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A69071 Directions to know the true church. Written by George Carleton, Doctor of Diuinitie Carleton, George, 1559-1628. 1615 (1615) STC 4632; ESTC S112818 32,595 148

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Scriptures they that call you to yeeld your allegeance to your Prince or they that withdraw your hearts and allegeance from your soueraignes they that were neuer found in rebellions and conspiracies or they that stirre vp rebellions against Kings they that hold the same rule of faith which the Church hath alwaies held before them or they that haue changed the rule of Faith Iudge whom you haue best reason to trust and trie the spirits All spirits are tried by the rule of Faith the rule must be one to all Iudge you whether they be not afraid to come to this triall who haue changed the rule whereby they should be tried Cardinall Bellarmine is forced Libr. de ver Dei cap. 2. to say thus much That the rule of Faith must be both certaine and well knowen for if it bee not well knowen it is no rule to vs if it bee not certaine it is no rule at all And he addeth thus much further Nothing is more certaine nothing better knowen then the Scriptures contained in the Propheticall and Apostolical writings Take the confession of their Cardinall and tell them that deceiue you by suggesting another rule that there is but one rule that whatsoeuer they bring besides this it is both vncertaine and vnknowen to you and therefore by their owne confession it cannot bee a rule to you Consider therefore on both sides what is said Against them wee say They haue no Church We prooue it because they hold not Vnitie with the Catholike Church I doe not wrangle by producing sayings out of some of their writers which they may answere that they are not warranted by their Church but I deale with their Church it selfe and their Trent Councill and haue brought their long and tedious discourses to this short issue Whether they haue not changed the rule of Faith in their Trent Councill which before that time was euer held the rule of Faith in the Church of God This is the thing which I earnestly entreat you to search out By this you may vnderstand where the trueth is where the Church is Then much haue wee against them But what bring they against vs Against our Church they haue nothing to say wee holde the rule of Faith which the church of Rome euer held before the Trent Councill We hold Ordination and Succession euen from the Apostles albeit our succession be not from the Church of Rome nor by that Church yet we hold it sure and that not without the testimony of that Church In these things the learned make no doubt onely there bee some ignorant men and corrupted with malice that haue deuised a strange tale to slander our Ordination suggesting among the simple people that we haue not a true Ministery wherein whether ignorance or malice haue exceeded iudge you I will relate the tale as they haue deuised it Some of our owne seduced and seducing countreymen haue written that Sandes Scorie Horne Grindall Iewel and others in the beginning of the reigne of Queene Elizabeth met at the Nagge 's head in Cheape side where they looked for the Bishop of Landaffe who should come to ordeine them there But Bonner then being prisoner in the Towre vnderstanding this sent his Chaplaine to the Bishop of Landaffe denouncing and charging him vpon paine of excommunication not to ordeine those that then and there expected him The Bishop of Landaffe being terrified with that denunciation refused to come and ordeine them Whereupon they concluded that his Ordination was needlesse and so Scorie beeing but a Monke ordained the rest and some of the other being ordeined by Scorie laid handes vpon Scorie This is the tale a tale so odious would haue bene made somewhat probable All that is brought to confirme it is that Mr. Neall the Hebrewe Reader at Oxford should confesse this to his Confessours who tolde it to these men and they tell it to you and you beleeue it By this you may perceiue how shamelesse they are that seduce you with such absurd tales But all their hope is in your facilitie and credulitie for answere to this tale and all other of this kinde against our Ordination M ● FRANCIS MASON hath dealt learnedly and faithfully declaring the Consecration of all our Bishoppes that haue beene in the late Queenes time and some yeeres before out of the publike Records which are kept that all men may see them that will I will brieflly relate the summe of his answere that the shame may returne vpon those shamelesse deuisers of such strange vntrueths Iohn Scorie was consecrated Bishop of Hereford anno 1551. in King Edwards time August 30. by Thomas Canterburie Nicholas Lond. Iohn Bedford recorded in the Register of Archbishop Cranmer fol. 334. The deuiser of this strange vntrueth was but a sillie shifter to set the Consecration of this man with them that were consecrated in the time of Queene ELIZABETH hee hath made the lie improbable and impossible Edmund Grindall was consecrated Bishop of London anno 1559. Decemb. 