as is largely proved in the place now cited Here I add one Consideration more Sectaries who lay this foul aspersion on the Church must Iudge the whole body of Christians Princes Prelates and People all over Germany Italy Spain France and England c stark madd at once that is to have unanimously conspired in à beliefe of Transubstantiation for example never held before and this is as great à Paradox as if you Should suppose that Catholicks now might universally agree in one beliefe and stedfastly maintain that the Water in Baptism is really Christ's sacred blood as vvorthy Adoration as à Consecrated Chalice is yet and here is the wonder no man forsooth must be thought to take the least Notice of so universal à dotage nor of the prodigious change made in Christian Religion by it Tell me Courteous Reader were such à Novelty brought this present year into the Church would not Iewes Turks Heathens and all Hereticks if none els did it raise loud Clamours against the great body of Christians observe all that 's done and ieer at us in the publick Streets On the other side if Sectaries say these supposed Innovations were first begun by Some few two or three in corners got growth in time and at last became believed Articles of Faith all over the Christian world I answer this is more impossible yea the greatest Chimaera Imaginable Viz. That such gross Novelties should steal into à Church and be publickly taught by à few vvithout opposition or notice taken by other sound Christians far more numerous and learned for now we suppose all ran not mad at once Here also the Instance already given has the like force Should à few men in à town or City publickly teach that the water in Baptism is Christ's real blood would not the whole Body of sound Christians both censure and decry the errour as horrid and blasphemous Nothing can be more evident Besides all know how exact the Church of Christ has been in condemning Heresies as they rose up the time when they began and the Persons that introduced them remain still upon record but here are Novelties spoken of and unworthily charged upon à whole Church yet hush All passed in silence no man mentions them no Author friend or Enemy left them upon Record The Dr may remember how he impugn's that matter of fact concerning the miraculous Translation of the house of Disc 2. P. 451. Loreto from Nazareth where he tells us because three Authors Dante 's Petrach and Boccace men most inquisitive omitted to mention it the wholy Story was to be thought an incredible fiction But here à matter of Fact and of far greater concern the palpable change of Christian Doctrin from what it was anciently is supposed to enter the world not mentioned by any one Author friend or enemy Therefore according to the Dr it is to be judged à forged tale à meer whimsy improbable and incredible Much more then this comes to I urged against the Dr and here remind him of his grand Omission for to this very day though he pretend's to answer my book 's yet be never medled with this one point most weighty and of greatest Importance I call it weighty for upon these unanswerable proofs Protestancy is ruin'd and the Church no lesse demonstratively cleared from that unjust calumny of altering Her Doctrin which She received from Christ and his Apostles But the greatest Omission of all where the Dr's dull proceeding with me appear's most remain's yet untouched Those who have read my last Treatises know that the chiefest thing I insisted upon and aimed at was to prove Protes without Princ Disc 1. c. 2. n. 9. à Truth which must stand or Christian Religion fall's to nothing It is the Roman Catholick Churches Infallibility in every Doctrin She obliges Christians to believe I told the Dr if all Pastors all Bishops and the Church with them be so fallible in delivering Christian Doctrin that when it is ultimately applyed to the Hearers the Doctrin may be false God never sent them to teach it I proved the Assertion God sent not Christ our Lord nor Christ his Apostles nor the Apostles others to teach any Doctrin but that which relies upon the first Verity infallibly revealing truth but such à Doctrin can neither be fallible nor false but most true and infallible if therefore the Church teaches not that Doctrin as it is true and Infallible but may change it into meer fallible and perhaps false Doctrin She ceases eo ipso to be à Church and all the Doctors that teach so are no Catholick Doctors Moreover I said If Reas and Relig Disc 2. c. 19. n. 12. God hath not purposely made Religion à matter of eternal debate if he has not cast Christians upon endless vncertainties what to believe if both the Truth and infallibility of his revealed Doctrin stand firmly upon the first Verity not separable there and be revealed for this end that all assent to it as it is true and Infallible If finally the very fundamentals of Faith necessary for Salvation as registred in Holy Writ be still liable to disputes amongst the learned of different Religion If these things be as they all are clear Evidences Nothing can be more manifest than that the All-seing Providence hath impowred some Oracle to compose such strifes raised among Christians and to teach Christ's Doctrin as it deserves to be taught truly and infallibly These Arguments with many others not to be repeated I have clearly proposed and often Called on Mr Dr to reply but in the very nick and occasion when he found himselfe obliged to answer he warily slip's aside to another By-question about the resolution of Faith and there forsooth because the matter of its own nature is hard and speculative not easily understood by every vulgar Reader he thought he might well lie hid free from the Censure of such men whom he court's though he speake as be often doth plainly from the purpose VVhereas had he proceeded downright and directly fallen upon my reasons alledged in behalfe of the Churches Infallibility every judicious Reader though little versed in speculative Learning would have soon seen whether of us I in arguing or he in his answers deserved reproof and stood grounded upon better Principles Notwithstanding this pretty Subterfuge the Dr hath got little by waving the main Question Reas and Relig Disc 2. c. 5. n. 5. for I have followed him closely in the Speculative matter he lead's me to and made it manifest that he neither bitt's upon the right resolution of Faith nor indeed understand's where the real difficulty lies One thing yet remain's and I much wonder the Dr never medled with it I said who ever impeaches the Roman Catholick Church of errour in points of Faith is sure to be worsted in every rational Contest held upon that subiect and ought to own the supposed errour so remediless an Evil that it must remain as it is
