two renting the Church doe rent the state also The Church and state are twins and their peace and trouble are inseparable Some Politickes haue advysed Princes to foster dissentions in the Church as a way to make the Impyre floorish So did Themistius to Valens the Emperours but hee found confusion in the end And Iulian allowed Heretickes to vexe and trouble the Church because he thought these dissentions a speciall meanes to put Christian Religion out of the world When Peace is keeped in the Church the state flow risheth but where it is neglected horrible confusions follow as well in state as in Church The Schisme betwixt the Greeke and Latine Churches could never reconceale and the Greeke Emperour lost the hearts of the people for too much inclining to the Pope The divisions of Germanie are most by schismâ— and the disputes of their Theologues turne the Courts of Princes in factions The thrusting of Gregories Liturgie on Spaine devided the hearts of people from their King and amongst themselues for alâ— beit things were good yet change of custome doe more hurt by noveltie then helpe by profite as Augustine well observeth When affections accord men may well brooke other in diversities of opinion but the renting of affection the marrow of Schisme breaketh vnitie of opinion also By nature wee are averse from the Gospel but if a stumbling blocke bee layed in our way our aversnesse findeth a reason for it selfe The kinglie Prophets practice is good heerein Pray for the peace of Ierusalem let them prosper that loue thee Peace bee within thy walls and prosperitie within thy Palaces Of three sorts of Kings 1. Of GODS King BEfore I leaue these verses suffer mee to present to you three sorts of Kings Gods King Machiavells Tyrant And the Pops Vassall First a good King whom wee call gods King comes to his Throne in Gods mercie both to himselfe and to his people as David and Solomon c. Secondly in his Disposition hee is religious to acknowledge his placeing on the Throne not to come of man or Fortune but of God His exalting aboue man maketh him not forget his subiection to God but by heartie devotion hee doth homage to him daylie both for the Crowne hee holdeth of him and for gifts to vse it His businesse is not with people alone but with God to enable him for governement Hee thinkes that a Tyrants verdict si libet licet if thou like it is leasome and knoweth that to whom more is leasome than to others they can easelie will more than is leasome Thirdlie in his governement hee is wise by Rehoboams folie Hee leaneth not to his owne wit or to the counsell of these who are of his owne yeares but labour th 〈…〉 to doe Gods worke with Gods wisedome Therefore heâ— readeth and meditateth his Word and with David maketâ— his Commandements the men of his counsell Hee knoweth nothing in his governement will bee acceptable to God â—ut that which agreeth with his word As hee holdetâ— his Kingdome of Gods will so in ruling it he followeth his revealed will that hee may abide in his favour Fourthlie in his account of his people hee counteth them not slaues but free men even Gods people to iudge thy people and that by Creation Redemption and Covenant Hee knoweth that Gods right to them is first and more than his and that his power over them is not absolute but delegat for which hee must bee countable to God Hee counteth them as his Children as David spake to Israel Hearken my Brethren and people Hee looketh not so much to that relation of domination and subiection as to that sweeter relation of Father and Sonne Hee rejoyceth as much in the name of a Father as of a King and sweyeth the kinglie Scepter in a fatherlie loue Fiftlie in his ends By all meanes hee seeketh the wealth and peace of his Subjects as his joye and glorie But hee counteth their divisions amongst themselues or their hatered of him as greevous wounds Hee craveth their hearts more than their goods and counteth their loue his best Guard vnder God 2. Of Machiavells Tyrant BVt Machiavell or rather Sathan in him hath drawne vp the Portrate of a Tyrant vnder the Name of a Prince and that contrare to all the pointes of my Text. First hee directeth his Prince for his entrie not to care how hee come to a Kingdome so that hee may haue it Truth or false-hood right or wrong craft or crueltie blood or poyson c. All are alike to him if they furder his end Hee looketh not to God and Providence but to Fortune and his owne fleshlie
They would reallie be Kings and therefore pleased Kinges in making them titular and imaginarie Saincts But it is no Divinitie that is subiect to men and that mutuall protection is ridiculous when gods keepe living men and men keepe the statues of dead gods So they know nothing about Kings but the two extermities of Excommuication or Canonization If Kings serue them baselie they shall bee deified by canonizing If not they shall bee damned to hell But there is no truth in any of these and both of them argue an Antichristian presumption in Popes They vsurpe over Kings in casting them downe and setting them vp at their pleasure and over God himselfe in making gods and thrusting them on him as intercessours I close this point with Cicero wondering at Romulus Apot heosing For though times of ignorance made men gods yet it was wonderfull in the midst of learning men were so exalted but hee satisfieth himselfe in that none but Rome counted Romulus a god and that when shee was little and bâ—ginuing So it was no wonder in the middle Ages of darknesse to see Rome canonize men but now in so great a light of the Gospel and in the Contest with Rome for her Idolatrie to see her multiplie her â—utâ—ar gods it is wonderfull But wee may content our selfe with Cicero Who taketh these to be gods but Rome a that noâ— in her minorite beginning but in her maioritie and declining to destruction I intreat you therefore with Augustine to consider of this your Pagan impietie if your minde so long drunk with errours suffereth you to thinke of anie wholesome thing And this much of their cloakes of shame or their Spider-web-covertures of their open tyrannie The fourth and last Section Of their foolishnesse and madnesse manifested in their fruites CHAP. XXI Of their affected ignorance in the consideration of the two great powers Civill and Ecclesiasticke THeir foolish madnesse is plaine if wee consider their course and their fruites that follow Their folie considered not aright these two powers civill and spirituall and their ignorance was rather affected than simple to make greater way to their violent pride God ruleth the world by two distinct powers Civill and Ecclesiasticke For Religion must bee in the Republicke and the Republicke must bee in Religion sayeth Optatus The Church and Common-wealth are as the two Estates and everie one of them hath its owne full power and authoritie in thinges that concerne it They are both of God and none of them is that way more worthie than the other as to subiect the other to it Neutra potestas est altera eo sensu dignior ut alteram sibi subijciat utraque enim est in suo genere prima ab altera independens Each of them in its owne kind is prime independent from other But yet they are distinguished from other in their endes Taske and meanes for that end They haue both God for their Authour and generallie the good of mankind for their end but their proper ends are different For the spirituall power leadeth onely to a spirituall and eternall good whereas the civill absolutlie looketh first to an humane temporall good All mankind lyeth flatte on the Earth notwithstanding of all other Callings But the Pastorall calling pulleth him from the earth and lifteth him to Heaven The Taske of the Spirituall is the preaching of the Word ministration of Sacraments and the vse of the Keyes of the Kingdome of Heaven directing mens consciences in the will of God and correcting them Ecclesiastickly For which cause the Pulpit is called the Tribunall of the Church because therein Pastors doe publish more glorious I awes than the Praetor The taske of the civile power is notoure in thinges Civile and for Religion it is appointed of God to defend the Church and trueth in it Indite and gather Councels and ratifie their Canons to abrogate superstition and idolatrie to provide Pastors with houâ—st maintenance and maintaine their provisions against the Sacrilegious In a word the power of the Church is not temporall but spirituall not a coactiue but a directiue power And the power civile is not spirituall but humane not directiue but coactiue to see all these spirituall dueties performed in their Kingdomes God hath not set them vp as contraire and opposite but as diverse and that for agreement and mutuall helpe to make vp an Harmonie of governement in mankinde These two powers cannot compete to any one person It is neither lawful nor seemlie for Princes to preach baptize communicate people excoÌ„municate delinquâ—â—ts c Neither is it tolerable in Pastours to denounce warre lead Armies shedde blood and swey a coactiue power Ambrose b riddeth the marches clearelie Wee pay sayeth hee to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to GOD the things that are Gods The tribute is Caesars and not denyed The Church is Gods and ought not to bee adiugded to Caesar because Gods Church cannot bee Caesars right Which none can denie is spoken with the honour of the Emperour For what is more honourable than that the Emperour be called the Sonne of the Church For a good Emperour is within the Church and not about the Church And in another place Divine things are not subiect to the power of the Emperour And thereafter places pertaine to the Emperours but Churches to the Priests The right of the publick walls is committed to thee not of the sacred so sayeth he to the Emperour who craved the Church to bee delivered to the Arrians Athanasius and Ambrose speake distinct lie That Princes are in the Church by profession and possession of grace and so the Sonnes of God and of the Church They are not over the Church for her direction but for her protection her Parents but her Nurce-Fathers Wise Kings ever granted the different power and interesse in things civill and Ecclesiasticke That in the first they were Lawmakers but in the second were directed and admonished themselues In the first they had a power both to make and allow Lawes for the publicke good in the second they are preservers of Lawes not to decerne therein with authoritie But to order matters Canonically according to the Lawes of the Church The Church first discerned Trueth from Heresie and then decerned And Princes ratified their decrets Pastours decrets according to the trueth obliged mens Consciences to follow the truth and Princes outwardlie inioyned the People to follow a knowne truth Though these two powers or callings simplie considered bâ—â— not subiect to other yet there is a sort of mutuall subordination in the persons that are cloathed with them Princes are aboue Pastours in respect of civill Eminence of outward governement and compulsion to do their duetie as Pastours though not in the intrinsecall direction And Princes are subiect to Pastours in respect of the informing and directing of their consciences in Religion The one is subiect
