Tridentines under pretence of Tradition have Enlarged the Canon of Scripture contrary to the Tradition of the Church of God in all Ages even to their own time Thus when Modern Mens bare word must be allowed a sufficient Authority to Vouch a Tradition a Pretence of Tradition is set up against the truth of it and so Tradition it self rendred doubtful or useless And therefore I shall not trouble my self to pursue those many particular shuffling pleas which they use to Justify themselves in offering violence to the Sacred Canon But if you would know the true Reason which it was their Business to Conceal I believe Spalato hath Hit on it Suas non poterant Naenias ex Sacrâ Scripturâ verè Canonicâ probare ideoque noluerunt permittere uc sibi aliae Scripturae etiam non Canonicae eriperentur quo suas qualescunque haberent pharetras unde spicula desumerent ac praeterea viderent ac praeterea ne viderentur re in aliquâ Protestantibus cedere aut consentire maluerunt etiam falsa tueri definire de Repub. Ecc. lib. 7. cap. 1. Num. 28. XLIV He that doth believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God must of course believe their Sufficiency or that they contain all Matters necessary to Salvation for they give this Testimony to themselves And he that believes them to be the Word of God must believe the Testimony they give either of themselves or others St. Paul saith They are able to make Man wise â—◠〈◊〉 2 Tim. 3. 15. 16. But that cannot be so unless they contâ—in at least all things necessary thereto But though the Scriptures be thus sufficient and contain a certain Sense in themselves yet by reason of the distance of timâ— when they were Wrote through Unskilfulness in Oriental Customes and Phrases â—hâ—re they were Wrote through Ignorance of some partiâ—ular Tâ—ners which â—ome Argumentative part of Scripture is Levelled against and such like Câ—useâ— But above all through the Perversâ—ness of evil Men and Seducers it so falls out That those Scriptures which are of a certain Sense yea plain in themselves are made obscure to us and we eithâ—r become doubtful of thâ—ir Meaning or follow a wrong Meaning for what is or can there be so plain and easie which some wicked Men have not or cannot render intâ—icate and pâ—â—piexâ—d especially to weak Judgements and facile Tempers Now for the Discovery of the true Sense of Scripture in this Case true and genuine Tradition is possibly the best Heâ—p and surest Resuge and to Wrest the Scriptures out of the Hands of Hereâ—icks and Restore the Rule to its true Force right Use and proper Meaning perhaps there is not a surer nor more â—ffectual way for our Llessed Saviour Himself Wrote nothing or at least nothing which he designed to be a perpetual Standard and Rule to all his Followers It is said indeed John 8. 6. That He Wrote with his Finger on the Ground But what that was no Body can tâ—ll Eusâ—bius indeed Records an Epistle of his to Agbarus but if the Story be true and I have no mind to derogate from the Reputation of so Learned and Industrious an Historian yet it was to a particular Person in Answer to a paâ—ticular Request And the principal Contents are a Promise That after his Death oâ—e of his Disciples should come and both Cure and Instruct Him Nor was it ever Accounted as any part of Canonical Scripture The Apostles indeed being Led by the Spirit into all Truth not only tâ—ught it to the then present Age but Committed it to Writing for the benefit of â—â—sterity But then they Wrote nothing contrary or disagreeing with what â—hâ—y preach'd and taught both before and after they wrote And there is no doubt but that those Doctrines which they Comprized summarily in the Sâ—ripture were expounded more fully in their daily Conversation aâ—d conâ—â—nâ—ed discharge of their Ministerial Function If there oâ—e any doubt or Controversie did Arise concerning the Meaning of Scripture there could be no better way to determine it then by enquiring in what Sense those Churches understood it which the Apostles had planted St where upon all Occasions they at large Explained themselves for it is certain That the Apostles â—est knew their own Meaning And when they were no longer living to tell it let witty or wicked Men make never such a Bustle or fair Shew it will be very difficult to pâ—rswade any sober Men but that those must needs best know their Meaning to whom the Apostles themselves most amply discovered it Now it being the great Business of Hereticks to corrupt the Scriptures and wrest them to a wrong sense that they might seem to have a sufficient Authority patronizing their Errours When it so Hapned the Ancient Church usually declined the Nice Way of Cavilling and Captious Disputes and feâ—â— to enquire what was the Doctrine and Sense