shall be Infallible in what She clearly obliges her children to believe We then produced and yet Catholicks highly injured alledge as plain Scripture for the Assertion as ever God inspired the first great Masters of the Gospel to write We here publickly avouch and will make it good That God's word is as express and significant in behalfe of the Churches Infallibility as for the most primary and fundamental Articles of Christian Religion We confirm our Assertion by the unanswerable Authority of ancient Fathers and learned Councils we add here unto the Authority of à Church never yet censured by any but known Hereticks Upon these grounds we stand Now hear I beseech you how we are treated There is à young hot Antagonist nam'd Dr Still who call's this claim to Infallibility Page 84. an uniust usurpation à thing notoriously false an arrogant pretence of an usurping faction c. Is it not think ye The Dr called to an account high time after such ratling language to give this Bragger à just challenge to call him to à rigid account before God and the world and force him to prove what he saith Scripture Councils and Fathers without glosses shall speak for us these shall determine the cause and end it My evidences are as strong as known 1. Tim. 3. 16. That thou mais't know how thou oughs't to converse in the house of God which is the Church of the living God the pillar and ground of truth Matth. 2. 8. 20. Goe therefore teach all nations Teaching them to observe all things what ever I have commanded you and behold I am with you all dayes to the end of the world What Christ here promises is certainly performed therefore his Protection over the Church will never fail Iohn 14. 15. I will pray the Father and he will give you another comforter that may abide with you for ever The Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive The spirit of truth abiding with that Society of Christians it 's promised to is opposit to errour and falshood Ephes 4. 11. We read of Apostles Prophets Euangelists of Pastors and Doctors given by God's special Providence to the consummation of Saints unto the work of the Ministery unto the edifying of the body of Christ c. If you ask how long this incomparable Scripture plain for the Churches Infallibility blessing shal last It 's answered v 13. until we all meet in the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God Demand again for what end those Guides are verse 14 return's this Answer That we be not like Children wavering tossed to and fro or carried about with every wind of doctrin by the deceipt of men c. But if those Guides can be circumvented with errour how is it possible to secure Christians committed to their charge from being carried away with the wind of false Doctrin No Catholick though he study for it can speak more significantly the Churches sence concerning the Infallibility of her Guides then the blessed Apostle here amply expresseth Thus much briefly for an Essay of Scriptural proofs Fathers and Councils shall follow on à fitter occasion when the Dr requires them 2 In the mean while this Dr who makes the Church and all her Guides fallible for her Infallibility saith he is à thing notoriously false is called on to confront these Authorities and to prove his own Assertion by plain and express Scripture or by so much as one Text that meanly and remotely hints at the fallibility of this great extended Body Where Sr read we in holy Writ any thing tending to your sence That the Church is not the pillar and ground of truth Where have we that God who promised to be with the Church to the end of the world would desert Her in one Age or other Where That the Spirit of Not one word in Scripture to prove her fallible truth should leave this Oracle Where find we o horrid blasphemy that all Her Guides all the Pastors and Doctors grosly deceived themselves may suffer millions of souls under their charge to be carried away with à whole deluge of errour and one no lesse then professed Idolatry Speake out Dr and produce your Scriptures as plain for the Churches fallibility as mine now alledged are for Her Infallibility 3 Hence I argue If the Infallibility of the Church be à notorious falshood or as the Dr makes it in his Account P. 101 ridiculous yea really distructive to Christianity Her Fallibility is à Notorious truth which mainly supports true Religion An Argument proposed But God certainly hath not omitted to register in holy VVrit à truth so notorious as mainly support's true Religion therefore he hath not omitted to set down in plain Terms the Churches Fallibility But this most evidently is not done wherefore I tell the Dr that not only he but all the Doctors on earth shall sooner lose their eyes then find one single Text in the whole Bible which so much as seemingly makes the Church fallible in what the obliges Christians to believe But if this cannot be evinced by Scripture laid as à foundation to the Dr ' s discourse he may better goe to bed and sleep than meddle any more with the Question of Infallibility For all he saies or can say upon the Matter will be meer empty talk without proof and Principles 4 I urge this Argument further and ask Whether to believe the fallibility of the Church be à fundamental Article of the Dr's new Faith or only one of his Inferiour truths which Scripture expresses not nor requires beliefe of necessary to Salvation Grant the first He is obliged to prove it by God's express word for as he thinks all fundamentals are there Make. 2. this asserted Fallibility to be only one of his Inferiour truths wholly waved by Scripture and not necessary to Salvation the Dr spoil's his own Scriptureless cause With what face then dare he tell us in his Account cited above that our pretence to Infallibility overthrowes belief destroyes Christianity and tend's apace towards Atheism Whilst God never yet spake any such unheard Assertions Never Church taught them Never Fathers owned them Never Councils defined them only the disordered phansy of à young Dr begot them in Ignorance and malice as you se hath set all forth in print If I speak rashly the Dr hath all liberty to shame me and one single passage in God's word whereby this fallibility is proved shall lay an eternal disgrace upon me but as I am sure there is no such passage so I fear not any the least disgrace 5 What no such passage may one reply Surely I mistake For doth not Mr Still in his Account Part. 1. c. 8. â—blot page after page to prove the Church fallible and by express Scripture also I answer he touches not the difficulty we here insist on but â—uggles all along We require one plain Text whereby the Christian Church is proved fallible And he gives