his affaires made the hearers beholders astonished Lawes are not made for Theorie but for Practice and the best practice on the part of the people is Obedience and on the part of the Magistrate execution And the best execution is when rewards and punishments the pases of the worlds Clocke are applyed as men deserue the god lie rewarded the wicked punished It hath bene an olde coÌ„plaint that Lawes haue bene well made but evill observed And he cannot be innocent who either spareth him that should bee punished or punisheth him that should bee spared By just punishment three things are procured First the amendement of the offender for so the evill of punishment layde vpon the evill of his disobedience will curbe that corrupâ—ion in him since it bringeth vpon him a worse evill in his account Next a bettering of other who seeing iniquitie punished will feâ—re to doe the like least they incurre the like punishment Thirdlie the peace of the whole Bodie when such as trouble it with their wrongous dealing are condignelie punished for their wrongâ— On the other part when righteousnesse is rewarded three answerable fruites doe follow First the righteous are made better when the good of their righteousnes is augmented by the good of their reward Next others are provoked to righteousnesse when they see it rewarded Thirdlie the whole body is reioyced to see the good honoured for when the godly are exalted the people reioyce and so publicke peace is keeped by the vniversall care and study of well-doing But when the application of these things goe contrare both to the meaning of the Law and the deserving of the persons then fearefull confusions follow All men are discouraged from righteousnesse which they see neglected and punished And none sleeth from evill but rather followeth it when they see it honoured with the reward of good The wicked are both imboldened to committe sinne and proud of their reward The godly are grieved that matters goe so crosse and lament to see good men cled in the liveray of the wicked and the wicked in the liveray of the godly It is a shame for the sonnes of men when the wicked are exalted In such a case Lawes are without life their execution is contrare to their direction and their direction serveth for no other end but as a shining light to discover the iniquitie of such application Impyres and Kingdomes are no lesse mortall than a man they haue their owne Infancie Adolescence and Vigour and from that their inclination decay death and others arise of their fall Their greatest high is in Pietie and Iustice and their deadlie disease is in profainesse and vnrighteousnesse As the heate decaying in the heart so is profainnesse in a Kingdome and injustice is as a palsie that dissolveth the whole Bodie It was one of Solomons remarkes of vanitie I saw vnder the Sunne the place of Iudgement that wickednesse was there and the place of righteousnesse that iniquitie was there It is grievous to see iniquitie any where but most in the seate of Iustice and it is great boldnesse in iniquitie to out-face Iustice in her owne seate and great presumption in the vnrighteous when they darre either prosecute or defend iniquitie in Iudgement The case of that â—and is lamentable where Iustice â—eats are â—ade seates of injustice and the remeede of inquitie turned in the disease there is no hope that Iustice can reigne where iniquitie vsurpeth so vpon her as to thrust her out of her place and from thence vnder her name maintaineth wrong That case seemeth so desperate to Solomon that hee putteth it amongst these cases reserved to Gods owne cure and the great appellations to be discussed at the last day I said in mine heart God shall iudge the righteous and the wicked for there is a time for everie purpose and for everie worke God hath established Iustice amongst men to doe them right but when shee is so oppressed as to bee displaced and her name borrowed to colour iniquitie then of a Iudge shee turned a Plaintiue compleaning to God of that violence Though Lawes were wrong exponed in their meaning and their rewards wrong applyed yet supreme reason the life of the law liueth with God and will vindicate the owne true sense and apply rewards aright This is the law of Lawes abyding in God which wee may know and ought to follow â—ut may not iudge so that wee may say THAT THE LAVV OF THE COVRT OF HEAVEN AND OF REPVBLICKS IS THE VVILL OF GOD. Hee hath appointed Indicatories to keepe men in order but when they are abused to maintaine wrong and oppresse right hee hath the last Iudgement for a remeede to call all proceedings to a new tryall and to discusse the appeales of the distressed Kings indeede haue long eares to heare and long hands to doe many things yet they cannot heare and doe all by themselues Therefore Iethroes counsell to Moses was good to divide his burthen and set vp Iudges and Magistrates with authoritie vnder him But that work is full of difficulty that in respect of the Lawes the parties Witnesses Lawes are many yet short for all incident and daylie emergent causes Iustinian thought hee had put out a perfect bodie of the Lawes when hee caused digest the Roman Lawes for twelue hundreth yeare and yet these many Volumes may be called short for so vniversall a purpose and the matter appointed to end Pleas is turned a seminarie of pleas because of briefnesse Though all Lawes and Decisions were gathered together they cannot meete with everie new circumstance Mans corruption is ever devysing new wrongs and new colours to colour them withall â—he diverse interpretation of Lawes increaseth this difficultie and that Emperour misseth his end of the hastie decision of pleas when after long disputing the question is more doubtfull than when it was first stated albeit the small brookes of Lawes before Lotharius time are turned since in Mare magnum a great ocean of Lawes The parties vsuallie whither of simplicitie or purpose are bold to bring the evill cause to Iudgement they are confident of their cause and oft times the worst cause hath most diligence to supplie the want of equitie by the excesse of businesse If righteousnesse ruled men Iudges would haue little to doe and if Truth were in their words questions were soone decided But the Clients information to their Advocats is so badde that it is hard either for them to know or the Iudge to discerne where the Truth is Witnesses also helpe this difficultie They are subiect to their own corruptions and may deceiue the best Iudges who by their office are bound to judge according to things alledged and proven If the religion of one Oath had force the matter were easie for God hath ordained it to put an end to controversies but mans wickednesse hath turned it in a
Vrbanus the second following his steppes forbade these who were sworne to their Prince to serue him so long as hee was excommunicate But more cleerely in his bloodie Canon Wee iudge them not Man-slayers who burning in the zeale of the Catholicke mother against them that are excommunicate doe kill some of them And Becane in his latter writes is more Iesuited affirming that the Pope having excommunicate and deposed Kings may take their life from them and their Kingdome also that hee may depose them two wayes one by absolving his Subiects from the bond of Obedience The other by way of compensation that seeing they will not protect people but trouble them for their Religion they are no more bound to them In like manner Sixtus the fifth delyvered a gratulatory oration in the Consistorie for killing of Henry the third preferring it to the fact of Iudith Cydonius denyeth it not And while the world was astonished and France sunk in sorrow for the death of their last King a Preacher at Culen publickelie commanded Raviliacke But wee nee le not inquire the opinions of their I heologues Let vs heare Sixtus the fifth commending the fact of Iaques Clement in the Consistorie And how Bellarmine defends that Oration What can bee found saith hee of Sixtus Oration but praises and admiration of the wisedome and providence of God The Pope extolleth to the heavens that a simple Monke with one stroke killed a great King in the midst of his Guards And then giving vs the vses of that Oration Thereby the Pope would admonish Kinges for that King commanded to kill a sacred man the Cardinall of Lorrane and God caused a sacred man a Monke to kill that same King not without a manifest miracle of the providence of God Here the Popes Oration defending Clemens Regicide is defended and the fact it selfe fathered on God With what face then doe they deny that they allow Regicide Cyprian said of another wickednesse that it was not onelie committed but taught and wee may adde more that by them greatest treason is both taught practised and which is the toppe of iniquitie ascrived vnto God Some times disapointment maketh them speak moderatlie I excuse not the fact sayeth Bellarmine of the powder-plot I hate murther I abhorre conspiracies But If God for our sinnes had given way to that blow wee should finde them Apologists defending the lawfulnesse of it who now abhorre it and his damning of it is not for Atrocitie of the matter but for the disappointing of the successe as in Castellus attempt And how can it stand with the posed resolvednesse of the Iesuits to maintaine the Doctrine and condemne the practice And what meaneth Garnets exhortation to his Catholickes to pray profelici successu gravissimae cuiusdam re◠in causa Catholicorum at the beginning of the Parliament It could not bee for the disappointing for that hee might haue done by revealing it which hee knew without confession That happie successe therefore was the blow it selfe These facts are such quae non nisi peracta laudantur they praise them when they are done and consequentlie frustrata damnantur they are damned when they are frutrated How ever then they deny excuse or transferre the matter it standeth on their doctrine and practise that Kings may bee excommunicate and killed and Richemous speaches were neither from his heart nor according to the trueth but to serue the time in glosing a wise and offended King The Iesuits then were in great disgrace and the sacrifice of publicke hatred as a Fox in the snaire they gaue faire words but beeing at libertie returned to their nature So soone as they were restored the Pyramide cast downe and the King himselfe pleading for them whereof they boast they proved irreconciliable For though hee of a Princelie clemencie pardoned their treason yet they neither layed downe their natiue or first hatred nor the second that they conceived of their supposed disgrace in banishment but cut him off and so declared to the world that their Apologies were nothing but fained complements That good Patriot whom Iesuits call a profaine politicke proved a Prophet in the end of his diswasiue Oration to the King and foretolde with teares That if hee restored them they would destroy him and so it came to passe This is the summe of their Tergiversation wherein the Iesuits labour to purge their order So when that order is iustlie pressed then some one must suffer But when France is in a broyle Mariana must bee sacrificed to quench the fire Cotton condemneth him Gretzer calleth it his provat opinion Cydonius extenuats it but Aquaviva censures it severelie in shew The Authour of the Iesuits Apologie defendeth all praiseth all except Mariana alone But that nicenes is needlesse for hee is guiltie of a crime that commandeth to doe it as Cyprian sayeth In the meane time of all this shifting they giue no securitie to Princes but they are cutted downe and cannot tell who doeth it they ioyne scoffing with violence as the Souldiers did to Christ when they buffeted him and said Prophecie who smote thee But some may thinke that these Effronts which they haue suffered in the late tossing of their cause hath brought them to some moderation No but they are as hard sette against Princes as ever Let vs heare the Cardinals of the Consistorie It is in the Popes hand to set vp the Maiestie of the Impyre to transferre the Impyre from Nation to Nation and alluterlie take away the right of Election They thinke matters succeede to their desire and therefore tell plainelie that their intention is no lesse than to overthrow Impyres for the establishing of their Hierarcho-Monarchie And Marta giveth a strange advertisement to Kings Let Princes sayeth hee beware to cast out or misregard Bishops or other Prelats and Ecclesiasticks if they will possesse their Kingdoms and States for a long time This is plaine talke and the just extract of that which the King of the Assasines caused one carying a long speare full of sharpe knifes proclame before him Fugite ab eo qui portat exitiū regum flee from him who caries the ruine of Kings But I answere Let Princes looke to this piece of Divinitie so deepelie contrived for their ruine ex ungue Leonem Iudge what a Religion it is that maintaines such bloodie Doctrine and canonizes the executioners of it And that so much the more that they are not ashamed of it as a sinne but glorie in it as their perfection in setting large Catologues of Kings excommunicate deposed and cut off by them And that speciallie to terrifie Kings in showing them their doome if they doe not adore the Pope CHAP. XVI Of their fourth coverture to wit LVDIFICATION And first of their pretended loue to Kings THe fourth Coverture of their tyrannie is Ludification They are not content with indignities done to Princes but scoffe
