Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	ancient_a	church_n	doctrine_n	1,896	5	6.2759	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A50109	The spiritual house in its foundation, materials, officers, and discipline describ'd the nomothetical & coercive power of the King in ecclesiastical affairs asserted the episcopal office and dignity, together with the liturgy of the Church of England vindicated in some sermons preached at St. Clement Danes and St. Gregories neer St. Pauls, London / by Geo. Masterson.	Masterson, Geo. (George)	1661 (1661)	Wing M1073; ESTC R30518	52,267	136

Breviary Processional and Mass-Book as they did their Doctrine retaining nothing but what the Papists had received from purer Antiquity which argues onely a fair compliance in us with the Antient Church and not at all with them And if it be said that some Papists have boasted that our Service is but their Mass in English It is certainly a most unreasonable thing that they who will not believe the Papist in any thing else should believe them in their vain boast against us and thinke it an accusation sufficiently proved because some Papists have impudently said it Fourthly The truth is the Papists condemn our Book as much of Schism as the Consistorian do of compliance they accuse it as much of departing from the Church of Rome as the others of remaining with it Now there cannot be a surer evidence of the innocency of our Liturgie then the contrary Censures which it hath undergon between these two Persecutours in the extream it being the dictate of natural Reason that Virtue is infallibly known by this that is it accused by both the Extreams at guilty of either as for instance the true Liberality of mind is by this exemplifyed that it is defamed by the Prodigal for Parcimony and by the Niggard for Prodigality Thus you have some thing in Reply to the Objections in general whereby it appears that our Liturgie is neither Superstitious nor Popish The particular Objections are exceeding many but as Mr. Hooker in his Ep. Dedicatory to his fifth Book for the greatest part such silly things that the easiness renders them hard to be Disputed of in a serious manner I shall briefly consider the most principal of them First For the Litany against which a Cloud of Darts are cast Mr. Hooker a Person of whom it is hard to say whether his Sobriety or Learning may challenge the greatest admiration tells us that the absolute perfection of this piece upbraids with Errour or something worse them whom in all points it doth not satisfy Eccles Pol. B. § 41. Of the rare effects of which he gives us there two famous Instances the one of Mamercus Bishop of Vienna about 450. years after Christ the other of Sidonius Bishop of Averna who by the frequent and fervent use of the Rogation or Litany obtained of God the aversion of portended Calamities and the removing of Famine and a Potent Enemy which besieged them This part of our Service the Litany was Called by the Ancients 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 earnest or intense Prayer and in the Greek Liturgy simply 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 intense or earnest And therefore the Courch requires the Congregation or People to be more exercised in it then in any other part of the Service Concerning which three things have been offered to be justified against any Gainsayers but no man hath yet entred the Lifts 1. That there is not any where extant a more particular excellent enumeration of all the private or common wants of Christians so far as it is likely to come to the cognisance of a Congregation 2. Not a move innocent blameless Form against which there lies no just Objection and most of the unjust ones that have been made are reproachful to Scripture it self from which the Passages excepted against are fetched As for instance That it may please thee to have mercy upon all men from 1. Tim. ii 1. I exhort therefore that first of all Supplications Prayers Intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men Not a more artificial composure for the raising of our zeal and keeping it up then this so defamed part of our Liturgy For which and other Excellencies undoubtedly it is and not for any coniuring or swearing in it as some Blasphemously have said that the Divel hath took such care that it should drink de peest of the bitter cup of calumnie and reviling Secondly For the Responser and following the Presbyter or Priest in the Confession of Sins and Profession of Faith They were designed by the Church from the example of pure Antiquity to very profitable uses as 1. By way of mutual Charity the people returning a prayer for the Priest who begins one peculiarly for them The Lord be with you saith the Priest And with thy Spirit Answer the people 2. To quicken devotion which is but to prone to dull and slacken by continual heairng 3. To engage every one present to be no idle or unprofitable spectatour or auditour of the Service onely Thirdly For the three Creeds the Apostles Nicene and Athanasius his Creed they have been of old a badg of the Church a mark to discern Christians from Infidels and Jews I have not yet heard of any thing objected against the matter of any of them The Apostles Creed whether delivered by the Apostles to the Church by Oral Tradition that famous Tradition so much mentioned by the Fathers or gathered out of the Writings of the Holy Apostles is the sum of the whole Catholick Faith the Key of the Christian Faith That of the Councel of Nice was made in that famous Assembly of 318. Bishops against the Heresie of Arrius who denyed the Coeternity and Coequality of the Son with the Father Athanasius his Creed composed by that Father who alone opposed himself to that Torrent of Arrianism which had over flowed the whole world was both in the East and Western-Church accounted as a Treasure of great price There is not any imaginable ground of rejecting either of these unless is be to gratifie the Separatists who are professed denyers of one Article the Holy Catholick Church Fourthly For the Doxology or Glory be to the Father c. it is a very antient Piece the former Versicle of it being according to good Authours composed by the first Councel of Nice and appointed by those Fathers to be used in the Church as a lesser Creed or Confession of the Trinity and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Consubstantiality of the Son and the Holy Ghost with the Father At which it hath therefore been the Custom antiently to stand up Confession of God being a praising of Him to which that Posture is most due and proper And for the other Versicle As it was in the Beginning c. when the Macedonian Hereticks excepted against the Divinity of the Holy Ghost as a Novel Doctrine Saint Jerom Opposition to them added that unto the former Versicle Fifthly For the reading of the Commandements and the Responses after them It must be acknowledged that it is not antiently to be found in the Church as a part of the Service no not till King Edward's second Liturgie by which yet we have this Advantage That Popery cannot be charged upon it yet it will appear to be a profitable Part of Devotion For the Priest after a Prayer for Grace to love God and keep His Commandements Almighty God unto whom all Hearts be open c. is appointed to stand and read the Commandements distinctly to the People and they to receive them in