21. by Matth. Canterburie William Cicester Iohn Hereford Iohn Bedford out of the Register kept in Archbishop Parkers time cap. 1. fol. 18. Edwine Sandes was consecrated anno 1559. December 21. by Matth. Canter William Cicester Iohn Hereford Iohn Bedford out of the Register kept in Archbishop Parkers time fol. 39. These were consecrated in the Chappell at Lambeth the Sabboth day before noone after morning prayer with imposition of handes and with such forme of wordes and prayers as are vsed in the Church where there was a Sermon preached by Master Nowell then the Archbishop his Chaplaine vpon this text Take heed to your Act. 20. 28. selues and to all the flocke whereof the holy Ghost hath made you ouerseers And a Communion reuerently administred by the Archbishop Iohn Iewel was consecrated Bishop of Salisbury Anno 1559. Ianuary 21. by Matthew Canterb. Edmond London Rich. Elie Iohn Bedford taken out of the Register in Archb. Parkers time fol. 46. in the Chappell at Lambeth vpon the Sabboth in the forenoone with Common prayers and Communion and a Sermon preached by Mr. Andrew Peirson the Archbish his Chaplaine Matth. 5. 16. vpon this Text Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good workes and glorifie your Father which is in heauen Robert Horne was consecrated anno 1560. February 16. by Matthew Canterbury Thomas Menen Edmond London Thomas Couentrie and Lichfield ex Registro Parker chap. 1. fol. 88. in the Chappell at Lambeth the Sabboth day the forenoone the manner whereof in all respects was as the former By this you may vnderstand what manner of men they are who seduce you Is there any thing so shamelesse which these men doe not venture vpon who dare venture to tell you such a tale that by publike euidences may so easily so vnanswereably be conuinced These are your guides and leaders is it likely that these men should leade you into the way of trueth Once free your selues
thinke it sufficient to receiue the outward signe of the Sacrament of Baptisme without inward grace as these men teach but hee holdeth the inward spirituall grace to be needfull and therefore declaring that spirituall grace he sayth Wee are baptized by one Spirit into one body For seeing that by the grace of Baptisme men are regenerate and made the sons of God therefore this vnitie which the Church hath by the Sacrament of Baptisme is defined by the Apostle not to be externall perceiued by sense as these teach but to be internall and spirituall For by one Spirit we are baptised into one body that is by one Spirit wee are regenerate and are made members of this holy body the Church And therefore the Apostle ioyneth these three things together One Lord one faith one Baptisme Ephe. 4. 3. as if he should say One head one rule one body of beleeuers regenerated by baptisme We are forced from euidence of the trueth to vnderstand Baptisme from the words of the Apostle not of the externall perception but of the inward grace of the Sacrament because what he meaneth by one Baptisme himselfe declareth when he sayth By one Spirit wee are all baptised into one body The summe is this vnitie which the Church hath from the Spirit is a spirituall grace without which inward spirituall grace no man can haue the communion of the holy Ghost or be a member of Christ his Church in the vnitie of one Spirit But without this inward spiritual grace a man may bee a member of the Church of Rome therefore the Church of Rome is not the Church of Christ forasmuch as that Church is fallen away from the vnitie of the Spirit which knitteth all the members of the Church together The fourth vnitie whereby the Church is knowen to be one and the same alwayes is the vnitie of Faith For the true Church from the Apostles hauing receiued the true faith hath helde the same vnto this day and must holde it without change vnto the end of the world And therefore the ancient Fathers were wont to prooue the Church to be alwayes the same in many generations and successions because the same