Monuments of his ingrne and speciallie in that Basilicon Doron they turned their hopes in dispaire took them to plot his debarring from England and when the Pope had written Brieues for that end and all men looked for wars God in mercie according to the right of Succession gaue him a peaceable entrie to that Kingdome and keeped this Yland from the invasion of strangers and factions within They found their former peace continued when God had provyded him one who could as well by his Tongue and Pen mainetaine the Truth as by his Sword But wee neede not dispute where God hath determined hee promised to the King of Israel that if hee would adhere to him in his governement hee should prolong his dayes and the dayes of his Sonnes in the midst of Israel And when hee had sette David on the Throne hee stablished the Crowne in his Line by Succession put it in a promise as a blessing When thy dayes shall bee fulfilled and thou shalt sleepe with thy Fathers I will set vp thy Seede after thee which shall proceede out of thy Bowels and I will establish his Kingdome Therefore all things beeing duelie considered Succession is the best way to come to a Kingdome The next point is Davids acquiescing to Gods designation testified by this prayer for his Sonne Heerein hee found sure grounds for rest Hee had obtained a great blessing hee reioyced and prayed for the continuance of it and thankes God for giving him such a Sonne as was able for so great a Kingdome Shall not a soule rest in the sense of Gods mercie in a ioyfull praising and confident praying for moe It is kindlie to a Father to reioyce in his Sons succeeding and a worke both of sound Nature and of grace Nature maketh them loue the Child who is another themselues and Grace maketh them reioyce in Gods ordinance Where can it fall more pleasantlie to them then in their Sonne who is not so much another person as themselues and that not decaying or dying but waxing and surviving Some Kings haue beene so vnnaturall as to cut off their Sonnes in â—ealousie as Solyman did to Mustapha and some write that Constantine moved with Calumnies killed Crispus his Sonne though other deny it but let that crueltie byde with Barbarians Barbaritie is the dreg and vre of Humanitie till it bee refined by Letters and Sustition and false Religion makes them more vnnaturall So soone as the father dyes the most powerfull Brother embrues his Funerals in the blood of all the rest of his Brethren but there the father bathed himselfe in the funerall of his sonne Gods feare teacheth Christian Kings to rejoyce when they see their Sonnes in their Thrones but Tyrants as they desire none to reigne with them so they wish that the Kingdome and world ended with them Of all this second point is manifest that a Kings Son is a great blessing hee is a pledge of Gods loue both to his Parents and people and a band to tye all their hearts to God and amongst themselues Kings are the more bound vnto God that giues them that fruite of their Body and the more tyed to their people also because a Sonne is the best Pawne of their loue to people Hee is also a strong motiue to moue them to a loving peaceable Governement that thereby they may endeare him in the peoples affection The Sonne of a good King is pretious to a good people and what ever loue his personall worthinesse deserues it is doubled for his Fathers cause There is no such Rhetorick to perswad a people to loue the Kings Sonne as the good governement of his Father Their loue to the Sonne diminishes not their loue to the Father but rather augments it and the increase of the Obiect increaseth loyalty It was the error of some to worship rather the Sunne rysing than going to But Christian Subiects are taught of God not to make them opposite Obiects of their affection but in a Christian loyaltie to loue each of them the more because of other Our new borne Prince then is Gods great Blessing to this Yland Hee is a Guarde to his Father and a comfort to the Subiects in stopping their perplexities about Succession and the plots of factious and ambitious men This Land for almost eleven Ages was ruled by electiue Kings Thereafter for some eight Ages it hath beene ruled by Succession And the race of Stewarts aboue two hundreth yeeres hath succeeded one another and the new borne Prince whom God preserue is the eleventh of that Name and the hundreth and ninth of the never interrupted Line of Fergus the first The third part Of the royall Gift And first of Iustice. Thy Righteousnesse and Iudgements THe third thing in this Text is the Blessing that hee craâ—es to Solomon and that in three thinges The Gift the worke of the Gift and the Fruite of that worke The gift is Righteousnesse and Iudgement wherein wee shall consider the Nature the Necessitie and the Extent of it I will not trouble you with Schoole distinctions of these words because the excesse of Affection is impatient of Subtiltie For Ioy ever hasteneth neither can Gladnesse suffer delayes And I must say with one that your Affection hath preveened my words so that I cannot satisfie you yet with another I promise to speake briefely least in such a solemnitie the length of speach burden your Devotion In a word heere is meaned the gift of Kingly governement in the Spirit of righteousnes prudence So David exponeth it in his prayer to God for Solomon O Lord giue Solomon a perfect heart And in his Blessing of him The Lord giue thee Wisedome Vnderstanding And Solomon cleareth it by his desire when God â—ade him chuse what he would he chused not Riches or honour but a wise heart even the heart of a good King Giue thy Servant an vnderstanding heart to iudge thy people that I may discerne betwixt good and bad and this is iustice an habite of the minde keeped for the good of the common giving everie man his due It looketh to Ius or Right as the obiect to Iustice the Habite or Vertue and to iudgement the sentence or fact flowing from both containeth three things The first is a discerning knowledge to vnderstand exactly and judge betweene right wrong together with a conscience to temper the rigour of right with equity in some coÌ„siderable cases This is as the Eye of the Iudge The second is puritie of the Will and Affections flowing from that knowledge that they loue the knowne Right though it were in cause of their enemie and hate the knowne wrong though in the cause of their Friends This keepeth the Heart free from the base affections of feare or hope The third is Courage cled with Authoritie both to pronounce and execute according to that knowledge A private man may haue exact knowledge
of causes in his minde with equitie and puritie in his affections and yet wanting authoritie his sentence hath no weight nor his worke any efficacie But God hath joyned all these three in this Kinglie gift as their place is aboue privacie so are their eyes to see and their heartes aboue these base and perverting Passions and they are cled with supreme authoritie to giue life and power to their words They haue both a Mouth to pronounce and an Hand to doe for where the word of the King is there is power Iethros counsell to Moses hath all these Chuse said he men of courage and that because their administration will encounter many rubs of miscontent humours which they cannot through without Courage Next men that feare God because that is a Bridle to keepe them from ill and a Cordiall for faintnesse Thirdlie men that loue the Truth that is haue Veritie in their minde Veraoitie in their word and Sinceritie in their actions that Heart Tongue and Hand goe all one way And lastlie men that are not greedie because it is impossible for an avaricious man either to bee iust in private Bargans or righteous in Iudgement God hath stablished that Soveraigne power amongst men for three speciall reasons The first is the vniust and selfish disposition of man Wee are all in societies ought to seeke the good of the common and of our Neighbours but selfe-loue turneth euery man into himselfe It killeth in vs the loue of the common and of our Neighbour and suckes in our owne particular good with the hurt of them both God hath written this law in our hearts and in his word Doe to other as thou would be done to and hath given vs a Conscience to checke vs for the breach of that law But the violence of selfe-loue caries vs away against both Law and Conscience Therefore there must be without vs an Iustice clad with a coactiue power to represse that corruption that Conscience cannot mend This correcting Iustice God hath primelie seated in Princes So there is a necessitie of a living Law armed with authoritie to vrge the Observation of the written Law This is Gods arrest on mans corruption For the power of Kings and the force of the Sword and the instruments of the Burrio the Armes of Souldiers all the Discipline of Rulers are not appointed for nought For when men feare these thinges both the wicked are dauntoned and the Godlie liue more peaceablie among the wicked Innocen cie is safe among the vnrighteous that while their desires are bridled by the feare of punishment their will may bee healed by calling vpon God The second Reason is from our Lotte God hath given everie man his Lotte and fenced everie part of it from the Iniurie of his Neighbour with commands Hee hath fenced our Honour with the fift Command Thou shalt honour thy Father and Mother Our life with the fixt Thou shalt not kill Our Chastitie with the sevent Thou shalt not commit adulterie And our Goods by the eight Thou shalt not steale c. These Commands are like Marches in a field divyded to a Commonalitie whereof everie one hath his portion designed vnto him But man who can never bee content with Gods appointment is given to passe these Marches and incroacheth vpon his Neighbour to hurt him in his goods name c. Therefore God hath set Princes as Wardens of these Marches to see that they bee keeped as his Providence hath fixed them and everie mans Lotte secured by the ministration of iustice which is nothing else but a perambulation vpon the Lottes and Marches of people What are Kingdomes without Iustice but great robberies And by the iust governement of Kings wee possesse and brooke peaceablie our possession This is Gods Guarde on everie mans Lotte The third Reason is for settling inumerable and endlesse questions for everie calling hath the owne gift for it's worke and righteousnesse is the gift and accomplishment of Kings and God hath given them power as an Usher of that righteousnesse to make way for it through the bodie of their Kingdomes Right and Equitie are a straight Line and beeing rightlie applyed make a cleare difference in mens causes betweene Contentment and miscontentment Peace and oppression c. But mans affaires furnish many questions to his contentious humour and the least circumstance maketh a new case and every case altereth the state of the Question It is impossible to write such Lawes as can either meete with all cases or decide all questions That same question the day may bee diverse the morne by the smallest change of place Person or Time For this cause God hath sette Kings as living Lawes in respect of the habite of Iustice in them and speaking Lawes to expresse that Iustice by word Edicts And doing Lawes to apply the generalitie of the Law to everie particular by execution It was said of olde That the Common-wealth could not bee governed without wrongs so natiue to man is iniquitie And therefore the best Remeed is Iustice without which said an other Proverbe Iupiter himselfe can not reigne Iudgement is justlie put in the hand of Princes because their place setteth them aboue outward things that may corrupt or passions within that may bee corrupted They are aboue honour riches c. And so neede not be ambitious of honour nor greedie of goods And within foure things especiallie pervert Iudgement feare of Hurt hope of Gaine hatred of Boes loue of Friends Where these rule the Ballance is deceitfull persons causes are confounded together They see the right of their Foe as a wrong and the wrong of their Friende as a right What ever Iudge puttethon the person of a â—riend or Fâ—e in Iudgement hee layes aside both the person and Conscience of a Iudge But righteousnesse seated in the heart of Princes purgeth them of these base affections within and secureth them from these temptations without There is no temper nor disposition of it selfe more capable of Equity or more able to pronounce execute Iudgement aâ—ight Of Princes care of Religion THis much for the necessitie of Iustice The extent of it is not to bee restrained to civill things alone as though Princes might not meddle with Religion but God hath given them an interesse therein For if the proper worke of Iustice giue everie one his due then surelie that must bee her first taske to see God get his due and so Religion commeth within her compasse as the first and maine taske The Kings of the Earth serue Christ when they make Lawes for Christ and heerein they serue God if in their Kingdomes they command good and forbid evill and that not onelie in things pertaining to humane Societie but also in divine Religion In matters of Religion three parties haue interesse First GOD hath absolute power as Hee is the onelie Author and Obiect