many other Books that were thrown into the fire to him it happened that a Common-Prayer-Book fell between his hands which he joyfully received open'd and read till the flame and smoak suffered him not to see any more and then he fell to Prayer holding his hands up to Heaven and the Book between his Arms next his Heart thanking God for that mercy in sending him it Acts Men. pag. 18 18. Doctour Taylor in the Conference between him and Gardiner Jan. 22. Anno 1555. There was saith he set forth by the most innocent King Edward for whom God be praised everlastingly the whole Church-Service with great deliberation and Advice of the Learned Men of the Realm and authorized by the whole Parliament Which Book was never Reformed but once and yet by that one Reformation it was so fully perfected according to the Rules of our Religion in every behalf That no Christian Conscience can be offended with any thing therein contained Acts Mon fol. 1521. Mind the words of this Holy Martyr No Christian Conscience can be offended with any thing therein contained and yet what Swarms of Exceptions fly in the Face of it A plenteous showr of Rain seldom brings forth more Mushroms or Toad-Stools then the late Luxuriant Age hath produced Exceptions against this Book Concerning which take the Judgment of Mr. Hooker Whosoever doth measure them by number must needs be out of love with a thing that hath so many faults Whosoever by weight cannot choose but esteem very highly of that wherein the wit of so scrupulous Adversaries hath not hitherto observed any defect which themselves can seriously think to be of moment Eccles Pol. B. 5. Sect. 27. The examination of these Exceptions will be our third Step. III. The Exceptions commonly brought against our Liturgie are either general or more particular First In general two things are chiefly laid to its charge 1. It is a Superstitious Worship In answer to this First I presume that as they say Proverbially Every man that talks of Robin Hood never shot in his Bow So every one that cryes out Superstition doth not well understand what Superstition is for Superstition in the proper and strict Notion and signification of the Word is the Worship of Idols or Dead Men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Superstites Thus St. Paul tells the Athenians I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious Act. xvii 22. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Thus I suppose no man hath the Fore-head to charge our Liturgie with Superstition Superstition in an improper and more generally-received Notion is when things are either abhor'd or observed with a zealous or fearful but erroneous relation to God By means of which the Superstitious serve either the true God with needless Offices or defraud Him of Necessary Duties or bestow such honour and service upon others as is proper for and should be peculiar to him onely That our Liturgie confers any Honour or Service proper and peculiar to God upon others no man hath yet affirmed That it requires needless Offices to be performed to the true God no man can say who believes that God who made oar Bodies as well as our Souls requires the external Worship of our Bodies as well as the inward Service of our Mind A man cannot express too much in the out-side provided the invisible part come not short of it and I must-say I know not how the stifness of the Knee can be 〈…〉 from defect of Humility at least if not of true Piety also Secondly There may be as much Superstition in rejecting of our Liturgie as in retaining it as much Superstition in opposing as in asserting Ceremonies A Negative Touch not Taste not Kneel not Bow not may be Superstitious as well as the Affirmative An ignorant fear of displeasing God 〈◊〉 such a Form or Circumstance of Worship ●ay be Superstitious as well as a Blind Ze●● or Fear is of all Affections Anger excepted the unaptest to admit any Conference with Reason While a man Superstitiously fears lest he should offend in doing this or that he sins against God and his own Soul in leaving that undone which his Reason if he hearkened to the Voice of it would tell him he might and ought to do This is the first and great but you see groundless Exception against our Liturgie The second is like unto it namely that Our Liturgie is Popish or too near Popery being taken out of the Mass-Book To this I answer First In the words of Learned Mr. Hocker It were violent and extream to say that in nothing they may be followed who are of the Church of Rome They acknowledg the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be the Word of God They make Profession of all the Articles of the Faith one God one Saviour one Baptism it will not I hope be deemed Popery in Us to do so because they do it Some things they do as men some things as wise men some things as Christian men in these we may follow them Some things they do as misled and blinded with Errour As far as they follow Reason and Truth we fear not to tread the same steps in which they have gone and to be their followers While Rome keeps that which is antienter and better others whom we much more affect leaving it for newer and changing it for worse we had rather follow the perfection of them whom we like not then in their defects resemble them whom we love Eccles pol. B. 5. Sect. 28. We are sorry saith Learned Doctour Covel that their weakness taketh offence at that which we hold as an honour and a virtue in the Church of England namely that we have so sparingly and as it were unwillingly dissented from the Church of Rome with whom if the Corruptions of that Church would have given us leave we would have willingly consented in their whole Service which being unsafe and unlawful we follow them notwithstanding in all wherein they follow those Holy and Antient Fathers which first planted the Truth among them Modest Exam. pag. 185. Secondly It is no ways probable were our Liturgie Popish that the Papists would be such violent Opposers of it We are assured by an Argument of Christ's own making that it is not Popish for saith our Saviour Every Kingdom divided against it self is brought to desolation and an house divided against an house falleth Luke xi 17. John Ould in Queen Mary's days wrote against the Papists in Defence of the Common-Prayer-Book And Cranmer made a Challenge That if he might be permitted by the Queen to take to him P. Martyr and four or five more they would enter the Lists with any Papists living and defend the Common-Prayer-Book to be perfectly agreeable to the Word of God and the same in effect which had been for fifteen hundred years in the Church of Christ Thirdly It is a known truth that our Reformers retained not any part of the Popish Service but reformed their