they undervalve his private discerning faculty and prefer their own quite opposite to his May both he and they hold contradictions in the most essential Points of Faith and be saved If the Dr hath not such Latitudinarians I am sure there are à world of them in England Be it how you will his Principle is not only unsound but pernicious also and distructive to Christian faith as is now proved 19 You may here expect that I solve the Dr ' s Arguments alleged in behalfe of his Principle or 13 Proposition cited above I shall briefly touch some few though its scarse worth the pains for they fall of themselves to nothing by what is said already The rest I leave to his learned Adversary N. O. and could have wish'd to have seen in the Dr ' s two last little Books something that bear 's the face of an Obiection against the Churches Infallibility but he is wary and knowes well to shuffle when need is CHAP. IV. Doctor Still Arguments answered His unintelligible iumbling discovered A word briefly of the ground of the Churches Infallibility The Churches Guides teach infallibly 1 THe Dr P. 100. demand's whether Christ our Lord and the Evangelists may not justly be charged with not speaking the will of God plainly if those who heard them understood not their Doctrin I Answer first in case of not understanding they had infallible Teachers at hand for their further instruction and made use of them you good Dr have none such I Answer 2. It import's little to our present purpose whether they understood or no without more light when Christ for example said I and my Father are one while Christians both now and in former Ages highly differ about the sence of that speech and cannot certainly say this is God's true meaning or that the words are his without an Infallible Teacher But what may one reply can we infer because some mistake the sence of Scripture therefore all do so No truly but this Inference is good if some mistake and others not its Necessary to have the mistaken clearly distinguished from the sincere Believers otherwise à Seeker after truth may as well become an Arian as à sound orthodox Christian The Question therefore is how or by what means this severing the faithfull from the misled wholly necessary for Salvation may be exactly done without erring 2 The Dr. P. 101. most tediously rambles on to no purpose at all Is not Christianity saith he therfore highly recommended to us in the new Testament because of the perspicuity wherein the Doctrins and Precepts thereof are delivered And yet after The Dr is to shew what Christianity among so many Dissenters is commended in Scripture this cannot the most Necessary parts of it be understood by those who sincerely endeavour to understand them To answer this meer nothing it 's enough to ask What Christianity is commended to us for its clearness and perspicuity Is it Arianism Nestorianism or Protestanism It little God knowes avail's to know in General that some Christians are right in the beliefe of the Scriptures most necessary Part while no man can say to what Church they belong or who they are 2. It is most evident notwithstanding the Scriptures supposed perspicuity that very learned grosly err in the prime Necessaries for Salvation and doe all these clearly se the right meaning of it Here the Dr is obliged to tell us who are the blind or misled and which he ever unluckily waves how those he call's sincere Endeavourers may be distinguished from others supine and negligent And they ought to be known in the Dr ' s Principles for if the discerning FAculty in every man can easily find out the necessary truths for Salvation by reading Scripture it may I hope more easily discover the open Professors of these truths or that Christian Society where such truths are taught 3. Suppose Scriptures were writ for this end to teach all Necessaries how can the Dr prove that the search after them is committed to every private man's erring changeable Faculty Why not as well to the Pastors and Doctors of that Church whereof private men are members Now and here arises an insuperable difficulty what if these private men highly dissent from their Pastors concerning Necessaries five or six for example in Holborn from Dr Still Those denie Christs Godhead which he believes Both produce Scriptures and sence them differently who is to yeild in this contest the Dr to his Hearers or they to the Dr 3 This difficulty the Doctors worthy Adversary proposes with reference to the Church Governours and ask's whether these may not be presumed to understand the Scriptures meaning in order to Necessaries as well as ordinary Rusticks and if these be supposed to use à sincere endeavour in their pondering Scripture much more may we suppose it not wanting to the Guides of the Church And are we not here again saith N. O. arrived at Church Infallibility Se the Drs first part P. 138. 4 Never was man more intangled in hammering out à solution to any Argument The Dr much intangled in Solving à difficulty than our Dr is here First he wishes N. O. had kept to his own expressions and not forced in that term of Infallibility then to divert the Reader with nothing he repeat's again his whole 13 Proposition and because he well understand's not what is meant by men being infallible in Necessaries he makes it capable of three several senses 1. That men are infallible in judging of Necessaries to Salvation Or. 2. That they are infallible in teaching others what are Necessaries to Salvation These two meanings the Dr rejects and yet approves à third Viz. Men are infallible in believing such things as are Necessary to Salvation 1. e. That such is the Goodness of God and the clearness of Scriptures that no man who sincerely desires to know what is necessary to Salvation shall be deceived therein Yet more Though saith he I know no reason for useing the term Infallibility thus applyed yet the thing in it selfe I assert in that sence And what now can be inferred from hence but that the Guides of the Church supposeing the same sincerity shall enioy the same priviledge 5 If all this be not an unintelligible jumbling I never read any Pray reflect Men are infallible in believing such things as are Necessary for Salvation and yet are not infallible in judging of these Necessaries How can they infallibly believe Necessaries and not infallibly judge of them by that very infallible assent they give to Necessaries Again They are infallible in believing Necessaries but not infallible in teaching others the Necessaries to Salvation What is this to say Cannot men commissioned to instruct others teach that infallibly which they believe infallibly The Dr believes infallibly the high God head in Christ cannot he open his mouth and convey infallibly this Truth to others capable of believing infallibly were he lawfully sent to Preach 6 Now if by