Atheists call it a libertie of conscience which is nothing but a passe-port to runne to hell For what a worse death is there to the Soule than the libertie of errour But God calleth it An halting betwixt God and Baal and grosse Atheisme in the want of Gods feare The people that were sent to dwell in Samaria worshipped the Lord and the gods of their owne Nations they thought themselues sure in that pluralitie of gods and libertie of worshippe but the Scripture saith They feared not God at all The Papists fall in that same sinne they haue multiplied gods with the true One. Beside God they haue their gods and goddesses and they honour their cannonized Saincts as the Pagans did their Apotheosedmen and their Pope vsed it more eminently in calling the blessed Virgine a goddesse when he is suteing timber to build her Church at Loretto But their patrone granteth that these names savour of Paganisme and desireth them to bee a mended in his Bookes and as for the worship given to them another granteth that hee saw no difference betwixt their opinion of the Saincts and that that the Gentiles held of their gods Varro boasteth that he appointed to the gods their offices sacrifices what else are the Rituals ceremonials of the Papists but that same busines vnder other names The Kings of Egypt granted libertie of Religions to their people and that in a fleshlie policie that while everie faction courted them for favour they might keepe all factions obnoâ—ious to them And Iulian at his entrie gaue the like libertie to Iewes Gentiles and Christians with the same spirit he rendred the Churchs to damned Hereticks and opened the Temples to devils Many Christian Princes haue a slayed reconciliation of Religions but God never blessed that worke in their hand Constantius made his Typus Heraclius his Ecthesis Zeno his Henoticon and Charles the fift his Interim but all of them kindled the fire more than quenched it They found the truth of the olde proverbe Isthmum perfodere to digge through the Isthme which was spoken of workes neither lawfull to attempt nor possible to doe And though some proud kings therby assayed to correct Gods creation in ioyning Seas which he had distinguished yet they wer omâ—nouslie forced to desist So others haue laboured to reconcile the true and false Religion which hee hath made irreconcilable but their labour to this houre was ever in vaine It seemeth but a small matter for condescending to cast one letter in the midst of a word and turne homoousios in homoiousios that is the same-substance in the like-substance yet that one Letter overthrâ—w the Article of the Divinitie of Christ. And when Basile in the end of a prayer said in the holie Spirit for with the holy Spirit great offence was taken by the people therefore hee advised Amphilochius to examine not onelie words but syllabs and letters in Divinitie So hard it is to worke a condescending even by the smallest alteration Some reformed Churches haue found woefull fruites of such libertie and hee proues now a true Prophet who said That libertie of prophecying in Preachers and of professing in people would shake Religion in Holland They began modestlie with some fiue disputable points as the small end of the wedge to make way for grosser heresies And if God had not put in the heart of K. Iames to devise and Prince Maurice to effect their curbing by the Councell of Dort their heresies ere now had overflowed that Land But God hath justified that prudent foresight of K. Iames since they haue declared what theÌ„ they denyed They haue taken Socinus by the hand whom I may call as one did Origen hydriam omnium haereseων a masse or surviving monster of all heresies And to mitigate the horrour of these opinions they are pleading for favour to the Socinians as men that either erre not or if they doe they are excusable and not to be censured because forsooth their errours touch not the foundation They layed the seeds of these Apologies covertly long since but now they are discovering to the world that their grounds are the overthrow of the grounds of Religion Their rule is to preach and professe what they please without censure Mans originall miserie in originall sinne they call with Pelagius figmentum Augustini or Augustins dreame and the efficacious working of the holy Spirite applying grace to vs they call figmenta Calvini Calvins dreames In the matter of free-will they follow the Pagans as it is pleaded by Cicero Hee was so hote in that cause that not beeing able to conceiue how Gods Prescience and mans Free-will could stand together for maintaining of Free will hee denyed both Gods Prescience and Divination And rather then these two should stand hee denyed a Deitie His arguments taken from Lawes Rewards Prayers and Exhortations c. to proue the absolutenesse of Free-will Pelagius hath borrowed from him Socinus from Pelagius and they from Socinus So in end vnder colour of Trueth according to godlinesse they come to the naturall Religion of Pagans the common Rendevous of all defections from the Truth Thus after long gadding they proue that Socinus is transformed in them as Ierome said That Basilides was transformed in Ioviâ—ian and that both in sense and style For they affirme that they teach otherwise than heeretofore was beleeved So said hee before them that his opinions of Christ were hid from others and that the true meaning was not knowne of all the Interpreters that are extant And againe our opinion is vnheard not onelie in our time but also in many Ages before And more fullie with disdaine of the Fathers Wee ingenuously confesse that our sentence of Christs Nature and Essence is contrair to all interpreters of Scripture who are come to our time Moreover hee professeth the noveltie of it in his Vncle who first proponed the opinion which hee imbraceth of Iesus Christ and telleth vs the way how hee got it was by Revelation This is like his friend Puccius who affirmed that his opinion of vniversall salvation was revealed to him by God This plat-forme of his divinity is for Epicures and that not farre from Origens mercie to pleade for Sathan Annihilation if not Salvation What grace could this plat-former of Religion haue who refused to bee baptized and when a zealous Preacher challenged him for that hee was not baptized nor would not bee baptized hee answered like a novelling opiniator That what hee thought of Baptisme hee would leaue it to his owne thoughts Sureâ—t is that one who refuseth to be initiate in Christ by sacred Baptisme is not a fitte instrument to reforme Christian Religion After this same manner spake the olde Arrians of whoÌ„ Lyrinensis sayeth That they overthrew well grounded Antiquitie by wicked noveltie and that the ordinances of the Ancient were violate
wicked idolaters and of Iudah onlie two were exceeding good Ezekiah and Iosiah sixe were praised in part and reprooved in part as Asa Iosaphat Ioaz Amasah Vzzah and Iotham And all the rest were idolaters as the Kings of Israel The praise of good Kings is that they know the Truth and serued God accordinglie They were zealous for his glorie destroying idolatrie and holding it out of their Kingdomes they maintained the worship of God according to his Truth and gaue neither toleration nor libertie of false Religions to their Subiects but astricted them by Lawes to worship him aright went before them in a royall example They sought not themselues but Gods glorie and he recompenced them againe by his blessing on their persons and government and making their Names to flowrish in benediction But the idolatrous Kings were contrare they forsooke the true God themselues and permitted a miscellanie Religion to their people Therefore his curse was on them and their government Hee wrote their Names in the dust and made them vyle to the posteritie as may be seene in Histories Heere is a looking Glasse for Christian Princes Popish Kings though they bee in the Church yet they are like the Kings of Israel in idolatrie as Ieroboam with the Calues at Bethel But Kings in reformed Churches are like the Kings of Iudah who haue God among them in the Arke of his testimonie and true Religion and it is their safetie to follow David Ezekiah and Iosiah in the maintenance and practise of true Religion This is a better exemplar than the Cardinals When for a fashion he hath set downe the example of some good Iewish and Christian Princes hee subioynes the Legend of some canonized Kings who got that honour when Ignorance and Idolatrie prevailed in the Church That looking to that Glasse of the Popes forging hee may steale the hearts of Princes from God to superstition I would aske if Ioseph Moses David c. before Christ and Theodosius Tiberius the younger c. were not as holy as Vencesâ—aus Leopoldus and other canonized Kings If they were wherefore are these canonized and not the other A good King setteth God before him as his end and true happinesse in his fauour hee counteth his earthlie Kingdome neither his eâ—d nor a way to the right end but seeketh the Kingdome of Heauen aboue the other and that by the way of godlinesse and righteousnesse It is a well grounded Throne that standeth on these two pillers Godlinesse maketh men eternall it is his Image that never dyeth and maketh their persons and workes acceptable to him without it as no man can see him so with it vndoubtedlie they shall enjoy him for euer No Iewell nor Dyamount shineth brighter in the Crownes of Kings than true godlinesse Righteousnesse is another Pillar the proper worke of the Throne and Gods worke in Kings who sit in it for the heart of the King is in the Lords hand and hee sweyeth it whither hee will It is a just thing with GOD to maintaine the Throne his owne ordinance when righteousnesse his will and work doe both liue in it and issue from it And what are good Kings on Thrones but God in them iudging the World God standeth in the Congregation of the mightie and hee iudgeth among Gods Hee delighteth to rest where hee reigneth and ruleth with delight A righteous King sitting on his Throne is a more pleasant sight than Solomons that more for his invisible Attendants than for his visible Before him standeth Affabilitie as a Porter to giue accesse to the plaints of the afflicted Injuries choppe the hearts of the oppressed and they runne to Princes for helpe And they are set vp in their greatnesse not to neglect the oppressed but to heare their complaints It was a fault in the Kings of Persia not to admitte any to their presence but such as were called vpon it made oppressours bolde and the oppression of the poore incurable But it was commended in another King who gaue justice to an oppressed woman who told him freelie That if hee had not leasure to iudge he should not reigne And Traian was honoured with a Statue because beeing on horse and going to battell hee stayed till hee did Iustice to an oppressed Widow When affabilitie as a Porter hath made way to the oppressed then loue of the people in the Kings heart as a Master of requeasts taketh the complaint in hand and calling Wisedome and Prudence to counsell they consult to doe right according to the cause Before his Throne stand Courage Clemencie Courage to proceede according to Iustice and Clemencie to temper some times the strictnesse of Iustice Clemencie remoueth Severitie least it turne to Crueltie and Courage remoueth too great Indulgence least it breed in