of the Apostolick Churches for it could not be but that those to whom the Apostles had preached all their days must better understand their Meaning then any Upstarts who followed their own Imaginations and were fond of New and pâ—stilent Notions And by this means they not only Silenced Hereticks but wrâ—ng the Sâ—riptures and the Interpretations of Them out of their Hands and then turned them against them And whilst Apostolical Men were living this was a sure Way And so far as such Tradition can be proved to have been preserved genuine and true it is still a good Way And when the Romanists have endeavoured to bring the Cause to this Issue I think they have had no great Cause to boast of their Gains Witness to avoid Naming many the Controversie Managed by Bishop Jewel and Harding But then as to Tradition these Cautions would be observed 1. That this is no prejudice to the Scriptures being the only sufficient Rule of Faith for though the Apostles wrote and taught the same things and so both were alike a Rule to the then living Persons yet when those things were put in Writing it was for this very Reason That a Sure and Certain Rule might be Preserved for Posterity For Tradition might in time be mistaken forgotten or corrupted But the Scriptures would remain unalterable So that the Scriptures are the Rule to us though there are many Helps to lead us to their true Meaning of which perhaps genuine Tradition is none of the worst But this makes nothing against the perfection and sufficiency of the Scriptures which contain all things necessary to Salvation though they do not find us Eyes to see nor Ears to hear nor Brains to Consider though God doth all this and all other Helps abundantly All Arts and Sciences are supposed to be Complete in themselves and to contain Rules sufficient to instruct a Man in them And yet some of the Noblest of them can never be thoroughly Attained unless a Man be first Instructed in the Rudiments of some other Arts or Sciences preliminary and preparatory to them But the
1000 yeares after Christs time And all this is very true as shall appear Anon. XXI To Revenge this Wrong as he thinks done to Beda he falls foul upon the Magdeburgenses for making Jeoffery of Monmoutb to live about 700 years after Christ Jeoffery's Testimony indeed Gauled him sorely and therefore it was to be shuffled off by any means Whether he hath done the Magdeburgenses Right in that thing I neither know nor care For their Errour as to the time of Jeoffery's Life doth nothing invalidate his Testimony But if it were good before their mistake it is so still so that this is only Cavilling Besides though Jeoffery of Monmouth lived in the time of King Stephen which is above 500 yeares since and so is no Yesterdays Author yet the Work it self is much older For he was not the Author but Translator of that History which was written Originally in the Brittish Language and Accounted an Old Book before he was born as Lambard and others have proved and therefore the Testimony is more Considerable and deserves a better Answer after all the Magdeburgenses Account may Refer to the Matter of the Testimony and Time when the thing was Transacted not to Jeoffery's Life and then it will be too Modest and too favourable To less purpose is his time spent in proving Jeoffery to be no Cardinal I should be prone to believe him if I had no other Reason but his Relating a Truth so prejudicial to the Interest of the Court of Rome But if he was not a Cardinal he might be as honest a Man 'T is certain he was a Bishop and as such was a much better Man especially if the Pope would suffer them to be what Christ and his Apostles made them and not Appropriate all that Authority to the Roman See to a Share of which every Bishop hath as good Right and Title as himself XXII At length after a deal of Shuffling Lying and Rayling he comes to the Matter of Jeoffery's Testimony And that he Answers easily and so may any Man who takes no Care to speak Truth but only what may serve his Turn He says There is not a Word in it of not Acknowledging the Pope â—s Supremacy I know not how there should for such a Supremacy as is now Claimed was not then Lick'd into form He might have Remembred that the Transactions there mentioned relate to the time of Gregory the Great then whom no Man wrote more fiercely against the Supremacy Or which is in effect the same thing the setting up an Universal Bishop Or if he had bethought himself of what he elsewhere tells us That the Brstons would not Communicate with Augustines Converts then Dogs he might have made it a strong Argument for their professing Obedience and Subjection to the See of Rome In fine he will have their Answer Amount to no more but this That only they would not Acknowledge