those obscure Terms What are Necessaries to Salvation he only mean that none can tell How many Necessaries are he speak's à truth in his own Principles but nothing to the present purpose for here we only enquire whether the Guides of God's Church are not impowred to deliver infallibly so much as one particular Necessary which they believe infallibly No saith the Dr because Scripture is so clear in Necessaries that no man who sincerely desires to know them shall be deceived I answer first Were it ten times clearer the perspicuity hinder's not these Guides from declaring infallibly what Scripture speaks infallibly The most that can be inferred from hence were all true as its false is that the Churches Guides need not to declare any thing but that their declaration therefore ceases to be infallible shall never be probably made out 1 Answer 2. The Dr grosly mistakes for most evident experience teaches that thousands and thousands called Christians are deceived who sincerely desire to know what is Necessary to Salvation Is it not manifest as I said above that the Arians Pelagians c. Or the Dr with his Partizans run on in à false beliefe of Necessaries This matter of fact supposed the Question proposed above return's again VVhat means hath Christ left whereby all may certainly know the deluded or erring Party And this proves the Scripture obscure or not perspicuous in all Necessaries unlesse the Dr infuses à clarity into it which no mans eyes ever yet saw but his own and à few Sectaries with him The next pretty whimsy is that he knowes no reason for useing the Term Infallibility yet i' ft be applyed to Infallible Believers of Necessaries he asserts it in that sence Is not this right as it should be He has no reason for useing the Term but great reason to use the thing signified by the term Let this passe the worst is yet to come 7 The Guides of the Church saith he P. 141. Supposing the same sincerity shall enioy the same Priviledge with Rusticks That is they may believe Infallibly as Rusticks doe yet none can Teach Infallibly First this Answers not my difficulty above when I ask'd if these Guides and the Illiterate under their charge ponder Scripture and use all sincere endeavour to understand its meaning yet mainly differ in the beliefe of Necessaries what remedy in such à case Is not our Dr obliged to propose some fair easy means whereby these Guides and people may be united in one faith or at least to tell us on which party whether Pastors or People the blame lies to the end all may avoid them Scripture most evidently makes not the blamable known nor unit's all in one Faith An infallible Church is rejected the discerning Faculty of dissenting men run's as we se contrary wayes Therefore all may believe as they Judge whether true or false or suspend their beliefe untill Dr Still laies down à better rule To that other part I say the Guides of the Church can teach infallibly the Necessaries they believe and I still insist upon Necessaries only The reason is given already To believe the Infallible Truth of à Divine Revelation expressing à Necessary is absolutely necessary to Salvation but this neither Scripture it selfe nor the discerning faculty of any fallible man can declare or make known therefore the Guides of The reason why the Guides of the Church teach infallibly the Church impowred by Christ to instruct qui vos audit me audit are to declare the Truth the Infallible truth and sence of every Revelation relating to Necessaries Now further If this declaration be so fallible that it may be false neither Jewes nor Gentils nor Christians yet seeking after these main truths can come to any acquiescency For what have they to lean upon in the least degree Satisfactory While fallible men agitate the cause fallible Discourses carry it on and fallible Principles are the only support of all that is or can be controverted Please to se this Argument further enlarged Reas and Relig Disc 2. c. 16. n. â—8 whereunto our good Dr return's no Answer 8 Next vouchsafe to cast an eye vpon his 147 page and consider how lamely he handles à matter of greatest importance VVe are Saith Dr Still far from denying all reasonable and just Authority to be given to the Guides of the Church Very general talk Perhaps that Authority must be only reasonable which he judges reasonable But of what Church doth the Gentleman speak here The Arians and Protestants have their dissenting Churches will you have the Arians follow their Guides and the Protestants theirs Herein he resolves nothing but sometimes remit's us to the Primitive Church which breeds endless disputes because we yet agree not what that Church taught nor shall ever learn but by the voice and Tradition of the present Catholick Church Have yet patience to hear the Dr. VVe say that their Authority that is of the Guides of some Church but God only knowes which it is not being absolute is confined to some known rule O this Rule would doe us noble service but the mischiefe is our shuffling Dr clap's it under lock and key like à lewel worth hiding You have it by the name of some known Rule though no body yet knowes what it is or where to find it He cannot in this place mean Scripture for its sence is most unknown and the bare letter as we have seen causes open hostility no lesse between the Guides of the Church and refractory subjects than The Drs general talk of unknown rules enlightens none amongst the Guides of two dissenting Churches In à word If Dr Still shall please to lay down à plain certain rule whereby all dissenting Christians may be brought to one true Faith even in Necessaries he will deserve immortal renown and do more then all the Hereticks since Christs time have done But to perform this his intrigues concerning Some Rule and no man knowes what Rule can never doe his business whereof more presently Now listen well to the end of his Discourse VVhere there is à rule for them he mean's the Guides of the Church to proceed by there is à rule for others to judge of their proceedings and consequently men must exercise their judgements about the matters they the Guides determin whether they be agreable to that rule or not 9 Still we are put off with general words One rule it seem's is allowed the Guides of the Church to proceed by an other if the Layity dissent to judge of their Guides proceedings Yet no man must know in particular what these Rules are Is not all this tattle something and nothing empty stuff without substance But say on What if these two Imagined Rules breed everlasting jarrs between the Guides and the Guided who is to yeild and to whom Or rather we ask what means hath Christ appointed to end these differences by If he say no dissentions can arise either about Necessaries or any other