People a libertie to sinne and contempt of Princes Clemencie can pardon small faultes but great sinnes and effronts of Authoritie would bee punished else it is not Clemencie but Crueltie On either side of the Throne two Sergents stand Power and Diligence Power to execute the sentence pronounced which careth as little the difficulties that may follow execution as Iustice did the respect of persons And Diligence doth all with such convenient speed as the nature of the matter and the honour of the Prince requireth At the backe of this Throne leaneth Peace and Prosperitie Peace among the whole Bodie while everie one getteth his right and is secured in it And Prosperitie as Gods blessing following that his own worke of a wife and righteous government As a good King seeketh Gods favour aboue all so nixt therevnto the loue of his people The heart is the Man and among all affections loue caries the heart and captiues man Hatred and Feare are troubling passions and separate the heart from their object but loue applies it selfe ioy fullie and draweth the whole Man to that it loueth The best conquest of their loue is by goodnesse Loues proper obiect and there is no heart so hard as to hold it selfe from these in whom true goodnesse shineth Wee may compell men to feare but cannot moue them to loue vs but by sweete motiues the bond that commeth by compulsion is vnpleasant to the parties it is soone broken and when it leaveth off is turned in hatred but the band of loue is both pleasant and firme Fatherlie loue in a King to his people and loue in them to him againe is a sweete relation and maketh their mutuall dueties both easie and pleasant Moses preferred the people to himselfe Spare them O Lord but raze my name out of the Booke of life And David offered himselfe to bee punished for the people I haue sinned but these sheepe what haue they done Next to the loue they send vp to GOD this descending loue to their people maketh them carefull of their peoples good When hee loueth his people he hath conqueshed their heart absolutelie
arguuntur in accusationem earum convertuntur Before the Colloque of Ratisbone when the Protestant Divines intercommuned by letter with the Iesuits that they would agree on the places of arguments The Iesuits in their Preface declared that they would not stand to Scripture least say they we had lost our cause in the verie entrie I his their distrust of Scripture is a reall confessing that their faith is not Scripturall Secondly they came to Traditions and because wee sticke to Scripture they called vs Scripturarij to tell vs that they are Lucifugae Scripturarum as Tertullian calleth Hereticks And againe Credunt sine Scripturis vâ— credant contra Scripturas And yet they finde no rest in Traditions The indefinetnes of their number the confussion of their kinds Divine Apostolicke Ecclesiasticke hath confounded them who expresly laboured to distinguish them But the first tymes reasoned not from their owne asseveration but by divine testimonies as sayeth Lactantius Non asseveratione propriâ sed testimonijs Divinis sicut nos facimus Thirdly from Traditions of an vncertaine Author they come to Fathers and with a froggish and laterane coaxation doe cry Patres Patres But Protestants haue driven them from that retreate also for though in the Fathers some Liturgicall ceremonie may bee found yet in Dogmaticke poynts they are all for vs Neither can they make Lirinensis triple tryall to fitte their Tenets that they were receaved ab omnibus semper vbique Fathers are worthie of respect when they speake according to our Heavenly Father They gaue that respect to their Ancestors and craved no more to themselues Who ever shall reade these things let him not imitate mee erring but growing to the better Non me imitetur errantem sed in melias proficientem sayeth Augustine even of his retractations And they themselues condemne the Fathers except they speake to their sense Fourthly from Fathers a-part they come to Fathers mette together in Councells So Bellarmine everie where thinketh it enough In hoc conveniunt omnes Scholastici propter Conciliorum authoritatem But when these Councells are searched they are but late Conventicles gathered for their purpose as Dioscorus did at Ephesus Irene at Neece The Laterane Councells of Florence Constance Basile And lastly their Trent Councell by a preposterous order giving authoritie to the former They contemne ancient and lawfull Councells as Vives remarketh Reliqua non pluris aestimant quam conventus muliercularum in textrina vel thermis These are Councels to them sayeth hee which serue their turne as for other they count no more of them Conventions of Women c. Fifthly they muster the Testimonies of their Popes as the last and greatest ground of their Faith A matter more ridiculous than serious to judge a malefactor by his owne testimonie If they thinke them infallible why giue they them not the first place They are neither as Primipili or Triarij but rather Rorarij and Ferentarij amongst the Legions more for number than for weight But the wiser â—ort are ashamed to vse these shaddowes in disputs Sixtly When they finde no safetie in all these refuges they come to humane learning And for this cause the Iesuits seeing their Cleargie ignorant affected a Monarchie of Letters As Ierome said of the Hereticks who called themselues Reges Philosophorum Kings of the Philosophs They are destitute of Scripture and runne to the supplie of Nature Arte. These olde Hereticks boasted of the furniture of humane learning So Novatian threw the darts of poysoned eloquence and was more hard by the perversenesse of secular Philosophie c. In like manner Aponius descryveth them that they turned the trueth in a lie by sharpe words and syllogismes And Ierome d telleth that the Htreticke propter acumen ingenij discurrit per testimonia Scripturarum and laboureth by Sophistrie to oppresse the Trueth And againe the good Christian veritatis simplicitate contentus Haereticorum suppellectilem argumentorumque divitias non requirit Hee is content with the simplicitie of trueth seeketh not the furniture of Hereticks Papists coÌ„fesse a sympathizing with Pagans Humane learning is Gods gift indeede but should not bee abused to impugne the Trueth And it is Gods will that naked and simple Trueth bee cleerely proponed because it is sufficiently decored of it selfe sayeth Lactance And to that same sense Ierome Nolim Philosophorum argumenta sectari sed simplicitate Apostolicae acquiescere And Basile likewise Nuda est veritas paâ—rono non egens ipsa seipsam defendens Though with Nazianzen hee profited wonderfully in Philosophie at Athens yet hee calleth it an hyding of the Trueth to trouse it vp in humane farding ne contegamus veritatem verborum fuco But they acknowledge their distrust of this refuge also For Transubstantiation is so contrare to sound Philosophie that Scotus doubtes against it are neither solved by himselfe nor any other as Quantum futurum cum quanto Quantum fine modo quantitativo Partem extra partem tamen in qualibet parte totum Therefore they haue devised a bastard Philosophie to colour their bastard Divinitie That there is a penetration of Dimensions that one body of a numericall vnitie may bee in innumerable places at once that many compleete bodies may bee couched vnder these same Speces that they may bee consumed and yet abide that in their consumption they neither feele nor are felt of the consumer that one bodie is continued and discontinued in Heaven and Earth at once that it hath a localitie and illocalitie that an Accident can subsist without a Subiect that a dimensiue Quantitie is a Subiect of the Speces that there is a mixed proposition whereof one part is in the mouth and another in the mynde c. If Aristotle and olde Philosops were in the world and heard these monstruous opinions in Philosophie they would misknow their owne Art With these weapons they haue long mustered and their Armies are led with two Goliaths Baronius and Bellarmine from whose first syllabs some haue wittily found out BA-BELL They haue done what Nature and Sophistry can to oppresse the Trueth and colour heresie Bellarmine dogmatickly in great volumes laboureth in the perpetuall Elench of the authoritie of the Church Baronius practickly in his Anachronismes Suppressions Inversions of Order Anticipations laboureth in the perpetuall â—lâ—nch facti pro â—ure And all of them fill the world with large volumes vt stupefaciant ignaros literarum as sayeth â—râ—neus Suarez with his tedious Disputs hath gotten the rewarde of fire to his treasonable Booke Ualentia thinketh his Analysis can not bee loosed and yet it is but a petition of the principle of the Churches pretended authoritie Gretzer hath casten himselfe off the stage by his scalding Uasquez with his blasphemous worshipping of Sathan is abhorred Becane with his affected brittle subtilities is
had a full power hee needed not Charles nor Pipine to helpe him against the Longobards None can better cleere this than Frederick in the same Contest with Pope Hadrian Thou sayest that I came at thy calling I grant I was called but giue the reason wherefore thou callest mee thou was oppressed by the Enemies and couldst not helpe thy selfe by thine owne power or the Greekes cowardize Therefore the power of the Francks was sought This was rather an imploring of my helpe than an calling But Leo crosseth their late claimes and granteth that Martian the Emperour was elected of God and Gregorie to Maurice That power over all men was given from aboue to the pietie of his Lord. Princes also not-with-standing of his Vsurpation in the beginning of their edicts call themselues N. By the Grace of God King of such a Kingdome and not by the gift of the Pope as Casaubone observeth And Cusan hath so fully refuted that Claime in this errand as no man needeth to adde any thing Bellarmine obiecteth to him that hee erred for want of Bookes to informe him But Cusan might more iustly reply that if Bellarmine had either eyes to reade or conscience to iudge according as Bookes informed him hee had not perverted the Trueth as hee did The point of Election vexeth Bellarmine therefore hee telleth vs that in their Canons Hadrianus and in Synodo The Name Emperour â—may and perchance should bee delete Thus they may elide the Truth of all Histories Such doubting and staggering shifts became not an old Cardinal and Contraversar in the head Article of his Faith It is cleare then that their Election is but pretended their Coronation and Vnction are but ceremonies officiously obtruded on Princes to snare them in a base Subiection The pretended Oath doeth more oblige Kings to correct the Popes enormities than to maintaine his Tyrannie And their alledged translating of the Impyre is a craftie ingyring themselues on the prevailing side And so none of these Claimes giue them authoritie over Princes CHAP. III. Of their Vsurpation over Princes in their Administration And first of their disdainfull Speeches THis much for their Vsurpation over Princes at their entrie Followeth their Vsurping in their administration which may bee seene in foure In disdainfull speaches Abuse of their persons in base offices Vsurping over their Lawes in a directiue Power And censuring them by a coactiue power Disdainfull Speeches are the first fruits of their prid contempt of Princes So they call them Dogges or Curres to the Pope the great Sheepeheard If these Dogs sayeth Becane be watchfull and trustie they must bee readie at the Sheepeheards hand This is no other then what the Pope did to Franciscus Dandalus the Venetian when hee made him like a Dogge eate crummes vnder his table at Lions And Scioppius compaâ—eth them to Asses carying burdens at the Popes will and calleth Charles the Great a great Asse But their Analist aboundeth in reproaching the Emperours Hee calleth Henry the fourth Rex Apostata Exemplum Regibus Henricianae haeresis labe conspersis an Apostate King and an exemplar to them who are guiltie of the Henrician heresic Likewise a contemner of God And againe obstinate and periured and that like Herod hee persecuted the anoynted of God And when they had stirred vp against him his Sonne Henrie the fifth who betyme plyed not their courses as they would they payed him also with reproaches and their Analist calleth him in Patrem