Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	apostle_n	church_n	ground_n	3,148	5	6.8788	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10268	Church-customes vindicated in tvvo sermons preached at Kingstone upon Thames: the one at the primary visitation of the Right Reverend Father in God Richard by the grace of God late L.B. of Winton, anno 1628. The other at the first metropoliticall visitation of the Most Reverend Father in God William by the grace of God Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury his grace, &c. July 9. 1635. By William Quelch B.D. and R. of East-horsly Surrey.	Quelch, William.	1636 (1636)	STC 20555; ESTC S115487	34,301	63

the use in the ancient Church Hieron ep ad Lu●n Aug. ep ad Casulanum to keep the memory of the passion Where doe you reade in the word of God that you ought to receive the Communion fasting yet that was the universal custom of all the Church in Saint Augustines time Epist 118. ad Ianuar. to preserve the honour of the blessed Sacrament To be short if you think the letter of the word be so requisite to every custome you were best to survey the writings of the Apostles and see what order you can find for standing holydayes what speciall warrant for set fasts upon certaine dayes what expresse charge to keep the first day of the week for the Christian Sabbath Vid Dr. Field li. ● ca. 20. Episc Elien●●● tract de Sab. pap 98. what expresse immediate warrant to christen or baptize a young Infant I doubt you will find no more but a generall warrant for any of these though they have been constantly observed in all ages and if every of these have been held by custome being onely grounded upon the generall warrant of the Scriptures and deduced from thence by good consequence without any speciall intimation why should we be tyed to a speciall order for the ruling and disposing of every ceremony If the speciall warrant of the Word be so necessary you were best to blame the Apostles of Christ The Apostles never composed any set forme of outward rite Instit li. 4. ●a 10. sect 30. because they forgot to entreat of particular rites and if a generall warrant be not sufficient you were best to blame the Churches of God because they took too much upon them For the Apostles first you cannot blame them for Calvin himselfe can tell you that they had no commission from the Lord to set downe a forme of outward discipline inasmuch as he foresaw how that depended upon the state of the times neither could he judge any one forme to be agreeable to all people He knew well enough that the Church was subject to waxes and wanes to fulls and changes and vicissitudes and therefore as a rare and cunning workman can hardly make a garment for the moone as Plutarch notes that should equally fit her at all seasons as well in the new as in the full no more could the Apostles judge any one form of unchangeable custome to be agreeable to all times and the various conditions of all people All particulars in this kind depend upon the authority of the Church But then perhaps you will blame the Church because she presumes to run of her selfe without a speciall commission for every custome No surely but where the Word of God is dumbe and silent there the voice of the Church must be attended In this case the very silence of the word gives consent that the cause belongs to another court and seeing the word is silent concerning ceremonies and speaks nothing of them in explicite termes where may we looke for a certaine direction and resolution in that case but from the power of the Church and from the authority of her pastors Ep. ad Casulanum In quibu● 〈◊〉 certi statuit script m●s populi Dei instituta majorum pro lege temenda sunt Saint Augustine being asked his opinion concerning a custome used in his time takes occasion to answer in briefe not onely for that but for all others of the same stamp that where the Word of God determines no certainty there the custome of the Church and the constitutions of her Pastors are to be taken for a law That this was the generall judgement of all the Churches in all ages if any man doubt let him reade the Canons of the Councels Beza lib. conf fidei Chri. ca. 5. for why should the Councels be called together to order the government of the Church and to settle the forme of outward discipline but that they held it a maxime in all ages that the Church had power of things indifferent There is no Divine of our owne side of any note that stick at this power Beza conf fidei Gualt praefat in 2. Cor. Zuin. li. de bapt Chem. loc com tit tradit Mar. in 1 Cor. 1. Calv. com in loc so it goe no further for besides the judgement of Beza Bucer Zuinglius Chemnitius Peter Martyr and generally all the Worthies of these latter times that freely allow it with one consent you shall take the opinion of Calvin one for all who sets it down for a certaine rule upon the light he drew from this present Cap. that every Church of what place soever may safely compose such a forme of discipline as may be most agreeable to it selfe because the Lord therein hath prescribed no certainty The truth is the Apostle himselfe is so cleare in this that no man can make any further doubt for when he seeks to suppresse an upstart custome by a non habemus talem and grounds himselfe upon this reason because they nor the Churches had none such what doth he but inferre by way of consequence that the practice of the Church and determination of her Pastors is warrant enough for any ceremony It makes me wonder the more and who doth not wonder at the froward humour of some peevish Novelists that think all the practice of the Church in things indifferent to be nothing else but usurpation and all her decent and reverend customes that serve for the furtherance of GODs service to bee nothing else but a meere wil-worship Their spight is so great against the present government because it crosses their selfe-will'd humours that they will scarce allow that power to the Church in the meanest things that every Church-warden and meane Artificer would soon challenge if they might be left to their owne liberty Belike the Seers of the Lord are become blind that they cannot discerne the meanest things or else the stewards of the Lord are become unfaithfull that they may not be trusted with the poorest ceremony But well fare the good and courteous Samaritan he was not halfe so strait to the good Inkeeper when he gave him the care of the wounded traveller in the Gospell so willing was he to enlarge his favour that beside the two pence hee left to discharge the reckoning hee gave him leave to spend more and to runne upon the score till his next returne Vid. Aug. de quaest Euang. li. 2. quaest 59. Ambro. Origen in Luc. Maca. Cyrill alios in Cat. G●ae● patrum in Luc. No doubt a large allowance given to a stranger but if we be the wounded travellers as indeed we are that unhappily miscarried in Adams sinne and if the two pence he left us to discharge the reckoning may seeme to allude as most expound it to the two Tables of the Testament I wonder what course we may take to spend the overplus that he may allow it at his comming In necessary expences for food or physick