c. VVe must earnestly contend for the Faith once delivered VVe are to beware of false seducers c. have no weight for the Drs intent unlesse he shew by Scripture that this trial this contention and wariness ought to be done by every mans private judgement only without any other rule O but there is à stinging Text. Iohn 7. 17. where our Saviour expresly promises to those that do the will of God they shall know of his Doctrin whether it be of God Very true But how shall we discern those that do the will of God from others that do it not Are those the Doers of Gods will who reject their Guides and follow their own Iudgement in matters they understand not Answer Mr Dr. 14 In his 143. P for I run up and down to find any thing like an Obiection we are told that all who consider the excellency of Christian Religion cannot but give it preheminence before Iudaism and Mahometism Very true Mr Dr yet you touch not the difficulty unlesse you tell us which Christian Religion amongst so many dissenting Sects even in fundamentals may be called the only true Christian Religion If Arianism or Palagianism or Protestanism damn men as deeply as Iudaism what matters it if one professe Iudaism I assure you Doctor I have heard some great A fallible Doctrin which may be false destructive to Faith men say that if all who profess Christian Religion believed fallible Doctrin which may be false they would not give à pin to chuse whether they were Iewes Arians or Protestants But why have not you in this place or through your whole large Account set forth the Excellency of your Protestancy and preferred that little late unknown thing before all other Religion Some cause there is of your deep silence and I have not dissembled it in my Advertisement You really know not what to say of it 15 P. 132. We have this Proposition Infallibility in à body of men is as liable to doubts and disputes as in those books from whence only they derive their infallibility Sr if I well understand this some what dark Assertion please to tell me Were not the Apostles an Infallible body of men And was not their Infallibility owned as clear from doubts and disputes when God had evidenced them by clear visible Signes and Wonders to be his faithful Oracles even before their writing Scripture Or did theyderive their Infallibility from the books they wrote The true answer to these demands will be our Answer The Church is as rationally proved an Infallible Oracle by her Illustrious signes and wonders and appointed by God to teach as ever any Apostle was this I hold clearly evinced in my last Treatise Disc 3. c. 15. n. 3. and c. 16. n. 5. If you Mr Dr can except against my proofs please to speak for hitherto you have answered nothing I shew also Prot without Princi c. 8. n. 2. 3. That God neither will nor can permit à false Religion to be more speciously illustrated by rational Signs then his only true Religion is Were this possible he The true Church made discernable from all false Sects would contrary to Truth and Goodness oblige reason to embrace à false Religion If therefore the only true and infallible Religion be manifestly discernable or made known by the lustre of Supernatural Motives from all false Sects we have enough For it is most evident that our ever marked and Signalized Catholick Religion illustrated by Miracles and approved by the publick judgement of the very best and most learned who have lived since the Creation of the world is the undoubted true Religion where we learn what Christ taught and what Doctrin the Apostles preached And thus Dr Still imperfect discourse P. 143 where he gives the preheminence to Christianity in general above Iudaism Mahometism c. is driven home to that one only Religion amongst Christians which must save Souls 16 We say 2. That this evidenced Catholick Church proves her selfe infallible Independently of Scripture as the Apostles did before they wrote their sacred Books It is-true after those writings are proved Divine to us upon Church Authority we Argue from them and evince her Infallible but this only is done upon the Supposition of that proof and not before For we say and make it out clearly in the Treatises now cited That the Church being the light of the world and à City placed upon a conspicuous And proved infallible without recourse to Scripture mountain demonstrable as S. Austin teaches by every mans finger is the Primum indemonstrabile principium the very first and indemonstrable principle proved by it selfe and for it selfe to be Gods Infallible Oracle whereof more hereafter Hence you se 3. that as the Apostles neither proved nor derived their Infallibility from the Books they wrote so we in the first place if à true Analysis be made prove not the Churches Infallibility from Scripture but evince this truth upon other Principles as is now declared But saith Dr Still It is against all just lawes of reasoning to make use of the Churches Infallibility to prove Scriptures by Why so noble Dr I am sure for the reasons already given you will be forced to retract this inconsiderate Assertion Do not you know first that the bare letter of Scripture breed's endless divisions even in fundamentals not only between man and man as is evident by the jarrs you have with Arians Pelagians c. but also between God and man while all your vehement contentions are driven at last to know whether your discerning Faculty or the Arians hit right vpon the meaning of what God speak's in Scripture it being most certain that Verity it selfe approves not your open contradictions Who can decide here but an Infallible Church Do you not know 2. That it is more then ridiculous to draw either Iew or Heathen to believe these contradictious Doctrins as Divine or reasonable while neither you nor Arians can ascertain any that what either of you teach is from God or à truth revealed by him Who ought or can speak here but the Church Do you not se 3. That the clearness of Church Doctrin universally known to all whether Orthodox or others beget's faith more easily then Scripture yet obscure and unsenced Hence it is as I noted in my last Treatise Disc 2. c. 16. n. 11. That few or none Question what this Oracle teaches as necessary for that 's plain yet there are endless debates about the Scriptures meaning and this only is Gods word not intelligible in à hundred passages without the Churches interpretation 4 As I noted also The Infallibility and Truth of every Divine Revelation relating to Necessaries so necessarily The Church decides many doubts not decideable by ' Scripture ' terminat's Divine Faith that whoever believes and abstract's as it were from this double perfection intrinsic to what God speak's believes not because God speak's but upon some other fallible Motive
