Testament answered 84 Concerning the various Readings 85 The nature and degrees of Inspiration 86 Concerning the Historical parts of Scripture 87 Concerning the Reasonings in Scripture 88 Of the Apocryphal Books 89 ARTICLE VII 91 NO difference between the Old and New Testament Ibid. Proofs in the Old Testament of the Messias 92 In the Prophets chiefly in Daniel 94 The Proofs all summed up 95 Objections of the Jews answered 96 The hopes of anotheâ— Life in the Old Testament 97 Our Saviour proved the Resurrection from the words to Moses 98 Expiation of Sin in the Old Dispensation 99 Sins then expiated by the Blood of Christ Ibid. Of the Rites and Ceremonies among the Jews 100 Of their Iudiciary Laws 101 Of the Moral Law Ibid. The Principles of Morality 102 Of Idolatry 103 Concerning the Sabbath Ibid. Of the Second Table 104 Of not coveting what is our Neighbours 105 ARTICLE VIII 106 COncerning the Creed of Athanasius Ibid. And the condemning Clauses in it Ibid. Of the Apostles Creed 107 ARTICLE IX 108 DIfferent Opinions concerning Original Sin Ibid. All men liable to Death by it 109 A Corruption spread through the whole Race of Adam Ibid. Of the state of Innocence 110 Of the effects of Adam's Fall 111 God's Iustice vindicated 112 Of the Imputation of Adam's Sin 113 St. Austin's Doctrine in this Point 114 This is opposed by many others Ibid. Both sides pretend their Doctrines agree with the Article 116 ARTICLE X. 117 THE true Notion of Liberty Ibid. The Feebleness of our present state 118 Inward Assistances promised in the New Covenant 119 The effect that these have on men 120 Concerning Preventing-Grace Ibid. Of its being efficacious or universal 121 ARTICLE XI 122 COncerning Iustification Ibid. Concerning Faith 123 The differences between the Church of England and the Church of Rome in this Point 124 The conditions upon which men are justified 126 The use to be made of this Doctrine 127 ARTICLE XII 128 THE necessity of Holiness Ibid. Concerning Merit 129 Of the defects of Good Works Ibid. ARTICLE XIII 131 ACTIONS in themselves good yet may be sins in him who does them Ibid. Of the Seventh Chapter to the Romans 132 This is not a total Incapacity Ibid. ARTICLE XIV 133 Oâ— the great extent of our Duty Ibid. No Counsels of Perfection 134 Many Duties which do not bind at all times Ibid. It is not possible for man to supererogate 135 Objections against this answered 136 The steps by which that Doctrine prevailed 137 ARTICLE XV. 138 CHrist's spotless Holiness Ibid. Of the Imperfections of the best men 139 ARTICLE XVI 140 COncerning Mortal and Venial Sin Ibid. Of the Sin against the Holy Ghost Ibid. Of the Pardon of Sin after Baptism 141 That as God forgives the Church ought also to forgive 142 Concerning Apostacy and sin unto Death 143 ARTICLE XVII 145 THE state of the Question 146 The Doctrine of the Supralapsarians and Sublapsarians Ibid. The Doctrine of the Remonstrants and the Socinians 147 This is a Controversy that arises out of Natural Religion Ibid. The History of this Controversy both in ancient and modern times 148 The Arguments of the Supralapsarians 152 The Arguments of the Sublapsarians 158 The Arguments of the Remonstrants 159 They affirm a certain Prescience 161 The Socinians Plea 164 General Reflections on the whole matter 165 The advantages and disadvantages of both sides and the faults of both 166 In what both do agree 167 The sense of the Article 168 The Cautions added to it Ibid. Passages in the Liturgy explained 169 ARTICLE XVIII 171 PHilosophers thought men might be saved in all Religions Ibid. So do the Mahometans Ibid. None are saved but by Christ 172 Whether some may not be saved by him who never heard of him Ibid. None are in Covenant with God but through the knowledge of Christ 173 But for others we cannot judge of the extent of the Mercies of God Ibid. Curiosity is to be restrained 174 ARTICLE XIX 175 WE ought not to believe that any are Infallible without good Authority Ibid. Iust prejudices against some who pretend to it 176 No Miracles brought to prove this Ibid. Proofs brought from Scripture 177 Things to be supposed previous to these Ibid. A Circle is not to be admitted Ibid. The Notes given of the true Church 178 These are examined Ibid. And whether they do agree to the Church of Rome 179 The Truth of Doctrine must be first settled Ibid. A Society that has a true Baptism is a true Church 180 Sacraments are not annulled by every Corruption Ibid. We own the Baptism and Orders given in the Church of Rome 181 And yet justify our separating from them Ibid. Objections against private judging 182 Our Reasons are given us for that end Ibid. Our Minds are free as our Wills are 183 The Church is still Visible but not Infallible Ibid. Of the Popes Infallibility 184 That was not pretended to in the first Ages Ibid. The Dignity of Sees rose from the Cities 185 Popes have fallen into Heresy Ibid. Their Ambition and Forgeries Ibid. Their Cruelty 186 The Power of deposing Princes claimed by them as given them by God Ibid. This was not a Corruption only of Discipline but of Doctrine 187 Arguments for the Popes Infallibility 188 No Foundation for it in the New Testament Ibid. St. Peter never clâ—imed it 189 Christ's words to him explained Ibid. Of the Kâ—ys of the Kingdâ—m of Hâ—â—vâ—n 190 Of binding and loosing Ibid. ARTICLE XX. 192 OF Church Power in Rituals Ibid. The Practice of the Jewish Church 193 Changes in these sometimes necâ—ssary Ibid. The Practice of the Ap stles 194 Sâ—bjâ—cts must obey in lawful things Ibid. But Superiâ—rs must not impose too much 195 The Church has Authority though not Infallible Ibid. Great Respâ—ct due to her Decisions 196 But no absâ—lute Submâ—ssion Ibid. The Church is the Depâ—sitary of the Scriptures 197 The Church of Rome run in a Circle Ibid. ARTICLE XXI 199 COuncils cannot be called but by the Consent of Princes Ibid. Tâ—e first were called by