Carnifex his Fathers Burrio and sacrilegious a Traitour a Monster a Tyrant Gregorie the seventh calleth Henrie the fourth Membrum Diaboli a member of the Divell And Vestanus vttereth his splene also Fredericus Oenobarbus bellua horrenda fuit And Iustinian for curbing Vigilius both for his prevaricating in the Truth and defending of Nestorius is called by Baronius madde possessed with an evill Spirit and caryed by Sathan So Richeomus the Iesuite â—aileth against the Greeke â—m perours for their zeale against Imagerie Leo Isauricus sayeth hee perduellis haereticus Constantinus re cognomento Copronymus Leonis Isaurici Patris nequam nequior filius Leo Quartus Copronymi foedus foetus mali vtique Corvi malum ovum Heerein they tell of what Spirit they are when they despise Dominioun and speake evill of Dignities and no better behaviour can follow so disdainfull speeches Words are a mids betweene Estimation of the Mynd and actions If they be good they argue a good Estimation preceeding and promise sutable actions to follow If they bee ill they argue an heart full of contempt and promise nothing but outrage Experience hath proven this to bee true CHAP. IIII. Of their abuse of Princes in base offices THeir second abuse of Princes in their Administration is by imploying their Persons in base service as to hold the stirrop when the Pope goes on horse backe or commeth downe To leade his bridle for some space And the Pope forsooth must refuse that service in shew and yet yeeld to it in end This is hypocrisie with pride for they doe so earnestly exact it that if the Emperour goe not to the right stirrop they will chyde him as Hadrian the fourt did to Federicke the Emperour To hold the water and towell to his hands To carie dishes from his Kitchen to his Table But the Emperour shall haue a priviledge for where Kings must goe into the Kitchen hee shall receiue the dishes hee caries at the doore To sit on his knees when hee giveth the cnp to the Pope As Otto did to Urbane who of purpose neglected the Emperour and suffered him to sit long on his knees till a Cardinall admonished him of that oversight These things are so odious that Harding is a ashamed and denyeth them But they are registrate in their ceremoniall and pontificall I would gladly vnderstand to which office of the Apostolick Church the Master of ceremonies is to bee referred or in what primitiue rytes from the Apostles time shall they finde such abuse of the Lords Anoynted This question will be answered by silence But it is a greater abuse to make Princes kisse the Popes foote it might passe with Cardinals who are his creatures and since they left off preaching seeme to haue no other vse for their mouth but to kisse his feete at all occasions And there is nothing more frequent in the ceremoniall than Reverentiapro more facta that is to say The Cardinals kissing his feete before the people I know not whither Adulation bee baser in them or affectation of vaine glorie bee vyler in him But it is odious that hee holds out his feete to bee kissed of Emperours and yet Rome that doeth all things vnder shew of Reason as Vives sayes scoffingly by Vestanus giues vs two reasons heereof The one is the Popes humilitie devotion who knowing that the people will kisse his feete hath put a crosse on his Pantoun that their adoration may
that darknesse had covered the Church and a new light of learning seemed to breake vp it was worse than the former darknesse as Errour and Heresie are worse than simple ignorance or a a man after long sicknesse changed from a light fever to a frensie It is true they haue some good thinges as distinct Notions exact distinctions and words though rude yet verie significant but it is as sure they spilt Divinitie and turned it in Philosophie and like Nadab and Abihu brought vnkouth fire in the Sanctuarie In divine thinges they disdained either to thinke or speake with Scripture and made their mouth consecrate to the Gospel to sound nothing but Averroes and Aristotle as Erasmus wiselie marketh And Canus followeth his steppes Marie now depend on Aristotle no lesse than on a divine Oracle And we haue heard of some Italians who spend as much time on Aristotle and Averroes as others doe on Scriptures and trust them as much as the Apostles and Evangelists They inquired all things curiousâ—ie and determined boldlie affecting more to close with the Philosophers words than with Christ and that with endlesse â—angling For quo plus est eiusmodi questiuncularum hoc plus etiam subscatet Etiamsi millies mille milla produxeris The more petit questions they made the more questions ever grew whereof though a thousaÌ„d times a thousand thousand were determined yet moe were behind They made Divinitie like cornered Spectacles through which one thing seemeth to be fourtie or thirtie according to the number of the corners so that a man putting his hand to take vp that one thing knew not how to finde it among so many speces So the truth that is in everie thing but one indivisible point was lost amongst so manie Questions Their maine end was to hold vp the Pope in his tyrannie and that by base flatterie They disputed more of his power than of the power of God and questioned if hee had a two-fold power and if hee might abrogate that which was decreede by the Apostles If hee might coyne a new Article of faith If hee had a greater power than Peter or equall If he might command the Angels c. The Pope was their god the current oppinions of the time was their rule And naturall reason and Philosophie was their grounds Hee had them at hand to turne his fact into a right and to determine all questions in his favour And these seventie Divines reâ—koned out by Bellarmine were all of that sort and defenders of this Vsurpation Wee may say of them all as Augustine did of Verro that these quicke and skilled men were oppressed by the custome and Lawes of their owne Citie in so far as beeing preoccupyed by an evill time they went the way of the common errour and though they would father their fashion on Augustines disputs speciallie against the Priscillianists yet it is nothing like For every where hee presseth Scripture But they disdaine it as triviall and delight rather to say At contra Philosophus than contra Christus They were not all alike but time brought out three distinct Classes of Schoole-men The first like Lombard had sâ—me Scripture The second had lesse Scripture and more Philosophie The third was worst that neglected Scripture and had nothing but a masse of Philosophie and humane subtilities They could not haue sound Divinitie who as Possevine witnesseth of Marius Victorinus were whollie taken vp in profaine learâ—ing and ignorant of Scriptures And if any of them ioyned knowledge with affection and turned Theorie to Pietie as Bonaventura did he was contemned of the rest albeit Gersome Trithemius and others call him a most compleete Divine But notwithstanding these differences they went all one way to maintaine the Popes tyrannie The most of their businesse was as Constantine speaketh of Arius inanis dissoluti otij certatio The vaine iangling of dissolute idlenesse But all their worke is the building of Babel they hurt Rome more in their doctrine than they helpe their government for scarcelie is there any point controverted wherein they plead not for vs. The second sort of defenders are Canonists and these more shamelesse flatterers of the Pope than Schoolemen They made Lawes of their owne and wrested all to the wrong end As a Tyrant when he hath oppressed a Kingdome abrogateth the auncient lawes and makes lawes for his owne behoue to approue his tyrannie and secure his possession a So did the Pope by his Canon Law they gaue it a proud name as though it were a ruling Law Their Catholicke faith is Romane heresie and their Canon Law a Romane rule So long as they lived Ecclesiasticklie Gods word sufficed them for a rule of Faith and manners and the Canons of Councels for government But when they turned Monarchs they would haue Traditions and Schoole-divinitie for a rule of Faith and a Canon Law for Governement So Lancelotus confesseth That it is made to the imitation of the civill Law for as the one dependeth on the authoritie of the Emperour so the other on the authoritie of the Pope Few things they haue from Scripture moe from Fathers and more yet from Councels but most of all from the Popes owne Letters After many compylers as Cresconius Isidore Hincmarus Ivo Burchardus and others whereof their Analist writteth at length Gratian put foorth his Decretum thereafter came the Decretals farre worse for these wings put to his Decretum caried them downeward to an earthlie Monarchie But the Clementines are cruell and the Extravagants are extravagant indeede and lay the grounds and processe of a bloodie inquisition And lastlie the seventh of the Decretals is worst of all Gratians Decreit pointed at his Monarchie as a thing that must bee The Decritalls vrge it as a thing must bee But this last setteth it out with an absolute power But what ever their Lawes beare in their sense they can turne and expone all to the Popes behoue Even as Martinus the Iurist who for to please Fridericke the Emperour declared that by Law all the goods of the Insubrians pertained to him in propertie and therefore got his palfrey So the Canonists expone all Lawes for the Popes end and put all vnder his foote and so they get Benefices They follow the Schoole-men in their confusion and their resolutions agree as well as Clockes in a Citie The third sort of defenders are Casuists Conscience is the most authoritatiue power and act in man and therefore must bee taken in for their defence The Pope saw that mens minds might bee possessed with Schoole-divinitie and with the Canonists in the outward iudicatory there laâ—ked onelie the captivating of their Consciences in foro interiori therefore the Casuits were erected They run the same way with their BrethreÌ„ to maintaine the popes vsurpation but with a more presse straine giving him power to bind loose in Heaven Earth Purgatorie what
that hee is that man of sin that exalteth himselfe aboue authoritie And this one point of Antichrist may resolue all the questions betweene them and vs. For it is an infinite labour to cast over all the Controversies but this one virtuallie hath all Some haue thought to bee resolved of all by the Question of Scripture because it containes the places of arguments Others from the question of the Church because of her authoritie c. But this one of the Pope hath all because hee is both Church Scripture and all to them and when it is clearlie proven that he is that Antichrist it will follow necessarlie that in all questions controverted they haue the worst part So that the point of Antichrist proponed by the Apostles mysticallie and knowne by the first Ages coniecturallie by the doctrine and practice of Rome is made now so cleare that wee may say with reverend Iuell Multi quidem loci de Antichristo obscuri erant iam verò Ecclesiae Romanae doctrina institutis effectum est ut quibus oculi non desunt ne Sol ipse clarior fiet Though many places of Scripture concerning Antichrist were of olde obscure and ambiguous because as then it appeared not to what policie they should apply them Yet now by the doctrine and practice of the Church of Rome it is come to passe that the Sunne himselfe is not clearer to such as want not eyes For which cause the Pope when hee saw that his person estimation was touched by the things that were spoken of Antichrist he discharged straitlie all Preachers that none of them should so much as surmise any thing of the comming of Antichrist This is nothing else but secret conviction that the notes of Antichrist appertaine to him And that same Leo the tenth more fullie in his Bull discharges that same the yeare preceeding Luthers kything Therefore it galleth them at the heart to call the Pope Antichrist and Maximilian Duke of Bavere tooke occasion thereof to dissolue a Dispute at Ratisbone betweene the Theologues of Saxonie and the Iesuits of Bavere Hee saw his Iesuits failing in the matter while they cryed continuallie ad formam ad formam and sought but a colour to breake the Dispute And when Hunnius occasionallie called the Pope Antichrist he fretted and discharged any further proceeding Baronius railes against vs in vaine