is without either shame or grace most unjust 9 From P. 340. to 362. the Dr gives me but little entertainment save only to make à few reflections upon his too many Parergons and one repeated over and over yet the good man will be free from Tautologies is that the difficulty now in hand only concern's an external Proponent such as the Church is Shall we condescend to his humour and debate that sole Question I am content upon one condition that he plainly solves this plain difficulty If all the men in the world as we now suppose considered meerly as nature has framed them be fallible If none of them have infallible assistance to teach the very fundamentals of faith infallibly and if notwithstanding God obliges all to believe his infallible revealed verities without mixture of errour If finally we evidently se Christians at high Contradictions and of à different belief in such Necessaries of no less concern then their eternal Salvation I say if all these And leaves all to believe what they list particulars be undeniably manifest either you Mr Dr ought to assign some clear certain means whereby Christians may be brought to union in one true Faith to profess and believe one and the same Doctrin of Jesus Christ or you must leave all to believe as they list or what pure fancy teaches My Tenet is that none can doe this but an Infallible Church nor so much as bring us to any Vnity at all were faith as you make it only morally certain 10 P. 341 He demand's where have I shew'd that the Supernatural Principles of Faith do never cooperate but where the Church infallibly proposes and thinks I never attempt this He wrong's me exceedingly Se Reas and Relig. Disc 2. c. 15. There I prove at large that Divine Faith in this present state requires no less an Infallible Oracle then the belief of the Primitive Christians required Infallibility in the Apostles As therefore the supernatural Principles of those first Believers never could operate contrary to the Doctrin taught Infallibly by the Apostles so they work not in true Believers now but when they fall right upon the Infallible Doctrin taught by the Catholick Church The reason hereof is clear God cannot concurr or incite any by Supernatural Principles to believe a falshood The Revelation therefore which support's Divine Faith must not be meerly apparent but real and truly in being for then only Divine Grace cooperat's with Faith not otherwise So true it is that the Infallibility in our internal Assent of Faith ever supposes and necessarily prerequires Infallibility in the last ground thereof which is God's veracity as likewise in the immediate Proponent I mean the Catholick Church But saies our Dr very wisely If the Infallible certainty of Faith depend's upon Divine concurrence the Infallibility of Faith may be had without an Infallible Proponent A most pitiful reply It seem's he cannot well understand how one act of Faith depend's upon two distinct Principles yet the instance now given will enlighten him à little Did not the Faith of the Primitive Christians depend upon the Apostles infallible The necessary principles for Faith teaching None questions that And had not Divine grace influence upon it also Most undoubtedly certain Ergo two different Principles an Infallible Church and Divine Assistance necessarily support one act of Faith The reason is clear Faith is the Gift of God and therefore without the cooperation of Grace cannot be Divine or Supernatural and without an Infallible Proponent no man certainly knowes what to believe For who can say indubitably this is the sence of God's word herein lies the Truth and Infallibility of à Revelation if an Infallible Church be rejected Hence it is that the Primitive Church while She condemned all ancient Hereticks and established the contrary truths never proceeded doubtfully or probably but spake as Gods Oracle ought to speak infallibly 11 The Dr P. 342. Shewes himself à meer Rambler multiplies words and proves just nothing First he tells me six or seven times over yet he is far from tedious repetitions if Faith depends on Grace an external infallible Proponent seem's needless Then he thinks I destroy my selfe because I say the Infallible certainty of Faith comes from Gods interiour illumination as it more lively set's forth the formal obiect assented to What 's next Marry he hath often heard of the great Assistance Iesuits have in writing their books and Imagins that some Enemy hath put these things into my head Sr without doubt you have heard many à magnifyed untruth and this if it relate to any Assistance given me is à loud one as all who know me can testify and will avouch that I needed no assistance to answer an Adversary so well tamed and broken as you are Now if you will rely so much upon Hearsay know Sr I have also heard something and had it from men of good repute and credit It is that the most able at Cambridge with one likewise at Oxord aided you to the purpose in setting forth your tumbling Account and I am apt to believe this true because some who know you Conceive you not à man so expedite and nimble at work as to dispatch such à volume in à twelve months time though to gain applause this must be insinuated in the first words of your preface These things I have heard whether all be true or no you know best 12 Soon after to fill paper you tell me again what I say then that I shake hands with Calvin and some old Enemies in this matter of Grace that I hold you à Denier of Grace and much more to little purpose Concerning the Assistance of Grace in order to Faith I say that Faith being à Gift of God Necessarily depend's on à supernatural Principle and this is Catholick Doctrin taken from Scripture Church authority and holy Fathers What I