the Roman Emperors Ibid. Afterwards the Popes called them 200 Then some Councils thought on methods to fix their meeting Ibid. What makâ—s a Council to be General Ibid. What numbers are necessary 201 Hâ—w thâ—y must he cited Ibid. Nâ— Rules given in Scripture concerning their Constitution Ibid. Nazianzen's Complaints of Councils 202 Councils have been câ—ntrary to one another Ibid. Disâ—rders and Intriguâ—s in Councils Ibid. They judgâ— not by Inspiration Ibid. The Churches may examine their proceedings and judge of them 203 Concerning the Popes Bull confirming them Ibid. Thâ—y have an Authority but not absolute Ibid. Nâ—r do they need the Popes Bulls 204 The several Churches know their Traditions best Ibid. The Fathers do argue for the truth of the decisions but not from their authority Ibid. No prospect of another General Council 205 Popes are jealous of them Ibid. And the World expects little from them Ibid. Concerning the words
Tell the Church Ibid. Hâ—w the Church is the Pillar and Ground of Truth 206 Christ's Promise I am with you alway even to the end of the world Ibid. Of that It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us Ibid. Some Generâ—l Councils have ereed 207 ARTICLE XXII 217 THE Dâ—ctrine of Purgatory Ibid. Sins once pardâ—ned are not punished 218 Vnlâ—ss with chastisements in this life 219 No state of satisfaction aftâ—r death Ibid. No mention made of that in Scripture 220 But it is plain to the contrary 221 Different Opinions among the Ancients Ibid. The Original of Purgatory 222 A pâ—ssâ—ge in Maccabees considered Ibid. A pâ—ssâ—ge in the Epistle to the Corinthians câ—nsidered 223 The prâ—gress â—f the â—elief of Purgatory 2â—4 Prayers for the dead among the Ancients 225 Endâ—wments for redeeming out of Purgâ—toâ—y 226 Whether these ought to be sacred or nâ—t 227 The Doctrine of Pardons and Indulgences 228 It is only the excusing from Penance 229 Nâ— Foundation for it in Scripâ—ure Ibid. General Rules concerning Idolatry 230 Of the Iâ—olatry of Hâ—athens 231 Laws given to the Jews against it Ibid. The Expostulâ—â—ions of the Prophets 232 Concerning the Golden Calf Ibid. And The Calves at Dan and Bethel 233 The Ap stles opposed all Idolatry Ibid. St. Paul at Athens and to the Romans 334 The sense of the Primitive upon it 235 The first use of Images among Christians Ibid. Pictures in Churches for Instruction 236 Were afterwards worshipped Ibid. Contests abâ—ut that Ibid. Images of the Deity and Trinity 237 On what theWorship of Images terminates 238 The due Worship settled by the Council at Trent Ibid. Images consecrated and how 239 Arguments for worshipping them answered Ibid. Arguments against the use or worship of Images 240 The worship of Relicks 241 A due regard to the Bodies of Martyrs Ibid. The progress of Superstition Ibid. No warrant for this in Scripture 242 Hezekiah broke the Brazen Serpent Ibid. The memorable passage concerning the Body of St. Polycarp 243 Fables and Forgeries prevailed Ibid. The Souls of the Martyrs believed to hover about their Tombâ— 244 Nothing of this kind objected to the first Christians Ibid. Disputes between Vigilantius and St. Jerom 245 No Invocation of Saints in the Old Testament 246 The Invocating Angels condemned in the New Tâ—stament 247 No Saints invocated Christ only Ibid. No mention of this in the three first Ages 248 In the Fourth Martyrs invocated Ibid. The progrâ—ss that this made 249 Scandalous Offices in the Church of Rome Ib. Arguments against this Invocation 2â—0 An Apology for those who begun it Ibid. The Scandal given by it 251 Arguments for it ansâ—ered 252 Whethâ—r the Saints see all things in God Ib. This no part of the Communion of Saints 253 Prayers ought to be directed only to God Ib. Revealed Religion designed to deliver the World from Idolatry 254 ARTICLE XXIII 255 A Succâ—ssiâ—n of Pastors ought to be in the Church Ibid. 〈◊〉 was settlâ—d by the Apostles 256 And must continue to the end of the World Ibid. It was settlâ—d in the first Age of the Church 257 The danger of mâ—ns taking to themselves this Authority without a due Vocation Ibid. The difference between means of Salvation and precâ—pts for orders sake 258 What is lawful Authority Ibid. What may be done upon extraordinary occasions 259 Necessity is above Rules of Order Ibid. The High Priests in â—ur Saviour's time 260 Baptism by Women 261 ARTICLE XXIV 262 THE chief end of worshipping God Ib. The Practice of the Jews 263 Rules given by the Apostles Ibid. The Prâ—ctice â—f the Church 264 Arguments for Worship in an unknown Tongue answered Ibid. ARTICLE XXV 266 DIfference between Sacraments and Rites Ibid. Sacraments do not imprint a Character 267 But are not mere Ceremâ—nies 268 What is necessary to constitute a Sacrament 269 That applied to Baptism Ib. And to the Eucharist 270 No meâ—tion of seven Sacraments before Peter Lombard Ibid. Confirmation no Sacrament Ibid. How practised among us Ibid. The use of Chrism in it is new 271 Oyl early used in Christian Rituals Ibid. Bishops only consecrated the Chrism 272 In the Greek Church Presbyters appliâ—d it Ibid. This used in the Western Church but condemned by the Popes Ibid. Disputes concerning Confirmation 273 Concerning Penance Ibid. The true Notion of Repentance Ibid. Confâ—ssion not the matter of a Sacrament 274 The use of Confession Ibid. The Priâ—st's Pardon Ministerial 275 And restrained within bounds Ibid. Auricular Confâ—ssion not necessary 276 Not commanded in the New Testament Ibid. The beginnings of it in the Church 277 Many Canons about Penance Ibid. Confession forbid at Constantinople 278 The ancient Dâ—scipline slâ—ckâ—n'd Ibid. Confâ—ssion may be advised but not commanded 279 The good and bad effâ—cts it may have Ibid. Of Contrition and Attrition 280 The ill effects of the Doctrine of Attrition Ibid. Of doing the Penance or Satisfaction 281 Concerning sorrow for sin Ibid. Of the ill