Augustines Superiority over them seeing he was sent only to the English And that the Authority of their own Arch bishop was not taken away by his coming for any thing they knew but remained as before 3 Conver cap. 2. sect 14. What pity is it that Augustine did not better inform them it seems they would have been a very obedient People had they known the Pope's Orders and been told the Truth of the Matter But it is an unlucky thing that when a Man with Working his Wits has devised an Answer that would do the Business he should not have the Privilege to make it pass for Truth unless it be so in it self Now all this is spoken by a Figure called Fiction which the rude Vvlgar call Lying For the Britons no more regarded the Pope then they did Augustine I have already set down the Answer of Dinothus Abbot of Bangor to which Jeoffery's words Relate and he who will be at the pains to read it will see That it is as expressly and directly Levelled against the Pope's Authority or Supremacy if it must be so called as could be well fâ—amed They impugne Augustines Authority by denying the Pope and own no Superiour but the Bishop of Caerleon who was to oversee under God over them or according to the Brittish had the only Eye over them under God And this they Confirm by their unanimous Practice despising all Orders from Rome and obstinately refusing all Communion with Augustine and his Successors Yet this and more F. Parsons Chymistry can melt into Obedience and an Acknowledgement of the Pope's Supremacy At this Rate who can doubt of Miracles in the Church of Rome XXIII In the next place he is highly Offended with the Magdeburgenses sor speaking so irreverently of Pope Innocent the First and his Testimony That all the West Churches were Founded by St. Peter on his Disciples and Successors And it is no wonder if Pope Innocent spoke out for himself and it may go a great way where they have not to do with such Hereticks as expect Proofs If this be true why has F. Parsons discovered some such First Founders of the Brittish Churches as were none of Peters Disciples or Successors His Forgetfulness sometimes doth his Holy Father as much injury as the Magdeburgians malice neither doth it carry any force of Truth bâ—cause by rheir own Confession there was a time when Easter was not so exactly observed as now it is whether there was a Stated Church at Rome then or not and that the Conversion of the Britons was at that time I see not any better Account can be Given To Help out this he tells us of Two more Popes Honorius and John the fourth who wrote to the Irish to reduce them from this â—rrour But Honorius will do him small service because in that Account which Beda gives of his Letter Ecc. Hist lib. 2. cap. 19. it is clearly implied that the whole Nation was involved in it and so we have a Pope on our Side to set against him that follows His Pope John was scarce Pope then at Best he was but Elect And the Letter seems to come as I may say from the Chapter in the Vacancy of the See and of those many who joyn in Writing it Hilarius the Arch-Presbyter not John is first mentioned but for once let John have the Credit of it and he then will tell us That this Heresie i. e. concerning Easter was but lately sprung up amongst them and only some few infected with it But now how John and Honorius will Agree about this I cannot tell For once I will be so kind to F. Parsons as to try if I can make them Friends The Brittish and Irish Usage was in this Western part of the World a great Singularity in those days Now if John had a Mind to draw them off from it who can blame him from speaking favourably and representing the Matter as inoffensively as could be The Way to Win Men is not to provoke them and we sometimes seem not to believe that a Man is so bad as we
THE SEPARATION OF THE CHURCH OF ROME FROM THE Church of England FOUNDED Upon a Selfish and Unchristian Interest By a PRESBYTER in the Diocess of Canterbury Febr. 28. 16 89 90. Imprimatur Z. ISHAM R. P. D. HENRICO Episc Lond à Sacris LONDON Printed for Richard Northcott at the Marriner and Anchor Adjoyning to St. Peters Alley Cornhil London 1691. The EPISTLE to the READER Courteous Reader FOR Right or Wrong so we Call all Not that we Believe they will be so but because we would have them so For when a Man hath been at no small Paine at least as he thinks for the Benefit of Others he is very prone to expect as his due a Return of Kiâ—dness or Candour But on the other Hand He who is at the trouble to Peruse takes it to be his Privilege to Judge and so far he judgeth rigbt if he proceed not further thinking he cannot be a Judge unless he be malicious And that the Business of Reading a Book is to find or make more Faults then there is not to make an