hold particularly of its giving more clarity to an obscure Revelation though only an opinion in Schools maintained by some denied by others is sounder Doctrin then your skill in Divinity can refute You have The Dr's fouling me with Calvinism shew'd sencles and ridiculous it largely set down Reas. and Relig. Disc 3. c. 9. n. chiefly 13. Your wilful fouling me with Calvinism becomes one that knowes better to calumniate than to argue Had Calvin own'd the Church infallible as I do in all she obliges Christians to believe and dutifully submitted to her judgement his Faith would have been right and Grace answerable Supernatural but because he slighted that Oracle and believed what meer fancy suggested he abused Grace and had no true Faith Should I Sr maintain à light of Faith allowed men at random to believe what their private judgements tell them concerning Gods revelations in Scripture independently of all Infallible exteriour Propounders of Faith I should not much differ from Calvin but when I only assert it to serve for à better manifestation of such truths as an
reason hereof is already given If an earthly King can oblige his subjects to obey à law as truly his made evidently Credible as is now declared much more can the King of Kings lay that obligation upon all when his Revelation is made evidently Credible by Signs surpassing the power of nature Again Evident Credibility founded on rational Motives perswad 's and oblig's men to believe some thing as the Dr grant's I ask what They need not to perswade to à belief of themselves because their Evidence is seen before assent be given to the Revelation and therefore both perswade and oblige all to believe the Infallible Truth of the Revelation though not evidently seen 11 I Argue 3. and this reason convinces The blessed Apostles firmly believed Christ our Lord to be truly God à Redeemer and the long expected Messias and rested not in this judgement alone It is only evidently Credible that Christ is God or the true Messias and How the blessed Apostles believed consequently their Faith went above the force of all the Motives laid open to their eyes and senses 12 I prove the consequence manifestly Consider that great Miracle of raysing Lazarus from his grave meerly as seen or known by sense and preceded Faith none can say that that wonder the like is of all other Miracles evidently proved Christ to be God or the true Messias For God might have wrought that Miracle for some other end than to assure any of Christ's Divinity Nay he might have impowred an Angel or à man not priviledged with the Hypostatical union to call one dead to life again as the Prophet Elias did Kings 3. 17. 21. Yea and to do all the Miracles which Christ wrought What followes therefore from the sight of these Miracles Thus much only and no more that as that poor widow of Seraptia truly judged Elias after his giving life to her Son to be à man sent from God and that all be spake was true so the Apostles might rationally have concluded that our Saviours Miracles were indeed from à Power above the force of What force Miracles as seen have nature but that He was thereby evidently proved God appeared no evident infallible verity deduced from his wonders Yet those blessed men and the Primitive Christians firmly believed all these Truths by Infallible Faith and therefore as I said now went above the certainty of the Motives which as seen afforded no such infallible certainty 13 Some may say If all those glorious Miracles wrought by our Saviour neither gave evidence of his being God nor solely taken ultimately determined any to believe his Divinity or so much as one Revealed verity How came the Apostles and all Orthodox Christians with them to raise their Faith so high as to believe infallibly Christs sacred Doctrin I answer Three things chiefly brought their Faith to Three things necessary for faith this perfection Prodigious works or Miracles as seen perswaded much Our Saviours sacred words as heard by those he taught added more strength and finally the pious affection of the Will in every Believer that saw these works and heard his words when drawn on and encouraged by Christ's Command to elicite Faith passed through all difficulties to the Contrary and moved the understanding to believe infallibly the truth of what ever that great Master did speak 14 Shall I yet touch upon these particulars more plainly All know that the greatest Miracles which were ever done without words or Doctrin delivered by him that wrought them make not our Christian Verities known for had Christ appeared in the world and given life to twenty dead men and all that time never spoken word of his Doctrin none could have apprehended what to believe of our Christian Mysteries Those therefore who saw his Miracles might well have thought him some extraordinary person sent from God because are further explicated Divels cannot restore life to the dead but could never know by those wonders what he judged of Divine matters before they heard him speak 2. Words alone without miraculous works induce none to believe wherefore had Christ come amongst us and only told us he was God and the true Messias and wrought no Miracles shewed no sanctity or austerity of life neither Iewes nor Gentils nor indeed any could in prudence have believed him Hereof se more in my notes upon Pooles Appendix n. 21. and learn withall that Christ's admirable works and sacred words ioyntly taken highly conduce to beget Divine Faith in all I say Ioyntly taken whereof we have an Instance in that glorious Transfiguration upon Mount Thabor The Disciples there present saw our Saviours sacred face shine like the sun and his garments white as snow Yet that vision alone no way apt by it selfe to perswade any of his being the Son of God might have left the Apostles in suspence concerning that Mystery 2. They heard à voice as S. Peter speak's z. Epist 1. 