effects of hasty Absolutions 282 Of Fasting and Prayer Ibid. Of the Form I absolve thee 283 Of Hâ—ly Orders 284 Of the ancient Form of Ordinations Ibid. Of delivering the Vessels 285 Orders no Sacrament Ibid. Whether Bishops and Priests are of the same Order 286 Of Marriage Ibid. It can be no Sacrament 287 Intention not necessary Ibid. How Marriage is called a Mystery or Sacrament 288 Marriage dissolved by Adultery Ibid. The Practice of the Church in this matter 289 Of Extreme Vnction Ibid. St. James's words explained 290 Oyl much used in ancient Rituals 291 Pope Innocent's Epistle considered Ibid. Anointing used in order to Recovery 292 Afterwards as the Sacrament of the dying 293 The Sacraments are to be used Ibid. And to be received worthily 294 ARTICLE XXVI 295 SAcraments are not effectual as Prayers are Ibid. Of the Doctrine of Intention 296 The ill consâ—quences of it 297 Of a just Severity in Discipline Ibâ—d Particularly towards the Clergy 298 ARTICLE XXVII 299 COncerning St. John's Baptism Ibid. The Jews used Baptism Ibid. The Christian Baptism 300 The difference between it and St. John's Ib. The necessity of Baptism 301 It is a Precept but not a Mean of Salvation Ibid. Baptism unites us to the Church 302 It also saves us Ibid. St. Peter's words explained 303 St Austin's Doctrine of Baptism Ibid. Baptism is a Foederal Stipulation 304 In what sense it was of more value to preach than to baptize Ibid. Of Infant-Baptism 305 It is grounded on the Law of Nature Ibid. And the Law of Moses and warranted in the New Testament Ibid. In what sense Children can be holy 306 It is also very expedient Ibid. ARTICLE XXVIII 308 THE change made in this Article in Queen Elizabeth's time Ibid. The Explanation of our Doctrine 309 Of the Rituals in the Passover Ibid. Of the words This is my Body 310 And This Cup is the New Testament in my Blood Ibid. Of the horror the Jews had at Blood 311 In what sense only the Disciples could understand our
an Oral Tradition which they themselves had not put in writing They do sometimes refer themselves to such things as they had delivered to particular Churches but by Tradition in the Apostles days and for some Ages after it is very clear that they meant only the conveyance of the Faith and not any unwritten Doctrines They reckoned the Faith was a sacred depositum which was committed to them and that was to be preserved pure among them But it were very easy to shew in the continued Succession of all the first Christian Writers That they still Appealed to the Scriptures That they Argued from them That they Condemned all Doctrines that were not contained in them and when at any time they brought human Authorities to justify their Opinions or Expressions they contented themselves with a very few and those very late Authorities So that their design in vouching them seems to be rather to clear themselves from the Imputation of having innovated any thing in the Doctrine or in the ways of expressing it than that they thought those Authorities were necessary to prove them by For in that case they must have taken a great deal more pains than they did to have followed up and proved the Tradition much higher than they went We do also plainly see that such Traditions as were not founded on Scripture were easily corrupted and on that account were laid aside by the succeeding Ages Such were the Opinion of Christ's Reign on Earth for a Thousand years The Saints not seeing God till the Resurrection The necessity of giving Infants the Eucharist The Divine Inspiration of the 70 Interpreters besides some more important Matters which in respect to those Times are not to be too much descanted upon It is also plain That the Gnosticks the Valentinians and other Hereticks began very early to set up a Pretension to a Tradition delivered by the Apostles to some particular persons as a Key for understanding the secret meanings that might be in Scripture in opposition to which both Irenaeus Tertullian and others Iren. I. 3. c. 1 2 3 4 5. Tertul. de presc Cap. 20 21 25 27 28. make use of Two sorts of Arguments The one is the Authority of the Scripture it self by which they confuted their Errors The other is a Point of Fact That there was no such Tradition In asserting this they appeal to those Churches which had been founded by the Apostles and in which a Succession of Bishops had been continued down They say in these we must search for Apostolical Tradition This was not said by them as if they had designed to establish Tradition as an Authority distinct from or equal to the Scriptures But only to shew the falshood of that pretence of the Hereticks and that there was no such Tradition for their Heresies as they gave out When this whole Matter is considered in all its parts such as 1 st That nothing is to be believed as an Article of Faith unless it appears to have been Revealed by God 2 dly That Oral Tradition appâ—ars both from the Nature of Man and the Experience of former Times to be an incompetent conveâ—er of Truth 3 dly That some Books were written for the conveyance of those Matters which have been in all Ages carefully preserved and esteemed sacred 4 thly That the Writers of the First Ages do always Argue from and Appeal to these Books And 5 thly That what they have said without Authority from them has been rejected in succeeding Ages the Truth of this Branch of our Article is fully made out If what is contain'd in theScripture in express words is theObject of our Faith then it will follow That whatsoever may be proved from thence by a just and lawful consequence is also to be believed Men may indeed Err in framing these Consequences and Deductions they may mistake or stretch them too far but though there is much Sophistry in the World yet there is also true Logick and a certain Thread of Reasoning And the sense of every Proposition being the same whether expressed always in the same or