honest Advantage of what may be found useful Vpon this Score he that Adventures on the Press brings Himself like a Bear to a Stake where though he may Fancy he Creates Others great Diversion yet He himself is sure to be the Sufferer and becomes liable to be Baited at every ones pleasure But be it as it will I have wrote my Thoughts freely and I Envy no Man the same freedom of speaking his Only I could wish all Men would Consider That sometimes Men run down-Hill faster then is for their own Convenience and that Liberty loseth its Nature when it degenerates into Licentiousness or becomes a Cloak of Maliciousness I will not waste time in fruitless Apologies For if this small Tract hath nothing in it self to Buoy it up it must certainly Sink for it is not all the Daubing and Flattery in the World that will Perswade Honest Sober or Judicious Men to embrace Senseless Impertinence And as for Others I desire not the Scandal of their good Opinion If this little thing should be any whit taken Notice of in the World I know it will be bitterly Objected That I seem inclineable to the Exercise of a more severe Discipline then hath at least of late been Exercised amongst us or then this loose Age will bear in which perhaps there is too much Truth But I could wish the Reader would suspend his Censure till he hath Considered these few things I shall Return in Answer First that in an Age wherein all Men are Caâ—vers to themselves for Religion it is but equal that they should not deny me who am very sparing of using it the same Liberty with themselves especially since a wanton or loose Practice of Religion may be as uneasie to me as the strictest Rules Order or Decency can be to them Secondly because in this I am not Singular but have not only the Judgement of the Fathers and Practice of the Primitive Church but the Constitutions of our own Church on my side which to Avoid Numerous Instances is evident from the Preface before the Commination Appointed to be Read on Ash-Wednesday Thirdly that the more ungrateful it may be to Vn-governable tempers So much the more necessary it is for the Safety and Peace of the Church and perhaps also of the State For for want of this all things Run into Disorder and Consusion Discipline bâ—ing not only the Fence about Doctrine but the Procurer and Preserver of good Manners and sober Conversation And in vain shall Men Reason Talk or Preach whilest the Corruptions Discontents Pride and various ill Humours of the greatest part of Mankind knows no other Awe then the simple Restraint of bare Perswasions Both Romanists and Dissenters frequently with open Mouâ—h upbraid us that we have not that Influâ—nce on the Lives Manners and Actions of our People which they have and that meerly for want of Discipline which indeed is true though we do not desire so much as they have For by wosul Experience we find that they can as powerfully Influence them to ill Actions as good But at the same time they forget to tell us that they Joyâ— all their Forces and make all possible Interest that we may be Tied up from the Exercise of the most just and necessary Discipline and that purely in fear lest a Discipline as primitive as our Doctrine joyned together should get Ground so fast in the World that in time they might become Ashamed or grow weary of their Trade It was the Observation of a Learned Person that the Cunning and Master-piece of the Eusebians lay in Evaeuating the Discipline of the Church under a pretence of Moderation not doubting but that if Discipline were broken the Arrian Doctrine would easily break in And indeed this hath been the Practice of Heâ—eticks all along And whatever the Persons might gain the Church was ever a Loser by the Devices of her Projectors for neither the Henoticum of Zeno nor the Capitula of Justinian nor the Interim of Charles the â—isth nor all the Tricks and Contrivances of our Modern Trimmers Tolâ—cators and Comprehenders ever did the Church of God any good but Animated 〈◊〉 Paâ—tâ—â—s and made the Breathes wider and more irreconcilcable The Judgement of Queen Elizabeth is herein very Considerable because of the Reasons that go along with 〈◊〉 For the for saking the Primitive Rule and Aâ—owing the Publick 〈◊〉 of Varieâ—y of Religious Perswasions â—he saith is nothing else but Religioneâ—â— ex Religione serere mentes bonorum variè distrahere factiosorum Studia alerc Religionem atque Rempublicam contâ—â—bare divina humanáque commiscere Quod est râ— malum Exemplo possimum suis perniciosum illis ipsis quibus permissum nec admodum commodum nec plane tutum Camb. Ann. Eliz par 1. p. 28. What is here wrote is only a Preparatory to my principal Design which was to shew That notwithstanding all the High and Specious Pretences of the Romanists when