faith was alwayes helde in the Church without change whereupon S. Hierome commenting vpon the 23. Psalme vpon these words Haec est generatio quaerentium dominum sayth Ecclesia ex pluribus personis congregatur tamen vna dicitur propter vnitatem fidei that is The Church is gathered together of diuers persons and yet it is said to be one for the vnitie of faith Then they who hold not this vnitie can neuer prooue that they haue the vnitie of the Church which Christ redeemed with his blood which the Apostles taught and planted The faith of the Church is said to bee one because the rule of faith is one and the same from the beginning of the Church to the ende the rule of faith is the doctrine of faith contained in the holy Scriptures This is the rule that ruleth the Church for the Church must teach the true faith and that is the true faith which the Church teacheth out of the holy Scriptures so that wee must not take whatsoeuer the Church teacheth without any limitation or rule For the Church hath a rule to teach by this rule is the rule of faith taken out of the holy Scriptures so long as any particular Church teacheth according to this rule so long is that Church to be heard but if a Church once fall away from this rule of faith then it ceaseth to be a true Church of God as many particular Churches haue fallen away because they haue forsaken this rule of faith First therefore I will proue out of the Scriptures and ancient fathers that the true Church is knowen by the rule of faith And then I wil demōstrate that this rule of faith is no other thing then the true doctrines of faith conteined in the Scripture By which meanes it wil appeare what is the true Church and where it is to bee found The Apostle proouing that the Ephesians were a true Church of God saith You are no more strangers Eph. 2. 20. but felow citisens with the Saints and of the houshold of God are built vpon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets Christ Iesus himselfe being the chiefe corner Stone In which wordes hee declareth what the true Church is an assembly of Saints the houshold of God vpon what foundation it is built for the doctrine of the faith vpon which the Church is built is called a foundation And because this doctrine is cōteined in the holy scriptures written by the Prophets and Apostles therefore it is called the foūdation of the prophets Apostles Then the church is built vpon this foundation that is vpon the faith cōteined in the Scriptures written by the prophets Apostles And if any Church change once this foundation that ceaseth to be a true Church of Christ Of diuers testimonies of fathers I will cite a fewe Clemens Alexandrinus saith Wee Libr. 7. stromatum say that the ancient and Catholike Church is knowen to be in the vnitie of one Faith which faith is contained in the proper Testaments or rather in one Testament which in diuers times is Contra omnes hereses one Athanasius saith The Orthodoxe Church truely reading and exactly examining the holy Scriptures doeth edifie it selfe vpon the Rocke The Authour Hom. 49. of the imperfect worke vpon Matt. saith If any would know what is the true Church how shall hee know this but onely by Scriptures S. Austin saith In the Epist 60. Scriptures we learne Christ in the Scriptures we learne to know the Church of Christ. Vincentius Licinensis saith The Church of Lib. contr heres cap. 32. Christ is a carefull keeper of the doctrines committed to her shee changeth nothing of them at any time she diminisheth nothing she addeth nothing shee cutteth off nothing necessary shee putteth to nothing superfluous shee looseth not her owne shee vsurpeth no strange doctrine Bede saith The In Iohn lib. 1. c. 12 foundation of the Church is the soundnesse of the Faith of the Apostles and Prophets According to these speake the rest because wee would not stay too long vpon testimonies Whereby it appeareth that this hath beene the common doctrine of the Church that the true Church is knowen by holding the rule of faith which true faith the Prophets and Apostles haue written and declared to the Church So that heerein standeth the ministerie of the Church in preseruing this faith for euer sound which by the holy men inspired of God to write the Scriptures is left to the Church Or as S. Iude faith Iude 3. To contend earnestly for the faith which was once deliuered to the Saints Now that this rule of faith is no other thing sauing only the true doctrine of the Scripture it will appeare if wee briefly consider the testimonies of the Scriptures and doctrines