in different words then whatsoever appears to be clearly the sense of any place of Scripture is an Object of Faith tho it should be otherwise expressed than as it is in Scripture and every just Inference from it must be as true as the Proposition it self is Therefore it is a vain cavil to ask express words of Scripture for every Article That was the Method of all the Anciâ—nt Hereticks Christ and his Apostles Argued from the words and passages in the Old Testament to prove such things as agreed with the true sense of them and so did all the Fathers and therefore so may we do The great Objection to this is That the Scriptures are dark That the same place is capable of different Senses the Literal and the Mystical And therefore since we cannot understand the true Sense of the Scripture we must not Arguefrom it but seek for an Interpreterofit on whom we may depend All Sects Argue from thence and fancy that they find their Tenets in it And therefore this can be no sure way of finding out sacred Truth since so many do err that follow it In Answer to this it is to be considered That the Old Testament was delivered to the whole Nation of the Iews that Moses was read in the Synagogue in the hearing of the Women and Children that whole Nation was to take their Doctrine and Rules from it All Appeals wâ—re made to the Law and to the Prophets among them And though the Propâ—â—cies of the Old Testament were in their Stile and whole Contexture dark and hard to be understood yet when so great a Question as this Who was the true Messias came to be examined the proofs urged for it were Passages in the Old Testament Now the Question was How these were to be understood No Appeal was here made to Tradition or to Church-Authority but only by the Enemies of our Saviour Whereas he and his Disciples urge these passages in their true sense and in the consequences that arose out of them They did in that Appeal to the rational Faculties of those to whom they spoke The Christian Religion was at first delivered to poor and simple Multitudes who were both illiterate and weak the Epistles which are by much the hardest to be understood of the whole New Testament were Addressed to the whole Churches to all the Faithful or Saints that is to all the Christians in those Churches These were afterwards read in all thâ—ir Assemblies Upon this it may reasonably be asked Were these Writings clear in that Age or were they not If they were not it is unaccountable why they were addressed to the whole Body and how they came to be received and entertained as they were It is the End of Speech and Writing to make things to be understood and it is not supposable That Men Inspired by the Holy Ghost either could not or would
If God has clearly revealed it we must acquiesce in it because we are sure if he has lodged Infallibility any where he will certainly maintain his own Work and not require us to believe any one implicitly and not the same time preserve us from the danger of being deceived by him But we must not persume from our Notions of things to give Rules to God It were as we may think very necessary that Miracles should be publickly done from time to time for convincing every Age and Succession of Men and that good Men should be so assisted as generally to live without Sin These and several other things may seem to us extreme convenient and even necessary but things are not so ordered for all that It is also certain That if God has lodged such an Infallibility on Earth it ought not to be in such hands as do naturally heighten our Prejudices against it It will go against the grain to believe it though all outward appearances lookt ever so fair for it But it will be an unconceivable method of Providence if God should lodge so wonderful an Authority in hands that look so very unlike it that of all others we should the least expect to find it with them If they have been guilty of Notorious Impostures to support their own Authority if they have committed great Violences to extend it and have been for some Ages together engaged in as many false unjust and cruel Practices as are perhaps to be met with in any History These are such prejudices that at least they must be overcome by very clear and unquestionable Proofs And finally if God has setled such a Power in his Church we must be distinctly directed to those in whose hands it is put so that we may fall into no mistake in so important a Matter This will be the more necessary if there are different pretenders to it We cannot be supposed to be bound to believe an Infallibility in general unless we have an equal Evidence directing us to those with whom it rests and who have the dispensing of it These general Considerations are of great weight in Deciding this Question and will carry us far into some Preliminaries which will appear to be indeed great steps towards the conclusion of the matter There are Three ways by which it may be pretended that Infallibility can be proved The one is the way of Moses and the Prophets of Christ and his Apostles who by clear and unquestionable Miracles publickly done and well attested or by express and circumstantiated Prophecies of things to come that came afterwards to be verified did evidently demonstrate that they were sent of God Wheresoever we see such Characters and that a Miracle is wrought by Men who say they are sent of God which cannot be denied nor avoided and if what such Persons deliver to us is neither contrary to our Ideas of God and of Morality nor to any thing already revealed by God there we must conclude that God has lodged an Infallible Authority with them as long and as far as that Character is stampt upon it That is not pretended here For though they study to persuade the World that Miracles are still among them yet they do not so much as say that the Miracles are wrought by those with whom this Infallibility is lodged and that they are