Matters are thoroughly Examined the only true Reason of their difference with us would be sound to be Interest and that such an interest as to say no worse is very unbecoming the Professors of Christian Religion This alone was first in any thoughts and the rather because I observed that many had touched upon it in their Way but no Man so far as I know had ever yet made it his Business But upon second Thoughts though I did not depart from my first Design yet I thought fit to Enlarge it not only because some would think that alone would look more like a Libel then a just Plea but because I my self did think that to Common Apprehensons it would leave things in the dark and not be very profitable to any and perhaps to some hurtful For as some vain Mindes are Apt to take Occasion from our Dissentions to Burlesque all Religions so some Persons Addicted to the Reading of Controversies have Learned
know he is because we would not harden him with shame but have a desire to make him better But when Men purposely and designedly speak sparingly their Woâ—ds are not to be brought as an Evidence of the whole Matter But the Truth is they had little knowledge of our state but by uncertain Relations Gregory the Great himself when he saw the English Children Sold in the Market knew not whether their Nation was Christian or Pagan Augustine even for some time after his Coming hither knew not the Usage of the Britons yea even Laurentius his Successor had much such an opinion of the Irish as F. Parsons till Time and Experience undeceived him And therefore such Forreigners as were far more ignorant of our Affairs we may justly except against as incompetent Witnesses especially they being the very Men who taught these Men their Errour which their Eyes and Eares after Convinced them of XXIV But now comes the Knocking Argument to this Effect That neither Damianus and others sent by Eleutherius nor St. German and his Fellows who came twice hither to oppose the Pelagians make any mention of this Usage which they would have done and Amended it too had they found it here Because saith he both Pope Pius and Pope Victor had before Condemned it for Heretical I could thank the Jesuite for this Argument for it mortally Wounds his own Cause I will not again dispute the Mission of Damianus or Deruvianus or what other Names the Jesuite will give Him nor will I insist on it that Germanus and Lupus were sent by the French at the Request of the Britons and not by the Pope But if that Usage was universally practised by the Britttish and Irish and no good Instance appear that it was ever otherwise as I have already proved and that it continued for a long time after then it will unavoidably follow that the Britons were not under the Roman Jurisdiction nor thought themselves bound to stand to the Popes Determination Yea further that these very Men whom he saith the Pope sent were of the same Mind or else dealt very unfaithfully in making no stir about it Nay being the French Churches did Communicate both with Brittish and Irish at that time when they not only Maintained this Usage in opposition to Rome but refused Communion with their Bishops It is an Argument that they neither thought the Bishop of Romes Decrees did bind the Britons nor that the thing was so Heretical in it self For certainly they would never have so freely and Friendly Maintained Communion with them had they stood in open opposition and professed disobedience to their proper Patriarch By this a Judgement may be made of the Rest of F. Parsons Arguments I shall follow him no further It is not the Observation of Easter which we dispute with Rome but we urge the Practice of the Britons and Irish to prove the Liberty of these Islands XXV Now to avoid Tediousness in this particular having left the Ancient Britons in possession we must suppose they held it till it can be proved they were ejected Now the first so far as I can yet find who Attempted this to any purpose was Henry 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and he being a Wise as well as a potent Prince thought the Subjectiâ—g the Welch Bishops to the Metropolitan See of Canterbury might be a means to keep the Welch in order and so sar as concerned his own Kingdom he herein dealt not only like a Politick Prince but even the Laws of the Church did Countenance him But then by the same Act he submitted all the Welch Bishops to the See of Rome as things then stood and so Compleated the Popes Conquest of these Isles which thing the iniquity of those times would either not afford him Eyes to see or not power to prevent Accordingly he prefers Bernardus a Norman and his Chaplain to the Bishopâ—ick of St. Davids But Liberty and Power are both sweet things and Bernardus being got in