for that same cause saying that the vile Novators vse reproachfull names and pictures to the disgrace of the Apostolicke Sea but they neede not for the Pope endeth the plea and bee vsurping on Princes exalting himselfe aboue them and putting them out of the way by excommunication and tyrannie giveth a iust Commentar of the Apostles words proclaimeth himselfe to be that great Antichrist hee expresseth more vyle lineaments than the Protestants can attribute vnto him And it was the prime question that the Emperours Commissioners for the reformation or rather the deformation of Germanie proponed to the Preachers of Augsburgh To declare if they counted the Bishop of Rome to bee Antichrist adhâ—ret capiti lethalis arundo The deadlie dart of their discoverie hath wounded their head grievouslie that they can not heare of it CHAP. XXV Of the fourth fruite of their folie Their just destruction THe fourth fruite of this vsurpation is their destruction The Apostle descryveth it in two degrees consumption and abolition The Lord will consume him by the Spirit of his mouth and abolish him by the brightnesse of his comming This consumption is by the word of God a most powerfull meanes to destroy poperie for it is a worke of darknesse begunne increased and perfected by the graduall obscuring and depressing of Scripture And therefore the graduall revealing and manifesting of Scripture is sufficient to banish that darknesse So the Waldenses began with a private vse of Scripture and thereby troubled Antichrists Kingdome VVicliffe brought it to Lectures in the Schoole and wrought them more harme Hus broght it to the Pulpit and made it shine clearer But Luther Calvine and other VVorthies of reformation made that Light to shine clearer in manie places at once and so brought a great destruction vpon Antichrists kingdome and made many Nations forsake him and turne to the Lord. The Light of the Gospell discovered two thinges at once the Popes heresie and tyrannie by the first discoverie it looseth the bands that formerly held people in awe Superstition so puddled their consciences that they indured his verie tyrannie as equitie But when the shining truth discovered him to bee an Antichristian seâ—ucer their irritation was doubled to avenge themselves on him both for his misleading of them and vsurpation Doubtlesse this is the secret cause why so farre they abuse Scripture they accuse it of insufficiencie and forbid the translating of it in vulgar tongues and reading of it to people because Sathan maketh them presagious of their destruction to come by it Their adoring of the Nailes the Speare and weapons that killed Christ argues their sympathie with Sathan the Iewes that crucified him And their abhorring of the Sword of Gods word argues their Antipathie to it as a malefactour abhorreth the Sword of the Magistrate And the three Bishops at Bononia who gaue advise to Paul the third for reformation besought him to put the Bible out of the way because it was the Booke that wrought them most woe This their consumption they acknowledge with griefe for who is ignorant sayeth Bellarmine That the Lutheran Trueth which hee calleth a Pest arose in Saxonie and thereafter occupyed almost all Germanie Thence it went to the North and to the East and consumed Denmarke Norraway Swaden Gothland Panonia and Hungarie Thereafter with the like swiftnesse to the West and the South and in a short time destroyed France England Scotland some time floorishing Kingdomes And lastlie that it passed over the Alpes and pearced into Italie it selfe The Gospel preached into these places was like the sounling of the Trumpets about Iericho to throw downe mightilie the abominations of Babel And Cotton confesseth further that the authoritie of the Pope is incomparablie lesse than it was and now the Romane Church is but a diminitiue of that it was as may bee seene in the ardidinals who were wont to meete oftner but now meete oneâ— onelie once a weeke because the businesse of the Court of Rome decressed The order of their consumption is verie considerable that such Nations for sooke the Pope first who were most abuâ— sed by his vsurpation They abused Germanie pittifullie in the dayes of the Henries and Fridericks No reason could content them the Emperors found more patience to suffer than the Popes tyrannie found measure to bound it selfe England also was to them a Paradise of delight and an inexhaustable fountaine at every occasion they sent Legats to presse that Kingdome for money as a sponge is pressed for water and imposed the
there is no such matter for this last age hath seene some strange practises thereof and that either executed or attempted Their crueltie executed in France is not our The Massacre of Paris is their shame wee may say Their fained peace stroue with warre and prevailed Pax ficta cum bello de crudelitate certavit vicit For these last yeares they haue made that floorishing Kingdome a wonder to the World and astonishment to it selfe They found the two Francises Henrie the second and Charles the nynth according to their heart to maintaine Poperie and represse the trueth But after the Butcherie of Paris their rage increased at the reviving Trueth and therefore set forward to the like massacres and finding Henrie the third vnfitte for their cruell purposes they cutte him off to serue themselues of the D. of Guise who was lutum sanguine maceratum Clay knedde with blood Hee was indeered to the Pope for the massacre of Paris and the Cardinall his brother thought it a cause to thanke God that his house was honoured to be the instrument of that massacre Henries catholick zeale could not saue him because hee had not a Iesuited zeale to destroy all the Hugonots hee agreed with them in all points of Religion but in this his clemencie and their crueltie could not agree and therefore hee must bee killed When Henrie the fourth arose their rage was more kindled because of his Religion and notwithstanding his formall reconciliation to their Church yet they ever keeped their prejudices and hatred to him Their rage was not satisfied but doubled by Castellus his misse and their banishment And their desire to returne was not so much for the loue of their Countrie as to haue occasion to cut him off and their hatred had never a pause till his death That same spirit is yet powerfull in them Though King Lewes bee zealous in their Religion and contraire to his clemencie hath beene drawne by instigation to destroy many thousands of the Sainctes yet they are not satisfied with that is done They perceiue in him an halting and therefore are wearie of him They haue boasted him to desist from his League with Protestant Princes which they see a meanes to strengthen himselfe against his common enemie and haue threatned him with rebellions and insurrections They haue also giuen him an Admonition in nyne questions disputed whereof the summe is That if hee relent in destroying the Hugonots in France or assist the Protestants in Germanie they shall set vp with him a coniunct King And least he should think that but wind they stirred vp Franciscus Martellus a Priest neare to deepe like another Ravilliacke to kill him but God discovered the Traitour who before his suffering deponed that two Iesuits Guyotus and Chapusyus were his Counsellours and instigators And lastlie they are brewing a browst like the Guysian faction against Henrie the third and stirring vp his brother against him vnder colour of Courtlie miscontentments against Cardinall Richliâ—u And this is the corregnans or coniunct King whereof their Theses spak It is a wonder that so mightie a Kingdome should bee so fearefullie shaken by plots and more that they see it and groane for it and yet can not expede themselues of these snaires There was matter for redresse when Henrie 3. was killed but nothing answerable followed and Henrie the fourth had just cause of anger and revenge by Castellus stroake but it turned to nothing for when hee had banished the Iesuits within fiue yeares that martiall King turned a pleader for their restoring And after his death wheÌ„ the presumptions of their treason were pregnant they threw from the young King a declaration of their innocencie and a condemning of the Booke-seller that dispersed the Copies of it And when the Nobilitie did their best homage to their dead King to kisse his heart affecting to shew their lone in marking their months with the blood of it the Iesuits by right of a pretended or if it was true an ominous Legacie of his heart left to them caryed it to their Colledge of Laflex and that not so much in the sorrow of funerals as in the ioy of a triumph for that they had found such a morsell for the paines of their long hunting It were an hard matter to determine whether the hearts of the Nobilitie were more grieved or the heartes of the Iesuits more over-ioyed about the Kings heart but sure it is that the Iesuits gloried of it In that common sorrow Abbas Sylviuâ— the Abbot of Boes in the iust griefe of a loyall heart when hee considered the Iesuits Probleme An fas esset tyrannos occidere if it were lawfull to kill tyrants and how Marianas and such Bookes were in the hands of people hee turned him to the Iesuits in his Sermon and exhorted them that they would provyde that no Booke passed vnder the name of their Societie and with the Superiours approbation that might any wayes offend the French Summo studio providerent ne ex ipsorum officina vllus liber qui Gallos offenderet prodiret except they would expose themselues to such a danger which all their wisedome supported with authoritie and riches of their favourers could not eschew The Iesuits tooke that graue admonition so hardlie that they complained to the Queene and made him to bee sharplie rebuked But what they could not doe at Paris they effected at Rome when they caused him to bee put to death there whereof some accused them because that hee was the first who after the Kings death reproved them out of Pulpit albeit in the funerall oration which hee published hee left out the speach that hee directed to them This was a Iesuitish tricke that they who should haue beene punished for treason turned the punishment of it on them who challenged them It is like a new devyce of Bellarmines who seeing how odious the Iesuits are made to the world by their wickednesse layed open in sundrie Books suggested to the Pope and his Consistorie that a new censure of Bookes should bee institute to raze and purge out all thinges that were written against them A devyce of a gnawing Conscience for though all these Bookes were burnt yet the treacherie of that order will bee knowne to Posteritie Let France consider her estate Before Iesuits arose they were loyall to their Princes But since Spaine thirsted for that Kingdome as his great stay of the European Moarchie and hath as manie friends in her bowels as Iesuits there is nothing but Leagues Plottes and Factions formed and everie faction ending in the killing of a King The Sorbone standeth yet in her honestie but can doe no more than a Schoole censure and is borne downe by the incroaching of the Iesuits on her to punish her for her former loyaltie to Kings The auncient forwardnesse of the Court of Parliament seemeth to bee relented since the