done to prove them to be Infallible For though God should bestow the Gift of Miracles upon some particular Persons among them that is no more an Argument that their Church is Infallible than the Miracles that Elijah or Elisha wrought were Arguments to prove that the Iewish Church was Infallible Indeed the Publick Miracles that belong'd to the whole Body such as the Cloud of Glory the Answers by the Vrim and Thummim the Trial of Jealousy and the constant Plenty of the Sixth Year as preparatory to the Sabbatical Year seem more reasonably to infer an Infallibility because these were given to that whole Church and Nation But yet the Iewish Church was far from being Infallible all that while for we see they fell all in a Body into Idolatry upon several occasions Those Publick Miracles proved nothing but that for which they were given which was That Moses was sent of God and that his Law was from God which they saw was still Attested in a continuance of extraordinary Characters If Infallibility had been promised by that Law then the continuance of the Miracles might have been urged to prove the Continuance of the Infallibility but that not being promised the Miracles were only a standing Proof of the Authority of their Law and of God's being still among them And thus though we should not dispute the Truth of the many Legends that some are daily bringing forth which yet we may well do since they are believed to be true by few among themselves they being considered among the greater part of the knowing Men of that Church as Arts to entertain the Credulity and Devotion of the People and to work upon their fears and hopes but chiefly upon their Purses All these I say when confessed will not serve to prove that there is an Infallibility among them unless they can prove that these Miracles are wrought to prove this Infallibility The second sort of Proofs that they may bring is from some Passages in Scripture that seem to import that it was given by Christ to the Church But though in this dispute all these Passages ought to be well considered and sanswered yet they ought not to be urged to prove this Infallibility till everal other things are first proved such as That the Scriptures are the Word of God That the Book of the Scriptures is brought down pure and uncorrupted to our hands and that we are able to understand the meaning of it For before we can argue from the parts of any Book as being of Divine Authority all these things must be previously certain and be well made out to us so that we must be well assured of all those Particulars before we may go about to Prove any thing by any Passages drawn out of the Scriptures Further these Passages suppose that those to whom this Infallibility belongs are a Church We must then know what a Church is and what makes a Body of Men to be a Church before we can be sure that they are that Society to whom this Infallibility is given And since there may be as we know that in fact there are great differences among several of those Bodies of Men called Churches and that they condemn one another as guilty of Error Schism and Heresy we are sure that all these cannot be Infallible for Contradictions cannot be true So then we must know which of them is that Society where this Infallibility is to be found And if in any one Society there should be different Opinions about the Seat of this Infallibility these cannot be all true though it is very possible that they may be all false
It is certain a bare Name cannot qualify a Number of Bishops Sitting together to be this General Council The Numbers of Bishops does it not neither A Hundred and fifty was a small Number at Constantinople Even the famous Three hundred and eighteen at Nice were far exceeded by those at Arimini All the First General Councils were made up for the most part of Eastern Bishops there being a very inconsiderable Number of the Western among any of them scarce any at all being to be found in some If this had been the Body to whom Christ had left this Infallibility it cannot be imagined but that some Definition or Description of the Constitution of it would have been given us in the Scripture And the profound silence that is about it gives just occasion to think that how Wise and how Good soever such a Constitution may be if well pursued yet it is not of a Divine Institution otherwise somewhat concerning so Important a Head as this is must have been mentioned in the Scripture The Natural Idea of a General Council is a Meeting of all the Bishops of Christendom or at least of Proxies Instructed by them and their Clergy Now if any will stand to this Description then we are very sure that there was never yet a True General Council Which will appear to every one that reads the Subscriptions of the Councils Therefore we must conclude That General Councils are not Constituted by a Divine Authority since we have no Direction given us from God by which we may know what they are and what is necessary to their Constitution And we cannot suppose that God has granted any Privileges much less Infallibility which is the greatest of all to a Body of Men of whom or of whose Constitution he has said nothing to us For suppose we should yield that there were an Infallibility lodged in general in the Church diffusive so that the Church in some Part or other shall be always preserved from Error yet the restraining this to the greater Number of such Bishops as shall happen to come to a Council they living perhaps near it or being more capable and more forward to undertake a Journey being Healthier Richer or more Active than others or which is as probable because it has often fallen out they being picked out by Parties or Princes to carry on Cabals and manage such Intrigues as may be on Foot at the Council The restraining the Infallibility I say to the greater Number of such Persons unless there is Divine Authority for doing it is