so much as your obedience to the custome and if you be so stiffe and cruell to your mother that she may not enjoy her ancient customes why should she allow your ancient discipline as you call it which you can never demand upon better warrant You say the Apostles had the Discipline but we are sure of this they had the customes and if you seeke to rob us of those rites which we know the Apostles once delivered why should we give way to your new pretended forme of Geneva discipline which I doubt the Apostles never heard of Shew us that warrant for your discipline as wee have shewed you for our customes and wee shall have cause to hearken to you In the meane while wee have right enough to enjoy our ceremonies by the Apostles leave if not by yours and though you thinke it a ragge of Rome and a relique of Popery and superstition yet we shall rejoyce and triumph at all your taunts as long as we can say with the blessed Apostle habemus consuetudinem wee have a custome c. To have a custome is not much Right of the Chu in holding the customes but all the matter is by what pretended right wee hold the customes No man heares of the customes of the Church for the ordering and disposing of Gods service but presently he begins to examine our Patent and to renew the question of those Priests and Elders Qua potestate Mat. 21.23 By what authoritie doe you these things and who gave you that authority The Church I trow will doe nothing without a warrant and if shee have that warrant from her husband bequeathed unto her in his Testament reade us the Will and it sufficeth But if shee take her power from the will of man or from the favour of Princes or from the authoritie of her governours then you must give us leave to put in a caveat untill it be tryed by the Law Loe this is the plea of all the sectaries in the world Nulla specie illustriore s●duci pos sunt miseri Christians c. Calv. adver Anabapt Shew us your ceremonies in the word of God and we shall be willing to obey and it prevailes the more with many a man because it seemes to give to the written word but if it appeare upon just tryall that the word of God with honour and reverence be it spoken was never constituted as the judge for the speciall designation of particular ceremonies then wee come upon them Luk. 11.22 like the strong man armed in the Gospell that take away their weapons wherein they trust and liave them nothing to object Whilest I take upon me to make this good Particular customes depend not upon the immediate and expresse warrant of the word let no man thinke I dishonour the Scriptures let shame and confusion fall to my portion if I cast any blurre upon that sacred volume I know well that it is the priviledge of the Scripture to bee the onely rule of faith and manners and it was the only scope of the holy Apostles * Ioh. 20.30 to leave a perfect record of all those things that might essentially conduce to our salvation For other accidentall adventitious circumstances that were no part of the service of God but onely an ornament to the service it seemed not good to the Spirit of God that they should passe by the same Patent Well may they passe in generall tearmes as many things are conveyed in every deed under the name of the appurtenances but they are never expressed in that gracious Patent by any speciall intimation Well may they belong to those traditions which the Apostle delivered by word of mouth 2 Thes 2.15 but they can be no part of that holy tradition which he delivered to the Church by his written Epistle Well may you referre them to those rituall orders which our Apostle promised to compose when he came to Corinth ver ult but you cannot referre them to that heavenly doctrine of which the Apostle sayes a little before Accepi à Domina ver 23. I have received from the Lord. The truth is all that I can finde in the new Testament concerning ceremonies is nothing else but a generall warrant that you have in expresse tearmes 1 Car. 14.40 1 Cor. 14.40 That all things bee done decently and According to order but for the speciall practisie and application of this order whether this or that be more agreeable to the rule there the word is so mute and ●●lent that you 〈◊〉 finde the least title No doubt the Apostles composed some speciall orders Calvin Theophil a●● in 〈◊〉 S. Paul 〈…〉 composed the Churches observed what he delivered and if 〈◊〉 of those can bee found in 〈◊〉 Scriptures why should we look for a speciall warrant for the ordering and disposition of things indifferent If the Churches were bound to those strait conditions The Church is not ti●d to any 〈◊〉 such warrant in matter of custome there is none of them all for ought I can see but have forfeited their recognisance long agoe in asmuch as they have used some speciall customes which were not expressed in the sacred Scriptures Cartwright himselfe Pag. 22. sect 1. 2. apud Dr. Whitgift answer to the defence c. the great scourge of all our customes while hee seekes to binde us to the speciall warrant of the word for all particulars is forced to confesse for the Iewish Church that shee had many and sundry customes at least twenty for our one about sacrificing and preaching and burying and marrying and fasting c. which were no where expressed in the law of Moses Vid. S. Bas ep 63. Cypr l. 10. ep 12. l. 4 ep 6. Epist ad Vict. Rom apud E● seb l. 5. cap. 25. 26. Whether the Christian Church had the same liberty no man can doubt that hath read any thing for beside the records of the ancient Fathers who give us some hints of sundry customes about prayer and baptisme and singing of Psalmes and celebration of Easter which I could never finde in the word of God * Adver Praxeam lib. de corona militis Tertullian for his part is resolute and peremptory upon his own knowledge that for matter of rite and outward order Si legem expost●●es scriptu●●r 〈◊〉 i●venies nu●●am If you looke for the Law of the word of God you shall be sure to finde none But to shew this liberty of the Church in some particulars Vid. Hila. praefat in Ps Ie●o●● advers Lucifer Just Mart. lib. quaest idem confirmat Synod Ni● can 20. Where can you finde in the holy Scriptures that we ought to pray standing on the Lords day yet that was the custome of the ancients for a certaine season to preserve the memory of the resurrection Where can you shew in the word of God that we ought to communicate every day yet that was