are alreadie both iudged of GOD and sentenced in his word to consumption and Abolition and the hand of Providence goeth on in the execution of that sentence there is neither ground to treate for reconcliation nor hope to attaine to it Or if wee will treate of it wee accuse the Lords sentence of iniquitie and his execution of rigour Let Babell then bee vnder her sinne and punishment begun and approaching and let all that loue the Lord Iesus separat themselues from these wickedmen A CONCLVSION Exhortatorie to Princes I Turne now that speach which they abuse to you most sacred Princes Bee wise O Kings bee learned yee Iudges of the earth Christ Iesus whom yee haue long pursued by Antichirsts direction when hee might destroy you calleth you to repentance to change both your mindes and course Your Mindes to know that poperie is that foretold Apostasie and that the Religion which yee persecute is the trueth of God And your course that since blind zeale the companion of false Religion hath made you thinke it good service to God to destroy his Saincts you would turne your power for the service of the Lambe of whom yee haue it and both revenge Gods quarrell and your owne vpon the Beast Consider how GOD setteth downe his Dittay and Dâ—ome His Dittay in Idolatrie Filthinesse and aboue all the blood of the Saincts Rome was ever bloodie the Mathematicians observed that when her ground-stone was layed the Moone was in cauda Draconis to tell that all her changes in rysing growing standing would bee in the câ—uâ—ltie of the Dragon And soone after Romulus wet her wals with his Brothers blood Shee turned the earth in a Butcherie by warres abroad And her Ganâ—es at home in the Theater were bloodie Shee shed the blood of the Saints in her persecuting Pagan Emperours And lastlie sheddeth the bloodie of the Protestants by her Antichristian head Ierusalem was guiltie of the blood of all the Prophets because they succeeded the Murtherers in malice and crueltie And Rome succeeds Ierusalem and exceedeth her in persecuting Christ All blood of the Saints is shedde either in Rome or by Romes authoritie Shee hath shedde more blood than Ninivie Babylon Shusan and Ierusalem it selfe Her Doome is doe to her as she hath done to you And what she hath done to you your Soules Thrones may feele For beside your soules killing the Pope hath overthrowen the Maiestie and dignitie of Impyres Shee denuded you of Kinglie Authoritie when shee exposed your Sacred Persons to the contempt and violence of the basest Villanes Shee ate vp your flesh not so much in catching the riches of your Kingdomes as by nesting in your bosome like a Viper to destroy you Shee burnt your with the fire of excommunication raising such combustions that your Countrie and Courts were divyded The Sonne set against the Father as Henrie the fifth against Henrie the fourth to pursue him to death and after death to deny him Buriall Therefore this is her recompence that you make the Whoore naked eate vp her flesh and burne her with fire God hath sentenced her and there remaineth no more but execution Though wee rest on none but Scripturall Prophecies yet their owne Prophets foretold their ruine For Hildegardis and Catharina Senensis whose contraire visions Delrio laboureth to reconceale Brigitta telleth them of their destruction What ever bee the force of her writ it must be Canonick to them since Boniface the nynth hath cannoized her and Martine the fifth confirmed that canonization and their later writers as Chemensis Capistranus Aytinger c. haue spoken broadlie That Rome shall bee ruined by the Almaines and the French As God calleth and commandeth you to doe it so you are bound to it by these two bonds wherey they presse you most your Baptismall initiation and sacred oath In Baptisme yee were initiate in Christian faith and not in Antichristian perfidie And the substance of your oath is to defend Apostolicke and primitiue trueth and not the yesterday novelties of Rome Their own Patrons graÌ„t that in the middle ages they were Apostaticke and Apotactick but since we never find their reformation or amendement The errour of time confirmed by badde custome hath made men mistake these Notions of Christ and Antichrist trueth and vntrueth and so to misplace their affections and actions about them but open your eyes to the light God offereth in his word and your better informed mindes shall reforme your affections and rectifie your actions least you take darknesse for light night for day and death for life that you may forsake Antichrist and heresies and ioyne your selues to the Lambe and his trueth in the reformed Churches Or if you will not take Gods cause to heart nor bee moved with these bonds let your Life and Crownes moue you Though hee vnder a Iudiciall hardnesse bee senselesse of the guiltinesse of his vsurpation yet be not you senselesse of these indignities He maketh you to fight against your selfe in his quarrell while hee abuseth your power for the maintenance of his greatnesse to the overthrow of your authoritie Remember hee is head of that Court whose Ambassadours boasted in England that they served at that Court which commanded both other Kings and their Courteours It hath ever beene your fault to neglect the commoun cause of Princely authoritie There is nothing more sâ—oothed than that that is pleaded by many When any one Prince was thunder-beaten by Iupiter Capitolinus hee exhorted other Princes that they should not betray the common cause but all in vaine For the ruine of one made a prey to many Therefore they suffered the present storme to passe over and that because by a wicked purchas some accession came to their state This was specially when a great Prince was broken whose greatnesse was fearefull to them all The Emperour was most left in the sturre while smaller Princes thought it their securitie if he were redacted to that state that hee might not rise to the greatnesse of his Ancestors It is tyme for you to awake when their flatterers pittie your injuries and the Iesuits admire your patience Petrus Ferrariensis marking how the Pope insnared you to inlarge his owne iurisdiction cryeth out But alace miserable Emperours and secular Princes who suffer these things and make your selues slaues to the Pope and see the world by infinite cousanages abused and yet you thinke not of a remeede And where the Iesuits please to bee free they wonder fatuos fuisse veteres Imperatores imperij nostri ordines qui sibi tanto cum dedecore ora sublinia Papis sustinuerint that Emperours and the States were so foolish as to bee gulled with Popes Wee haue better cause than Athanasius to say I am Ecclesiae tempora oculatos operosos Principes requirunt that the tymes of the Church require seeing and doing
meanes to hyde the truth If Aequivocation had place in Iudgement God had never ordained Oathes for ending of questions though the Iesuits haue perfected that coloured periurie in our time yet it is naturall to man who is a liar It confounded all Iudgement so that neither the oath of calumnie in the parties nor the oath of veritie in the Witnesses wants the owne suspicion But possiblie betime Iudges will bee forced to invent a third sort of oath occasioned by Aequivocation to make parties and Witnesses sweare that they sweare truelie Moreover though Knowledge and Experience in Iudges overcome these difficulties yet their frailtie of affection is inclinable to the Parties Therefore it was a good devyce to pleade causes without designing the names of the parties but vnder the fained names of Seius and Titius c. And that suffrages should not bee given by Word but by Notes on a Table or by White-stones for assenting or blacke-stones for dissenting So a way was provyded for libertie in votting and for securitie from challeng for that libertie But the absolute best remeede for Parties Pleaders Witnesses and Iudges is to set God the supreme Iudge before them and to remember that God sitteh in the assemblie of gods and to proceed as in his sight When cause is simplie compared with cause and reason with reason the sentence will easilie ryse according to right and equitie But this difficultie is greatest in criminall causes and hath brought on the necessitie of torture which is a sort of torment to a pittifull Iudge It is a miserable supplie of the want of probation and so insufficient that the vrgers of it permit the sufferer after torture to goe from his deposition or byde at it It was first devysed by Pagans and is iustlie called a Tarquinian crueltie They had not spirituall and divine motiues taken from GOD or Heaven or Hell c. to presse the Consciences of the guiltie therefore they tooke them to that brutish motiue of a bodilie paine Man is reasonable and truth should bee sought out of him by reasonable motiues which choppe on his reason and Conscience and that in the respects of eternall reward or punishment But the way by bodilie paines is more fleshlie and the order is preposterous by the bruising of the flesh to open the minde An extorted confession is but a bastard confession as fire forced out of the flint It is lamentable that among Christians there is as great necessitie of torture and as small fruite of it as among Pagans What ever bee the lawfulnesse of it the minde of he Iudge is tortured Hee would know the Truth and must vse such a meanes to search it Hee knoweth not whither the sufferer bee guiltie or not yet must hee suffer as suspected of obstinacie in denying lest hee die as guiltie and in avoyding death hee suffereth death in torments hee suffereth not because hee hath done the crime but because it is vncertaine if hee haue done it And so the vnavoydable ignorance of the Iudge is the calamitie of the Innocent and the more hee presse to helpe his ignorance hee hurteth the innocent the more This is lamentable and to bee washeth with floodes of teares that while the Iudge tortures the suspâ—ct person least hee kill an innocent hee killeth that innocent whom hee tortureth lest hee should kill him And when their paine maketh them chuse to die rather than to bee tortured they confesse the cryme that they did not and so are innocent both in torture and in death And yet when they are execute the Iudge knoweth not whither they be guiltie or innocent And so oftimes both tortureth and killeth an innocent while hee laboureth to eschew it By these things a wise Iudge is drawen on not by desire of hurt but by necessitie of ignorance and yet since humane Societie craveth it by necessitie of Iudgement This is contrare to the tortures of the olde persecutors they tortured confessing Christians and let them goe free if they denyed but the criminals torture that they may confesse and destroyeth them for their confession On the other part how oft doe the guiltie endure torture with obstinacie and harden their hearts to conceale the truth Such obstinacie at the first is resolved but if it turne iudiciall by a wilfull denying with cursings and execrations then it worketh either a stupifying senselesnes in their flesh or else by way of diversion fasteneth the minde so vpon losse or shame that followeth a confession that it lets not the flesh feele paine Sathan can stupifie his martyres in maintaining lies that hee may play the Ape to GOD who mitigateth the paines of his martyrs by spirituall comforts It is not therfore for nought that God tooke of the Spirit of Moses and put vpon the Elders because they had a Calling full of difficultie In all which cases it is best for a Iudge to looke to God and that eternall Law in him and withall to craue his direction that hee erre not in Iudgement and cry Deliver mee O Lord out of all my necessities But there is no better spur than Iehosaphaâ—s exhortation to Iudges Take heede what yee doc for yee iudge not for man but for the Lord who is with you in the Iudgement Wherefore now let the feare of the Lord bee vpon you take heede and doe it For there is no iniquitie with the Lord our God nor respect of persons nor taking of gifts Of Princes difficulties dangers IT lyeth then on Princes to exercise their Gift as they would proue the liuelinesse of it and this brings on them a world of difficulties There is none in their Kingdome of a more laborious life The Head that moveth all must haue action in it and the heart is in a continuall motion to furnish fresh Spirits to the bodie Great is their taske to know the state of their Subjects to heare the plaints of the poore to represse the insolencies of the proude by causing minister Iustice to all God hath set them aboue their Subiects but that same exalting in some sort putteth them vnder because they are servants to their Subiects in that they watch for their weall and safty I herefore the Apostle in that same place where hee calleth them supereminent powers calleth them also the Ministers of God to minister Iustice for hee is the Minister of God to thee for thy good They are Gods Ministers attending continuallie vpon this verie thing They haue supreme power bowing downe to a Ministeriall worke and a Ministerie cloathed with supreme power Many are quicke-sighted to see the defects of Governement who will not see the difficulties and dangers of it for beside the weight of such a Calling the most lawfull vse of their coactiue power beareth them on many dangers either in punishing the vniust or affraying them that would bee so Every curbed humour by feare of punishment