the Transferring the Infallibility from the whole Body to a select Number of Persons who of themselves are the least likely to Consent to the engrossing this Privilege to the Majority of their Body it being their Interest to maintain their Right to it free from Intrigue or Management We need not wonder if such things have happen'd in the latter Ages when Nazianzen laments the Corruptions the Ambition and the Contentions that reigned in those Assemblies in his own time so that he never desired to see any more of them He was not only present at one of the General Councils but he himself felt the Effects of Jealousie and Violence in it Further it will appear a thing incredible That there is an Infallibility in Councils because they are called General and are Assembled out of a great many Kingdoms and Provinces when we see them go backward and forward according to the Influences of Courts and of Interests directed from thence We know how differently Councils Decreed in the Arian Controversies and what a variety of them Constantius set up against that at Nice So it was in the Eutychian Heresy Approved in the Second Council at Ephesus but soon after Condemned at Chalcedon So it was in the business of Images Condemned at Constantinople in the East but soon after upon anothâ—â— Change at Court maintain'd in the Second at Nice and not long after Condemned in a very Numerous Council at Francfort And in the Point in Hand as to the Authority of Councils it was Asserted at Constance and Basil but Condemned in the Lateran and was upon the matter laid aside at Trent Here were great Numbers of all Hands both Sides took the Name of General Councils It will be a further Prejudice against this if we see great Violences and Disorders entring into the Management of some Councils and Craft and Arâ—iâ—ice into the Conduct of others Numbers of Factious and Furious Monks came to some Councils and drove on Matters by their Clamours So it was at Ephesus We see gross Fraud in the Second at Nice both in the Persons set up to represent the Absent Patriarchs and in the Books and Authorities that were Vouched for the Worship of Images The Intrigues at Trent as they are set out even by Cardinal Pallavicini were more subtile but not less apparent nor less scandalous Nothing was trusted to a Session till it was first Canvassed in Congregations which were what a Committee of the whole House is in our Parliaments and then every Man's Vote was known so that there was hereby great occasion given for Practice This alone if there had been no more shewed plainly that they themselves knew they were not Guided by the Spirit of God or by Infallibility since a Session was not thought safe to be ventured on but after a long previous Canvassing Another Question remains yet to be cleared concerning their Manner of Proceeding Whether the Infallibility is affixed to their Vote whatsoever their Proceedings may be Or whether they are bound to Discuss Matters fully The first cannot be said unless it is pretended that they Vote by Special Inspiration If the second is allowed then we must examine both what makes a full Discussion and whether they have made it If we find Opinions safely represented if Books that are spurious have been relied on if Passages of Scripture or of the Fathers on which it appears the stress of the Decision has turned have been manifestly misunderstood and wrested so that in a more Enlightened Age no Person pretends to justify the Authorities that determined them Can we imagine that there should be more Truth in their Conclusions than we do plainly see was in the Premisses out of which they were drawn So it must either be said That they Vote by an immediate Inspiration or all Persons cannot be bound to submit to their Judgment till they have examined their Methods of Proceeding and the Grounds on which they went And when all is done the Question comes concerning the Authority of such Decrees after they are made Whether it follows immediately upon their being made or must stay for the Confirmatory Bulls If it must stay for the Bull then the Infallibility is not in the Council And that is only a more solemn way of preparing Matters in order to the laying them before the Pope If they are Infallible before the Confirmation then the Infallibility is wholly in the Council and
to the Practice of the second Branch of it We see what particular Care God took of the Poor in the Old Dispensation and what variety of Provision was made for them all which must certainly be carried as much higher among Christians as the Laws of Love and Charity are raised to a higher degree in the Gospel Christ represents the Essay that he gives of the Day of Judgment in this Article of Charity and expresses it in the most emphatical words possible as if what is given to the Poor were to be reckoned for as if it had been given personally to Christ himself And in a great variety of other Passages this matter is so oft insisted on that no man can resist it who reads them and acknowledges the Authority of the New Testament It is not possible to fix a determined Quota as was done under the Law in which every Family had their peculiar Allotment which had a certain Charge specified in the Law that was laid upon it But under the Gospel as men may be under greater Inequalities of Fortune than they could have been under the Old Dispensation so that vast variety of mens Circumstances makes that such Proportions as would be intolerable Burdens upon some would be too light and disproportioned to the Wealth of others Those words of our Saviour come pretty near the marking out every mans measure Luk. 21.4 These have of their abundance cast into the offerings of God but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had Abundance is Superfluity in the Greek which imports that which is over and above the food that is convenient Prov. 30.8 that which one can well