possession grows resty and Asserts his Rights and the Priviledges of his See And here the Pope first got the â—ingering of the Cause so as to make his true Advantage of it 'T is true Bernardus appeared Conâ—ident and swagger'd bravely but in vain did he think to carry a Cause in the Court of Rome against the Archbishop of Canterbury's Purse and the Pope's Interest when at the same time and in the same thing he also Cross'd his own Kings design There is no doubt but that his Holiness swallowed this long-look'd for Morsel with a great deal of pleasure and greediness And yet the Sentence did not fully and quietly take place till a long time after whiâ—h possibly is the Reason that our Authors so differ in Alligning the time of this Submission for the Welshmen could not yet forget what they once were and upon all Occasions strugled hard to retain their Government amongst themselves so that as Affairs went with the English this matter either got or lost Ground If the English Power was at leisure to wait on the Welsh Men and awe them then the Welsb Bishops were the Popes and his Grace of Canterbury's Grumbling Servants But if the English Affairs were so involved that their Countrey had a little Rest the one was as ready to Cast off the Ecclâ—siastical as the other the Civil Yoke And thus Matters seem to have stood Wavering till Henry the third or Edward the first times But about the thirty second year of Henry the third Matt. Paris Hist Maj. Hen. 3. page 715 the English Forces so Harrassed Wales that the Ground lay Untilled Cattel neglected the Famine Raged amongst them The Bishop of St. David died overcome with Grief for the miseries of his Countrey and the Bishops of St. Asâ—ph and Bangor were reduced to that miserable Condition as to Beg their Bread in a Countrey wasted with Fire and Sword But when Matters were somewhat Composed St. Davids the Metropolitical See of Wales was sound to be so Impoverished that it was thought a despicable Preferment for an Arch-Deacon of Lincoln though Thomas Wallensis in Commiseration of his Countrey did accept it And here thâ— Brittish Ecclesiastical Liberty seems to have drawn its last Breath or to have given only some few Gasps after yet if we place its Fall in Henry the Fiâ—st his time it will have lasted above 1000 yeares but if in Henry the third's time it will be above 1200. But henceforward 〈◊〉 till the Reformation I think it must be Acknowledged that the Pope Rode in fuâ—l Triumph over all pâ—rts of these Isles And though in some Matters he Met with smart Opposition yet he Exercised an Authority nothing less then Patriarchal It remains now therefore to be enquired whether this his Intrusion or Possession did create him any Right or any such Right but that the Churches in these Isles as Matters then stood might Reform themselves and lawfully Re-assume their former Liberties XXVI Were it not that the Romanists make a Flourish with
as much as any For their own Authors and particularly our Sworn Enemy Father Parsons say that St. Peter Preached the Gospel in Britany so that here we are equal unless it make any thing for their Advantage that he was so well used here as to Go off safely hence But after his Return was Martyred there And so Rome may Value her self for that which our Blessed Saviour upbraids Jerusalem for Killing the Prophets and Stoning those that were sent unto Her Matt. 23. 37. XLI This Matter will fall hereafter under a more particular Consideration And therefore to Return to Doctrine it may be Considered either as Positive or Negative It is true that all Doctrine Resolves it self into positive Truth That we Maintain any thing in the Negative is Accidental and Ariseth from the Difference and Quarrels amongst Men for when Parties cannot Agree if One Affirm the Other of course denies In this Case the Matter in Controversie being either Falshood or Wrong if any Man Assert that which is contrary either to Truth or Justice we are forced to go somthing the further about in defending them by first denying and rejecting what is either false or unjust but then this will terminate in something positive which is the Foundation and Summary of all As for Example if in Opposition to the Practices or Affirmations of Others I deny That Divine Worship can be Given either to Angels or Saints The Reason and Ground of that Denial must be this or the like positive Assertion That Divine Worship is Gods Propriety and to Him only to be directed And therefore that we Maintain some things in the Negative is not our but their fault in Asserting that which is either false or unlawful And whether they do so or not must be Tried by Particulars which I shall come to hereafter XLII As to positive Doctrines perhaps the Difference is not very great the