spare and lay aside Now by our Saviour's design it plainly appears that this is a low degree of Charity when men give only out of this though God knows it is far beyond what is done by the greater part of Christians Whereas that which is so peculiarly acceptable to God is when men give out of their Penury that is out of what is necessary to them when they are ready especially upon great and crying occasions even to pinch Nature and straiten themselves within what upon other occasions they may allow themselves that so they may distribute to the necessities of others who are more pinched and are in great extremities By this every man ought to judg himself as knowing that he must give a most particular Account to God of that which God hath reserved to himself and ordered the distribution of it to the Poor out of all that Abundance with which he has bless'd some far beyond others ARTICLE XXXIX Of a Christian Man's Oath As we confess that vain and rash swearing is forbidden Christian men by our Lord Iesus Christ and James his Apostle so we judg that Christian Religion doth not prohibit but that a man may swear when the Magistrate requireth in a Cause of Faith and Charity so it be done according to the Prophets teaching in Iustice Iudgment and Truth AN Oath is an Appeal to God either upon a Testimony that is given or a Promise that is made confirming the Truth of the one and the Fidelity of the other It is an Appeal to God who knows all things and will judg all men So it is an Act that acknowledges both his Omniscience and his being the Governor of this World who will judg all at the Last Day according to their deeds and must be supposed to have a more immediate regard to such Acts in which men made him a Party An Appeal truly made is a committing the matter to God A false one is an Act of open defiance which must either suppose a denial of his knowing all things or a belief that he has forsaken the Earth and has no regard to the Actions of Mortals or finally it is a bold venturing on the Justice and Wrath of God for the serving some present end or the gaining of some present advantage And which of these soever gives a man that brutal Confidence of adventuring on a false Oath we must conclude it to be a very crying Sin which must be expiated with a very severe Repentance or will bring down verry terrible Judgments on those who are guilty of it Thus if we consider the matter upon the Principles of Natural Religion an Oath is an Act of Worship and Homage done to God and is a very powerful mean for preserving the Justice and Order of the World All Decisions in Justice must be founded upon evidence two must be believed rather than one therefore the more Terror that is struck into the minds of men either when they give their Testimony or when they bind themselves by Promises and the deeper that this goes it will both oblige them to the greater Caution in what they say and to the greater Strictness in what they promise Since therefore Truth and Fidelity are so necessary to the Security and Commerce of the World and since an Appeal to God is the greatest Mean that can be thought on to bind men to an exactness and strictness in every thing with which that Appeal is joined therefore the use of an Oath is fully justified upon the Principles of Natural Religion This has spread it self so universally through the World and began so early that it may well be reckoned a Branch of the Law and Light of Nature We find this was practised by the Patriarchs Abimelech reckoned that he was safe if he could persuade Abraham to swear to him by God Gen. 21.23.26.28.31.53 That he would not deal falsly with him and Abraham consented so to swear Either the same Abimelech or another of that Name desired that an Oath might be between Isaac and him and they sware one to another Iacob did also swear to Laban Thus we find the Patriarchs practising this before the Mosaical Law Under that Law we find many Covenants sealed by an Oath and that was a Sacred Bond as appears from the Story of the Gibeonites There was also a special Constitution in the Iewish Religion by which one in Authority might put others under an Oath and adjure them either to do somewhat or to declare some Truth The Law was That when any Soul i. e. man sinned Lev. 5.1 and heard the voice of swearing Adjuration and was a witness whether he hath seen it or known it if he do not utter it then he shall bear his Iniquity that is he shall be guilty of Perjury So the Form then was the Judg or the Parent did adjure all persons to declare their knowledg of any particular They charged this upon them with an Oath or Curse and all persons were then bound by that Oath to tell the truth So Micah came and confessed Judg. 17.2 upon his Mother's Adjuration That he had the Eleven hundred Shekels for which he heard her put all under a Curse and upon that she blessed him 1 Sam. 14.24 28 44. Saul when he was pursuing
the Philistines put the People under a Curse if they should eat any Food till Night and this was thought to be so obligatory that the Violation of it was Capital and Ionathan was put in hazard of his Life upon it Thus the High-Priest put our Saviour under the Oath of Cursing Matth. 26.63 64. when he required him to tell Whether he was the Messias or not Upon which our Saviour was according to that Law upon his Oath and though he had continued silent till then as long as it was free to him to speak or not at his pleasure yet then he was bound to speak and so he did speak and owned himself to be what he truly was This was the Form of that Constitution but if by practice it were found that mens pronouncing the words of the Oath themselves when required by a Person in Authority to do it and that such Actions as their lifting up their Hand to Heaven or their laying it on a Bible as importing their Sense of the Terrors contained in that Book were like to make a deeper Impression on them than barely the Judges charging them with the Oath or Curse it seems to be within the compass of Human Authority to change the Rites and Manner of this Oath and to put it in such a Method as might probably work most on the minds of those who were to take it The Institution in general is plain and the making of such Alterations seems to be clearly in the Power of any State or Society of men In the New Testament we find St. Paul prosecuting a Discourse concerning the Oath which God sware to Abraham Heb. 6.13 14 15. who not having a greater to swear by swore by himself and to enforce the Importance of that it is added An oath for confirmation that is Ver. 16. for the affirming or assuring of any thing is the end of all controversy Which plainly shews us what Notion the Author of that Epistle had of an Oath He did not consider it as an Impiety or Prophanation of the Name of God Rev. 10.6 In St. Iohn's Visions an Angel is represented as lifting up his hand and swearing by him that liveth for ever and ever And the Apostles even in their Epistles Rom. 1.9 Gal. 1.20 that are acknowledged to be writ by Divine Inspiration do frequently appeal to God in these words God is witness which contain the whole Essence of an Oath Once St. Paul carries the Expression to a Form of Imprecation 2 Cor. 1.23 when he calls God to a record upon or against his soul. These seem to be Authorities beyond exception justifying the use of an Oath upon a great occasion or before a competent Authority according to that Prophecy quoted in the Article which is thought to relate to the Times of the Messias And thou shalt swear The Lord liveth in truth in judgment and in righteousness and the nations shall bless themselves in him Jer. 4.2 and in him shall they glory These last words seem evidently to relate to the days of the Messiah So here an Oath religiously taken is represented as a part of that Worship which all Nations shall offer up to God under the New Dispensation Against all this the great Objection is That when Christ is correcting the Glosses that the Pharisees put upon the Law whereas they only taught that men should not forswear themselves but perform their oaths unto the Lord our Saviour says Swear not at all neither by the Heaven nor the earth Matth. 5.34 35 36 37. James 5.12 nor by Ierusalem nor by the head but let your communication be yea yea and nay nay for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil And St. Iames speaking of the enduring Afflictions and of the Patience of Iob adds But above all things my brethren swear not neither by the heaven neither by the earth neither by any other oath but let your yea be yea and your nay nay lest ye fall into condemnation It must be confessed that these words seem to be so express and positive that great regard is to be had to a Scruple that is founded on an Authority that seems to be so full But according to what was formerly observed of the manner of the Judiciary Oaths among the Iews these words cannot belong to them Those Oaths were bound upon the Party by the Authority of the Judg in which he was passive and so could not help his being put under an Oath Whereas our Saviour's words relate only to those Oaths which a man took voluntarily on himself but not to those under which he was bound according to the Law of God If our Saviour had intended to have forbidden all Judiciary Oaths he must have annulled that part of the Authority of Magistrates and Parents and have forbid them to put others under Oaths The word Communication that comes afterwards seems to be a Key to our Saviour's words to shew that they ought only to be applied to their Communication or Commerce to those Discourses that pass among men in which it is but too customary to give Oaths a very large share Or since the words that went before concerning the performing of Vows seem to limit the Discourse to them the meaning of Swear not at all may be this Be not ready as the Iews were to make Vows on all occasions to devote themselves or others Instead of those he requires them to use a greater Simplicity in their Communication And St. Iames's words may be also very fitly applied to this since men in their Afflictions are apt to make very indiscreet Vows without considering whether they either can or probably will pay them as if they would pretend by such profuse Vows to overcome or corrupt God This Sense will well agree both to our Saviour's words and to St. Iames's and it seems most reasonable to believe that this is their true Sense for it agrees with every thing else whereas if we understand theâ— in that strict Sense of condemning all Oaths we cannot tell what to make of those Oaths which occur in several Passages of St. Paul's Epistles and least of all what to say to our Saviour's own answering upon Oath when adjured Therefore all rash and vain swearing all swearing in the Communication or Intercourse of Mankind is certainly condemned as well as all Imprecatory Vows But since we have so great Authorities from the Scriptures in both Testaments for other Oaths and since that agrees so evidently with the Principles of Natural Religion we may conclude with the Article That a man may swear when the Magistrate requireth it It is added in a Cause of Faith and Charity for certainly in trifling matters such Reverence is due to the Holy Name of God that swearing ought to be avoided But when it is necessary it ought to be set about with those regards that are due to the Great God who is appealed to A Gravity of Deportment and an Exactness of weighing the truth of what we say are highly necessary here Certainly our Words ought to be few and our Hearts full of the Apprehensions of the Majesty of that God with whom we have to do before whom we stand and to whom we appeal who knows all things and will bring every work to judgment with every secret thing whether it be good or whether it be evil FINIS