Quarrel lies more in what we do not hold then in what we do It is not to be denied that we have much Truth but not enough as they think And we are afraid of more lest it should make us have less for many Matters which they would thrust upon us for Truth are far remote from it And should we receive them it were the way to corrupt the Truth we have There was a time when some of their Priests set themselves to Reconcile and without Allowance and Encouragement they durst not have Attempted such a thing the very Articles of our Religion to a Catholick Sense as they call it though many of them were purposely framed in opposition to several of their Opinions and Practices The Author of Church-Government Part 5. page 206. hath diâ—covered a Sense wherein that great Grievance of the Roinanists The Oath of Supremacy may be lawfully taken and that to no other Sense then what he fetcheth from the 37th of our Articles of Religion And why then all that Labyrinth of Discourse which follows after upon it and serves to no other purpose but to Confound Himself and his Reader For can it be imagined that we our selves should take it in a sense contrary to our Articles of Religion From our Book of Common Prayer might be Extracted a wholesom Body of Divinity And it shews to the World both what our Worship is and how our Worship and Doctrine Agree And if this may be Allowed of methinks we should not be Hereticks Now what Vincentius Parapalia the Pope's Legat proposed to Queen Elizabeth I am apt to think was known to few For on the one Hand the Honour of the Pope was concerned if he suffered an open Râ—pulse On the Other the Queen rhough she Admitted not his Proposals was unwilling to irritate his Person he being then very Kind and Civil to Her contrary to the Petitions and Endeavors of many powerful Adversaries But that some such Considerable Matters were proposed that he was Jealous the Queen would think they would never be performed or at least not long kept we have some Reason to Guess from the Conclusion of his Letter which is one of the Kindest that ever any Pope wrote to one He Accounted a Heretick For thus He Courts Her Sed hâc de re pluribus verbis idem Vincentius tecum aget nostrum tibi Paternum animum declaâ—abit quem ut benignè excipias diligentérque audias eandémque ut ejus Orationi Fidem habeas quam haberes Nobis ipsis Sâ—râ—nitatem tuam rogamus Annal. Eliz. part 1. p. 48 Mr. Cambden Confesseth That he could not upon his own Knowledge say what these Proposals were and he believes they would never trust them in Writing but as secret as they were kept it seems they took Air for he subjoyns this following Account Fama obtinet Pâ—ntificem Fidem dedisse sententiam contra matris â—uptias tanquam injustam rescissurum Liturgiam Anglicam suâ Anthoritate confirmaturum usum Sacramenti sub utrâque Specie Anglis permissurum dummodo illa Romanae Ecclesiae se aggregaret Romanaeque Cathedrae Primatum agnosceret imò haec curantibus aliquo aâ—â— eorum miliia fuisse promlssa id ibid. I cannot imagine with what Hopes Pius the 4th fed Himself Or whether he were better Natured then usually Popes are But though after this the Queen would not suffer his Nunâ—io the Abbot of Martinego to come on English Shore yet he continued the same Mildness towards Her which being insuccessful Pius the 5th instigated by the King of Spain and being angry enough Himself tryes a severer Course and Thunders out his Excommunication against Her But that succeeded worse then the other For it not only altogether Alienated the Queens Mind but Compleated the Breach and made a total Separation in Communion which had not been till that time And it is probable this might make some succeeding Popes milder for Bishop Babington though he Refer it to a Pope after both the former yet whence-soever he had it he saith plainly That the Pope Offered to Allow the Book i. e of Common-Prayer and Administration of the Sacraments c. to Queen Elizabeth of Eternal Memory if she would have taken it of Him as so Allowed of Him or Nâ—mb 7 But what need of that For as for the Use of the Sacrament in both Kinds It is Christs own Institution And as for ouâ— Prayers being in the Vulgar or known Tongue it is according to St. Pauls Direction And if thesâ— two be not Authority enough without the Pope's Licence then have we not the Liberty so much as to serve God even according to his own Appointment and Institution but how and when the Pope pleaseth And so if the Devil at any time should be big enough in Him it will be in his power and at his pleasure whether God shall be openly Worshipped in the World or not As for the Matter of the Book it is such that except some few which all Men of any sober Communion never esteemed otherwise then as Mad Men Persons