17. from the magnificent Glory This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased That voice added to the vision gave more strength 3. An express command Close ensued upon that Vision and voice Ipsum audite Be sure to hear my beloved Son Here all further delay ceased and à strict obligation was layd on them to raise their Faith above all they saw or heard as also most firmly to believe the truth of what ever Christ our Lord spake 15 Upon this one Instance all I would say is grounded Ask therefore why I by Faith goe above all the Signs and Miracles which Christ or his Church The effiâ—acy of God's Command in order to Faith shewes me or why I infallibly believe the truth of every Revelation proposed I answer the reason is because God who hath right to oblige when he intimat's his will by clear Signs prodigious works and words command's me to do so and I am as much bound to obey him upon such summons as if the truth of the Revelation were made evident to me Here you must either deny that God can lay such à command upon men which is evidently false for à temporal Prince as is now proved can do it or grant that I am obliged to obey his Command and therefore can ascend with my Faith above the strength of all Motives and believe the Truth of his Revelation infallibly Otherwise you must say God command's me to do what I cannot do just as if he should bid me fly through the Air when I have neither power nor wrings to fly with 16 Now mark I beseech you All our Adversaries Arguments either tend to prove that God cannot lay that obligation upon us when he gives such Motives as perswade to believe which yet saith Dr Still appeares by multitudes of places of Scripture or evince that nothing can bring men to believe the Truth of à Revelation but the evidence of it or à clear sight of that Truth we assent to by Faith which is manifestly false Reflect once more upon
the vision in Mount Thabor The Apostles saw there our Saviour all in glory yet knew not evidently what it meant They heard those words This is my most Dear Son Mark 9. 7. and understood their obvious sence yet had no evidence of the Truth signified by those words Finally they received that command Ipsum audite Hear and believe all that this dear Son deliver's to you but were yet far from having the truth of that command or any thing he spake laid out evidently before them Notwithstanding they believed the very truth of those words and Command also and thus their Faith led on by clear signs admirable works sacred words and an express command transcended the certainty of what ever they saw or heard 17 From what you have already noted it followes That if by Faith we believe the very truth of a Revelation and not only its Credibility the act of Faith cannot but be of à higher certainty than all the exteriour Signs and Motives as known by sense can perswade to The reason now given is clear All these outward Signs and Motives manifested to the world are reduced to the admirable works miracles for example Neither the Apostolical words nor Works can evidence the truth of Divine Revelation done by Christ his Apostles and the Church as also to the plain signification of words these Oracles spake But neither the works which Christ shewed nor the words he spake though plainly significant made the truth of his Revelation evident as is now proved but only evidently credible therefore if by Faith we believe the very truth of à Revelation which all grant and rest not only upon its Credibility we goe Eo ipso beyond the certainty of that judgement whereby we know it to be evidently credible though not shewed evidently true Hence I said Prot without Prin. Disc 1. c. 5. n. 6. that all the power in Heaven cannot separate Infallibility from an act of Faith setled upon the Truth of God's Revelation though Divines yet question whether by the absolute power of God all these outward Signs we se or hear of might not have been the very same in appearance as they are now had God never revealed any thing 18 Some less skilful may reply The words the Apostles heard on Mount Tabor and understood were plain and significant enough what need Truth is not alwaies Spoken by words most significant is there of more A simple objection Are I beseech you all significant words true Grant this and no man can tell à Lye or à false story for in such cases words are very significant yet far from truth Now the Apostles did not only know the signification of that voice heard but also believed its Truth though not made evident to them This is ever to be reflected on 19 You will say again Those words and all other written in Scripture are either evidently Credible or evidently true Answ Words evidently Credible in this place imply à piece of nonsence when by themselves they are evidently heard and their open signification If clear evidently known without any more light Speak therefore thus properly The true signification of words in Scripture is made evidently Credible and when clear believed true by Faith yet are not known evidently or Scientifically true and the obiection becomes forceles Here I expect that such an Adversary as Dr Still may obiect 3. From this discourse it followes Though one read Scripture à hundred times over and add to that the interpretation of the Church yet after all he cannot know that Christ our Saviour is God and the true Messias I Answer none can know these truths Scientifically or vpon clear evident Principles I grant it None can infallibly believe them by virtue of God's Revelation made evidently credible by clear signs I deny it After all this trifling 20 Followes another obiection much to this sence There seem's an open contest between these Signs or the Motives inducing to Faith on the one side and God's express command whereby we are obliged to believe the truth of his Revelation on the other The Motives draw one way and licence us not to goe one step further than to assent to what they shew which is only to acknowledge God's Revelation evidently Credible but not infallibly true God's Command pushes further and will have all to believe the Truth of à Revelation though we se no reason to go so high by Faith This obiection contain's nothing but what is solved already I therefore answer An obiection taken from the Motives and Gods Command solved in a word We se no reason to goe so high while we rest upon the Motives only I grant it we se no reason to goe so high if we attend to God's command manifested by clear signs I deny what is assumed For this command and the Majesty of the commander is both reason and à law more prevalent than all Motives are solely considered or as known by sense Therefore unless the weaknes of these Motives can as it were abate or infringe the strength of God's Command and make me to judge he command's none to believe without evidence had of his Revelation I both can and will captivate my understanding in obsequium fidei and say absolutely what ever you my God speak made evidently credible by clear signes is not only Credible but infallibly true And this is to proceed rationally for if I ought to believe à Mortal man reputed honest and sincere when he speak's though I have no evidence of what he interiourly judges because he may deceive much more am I obliged by captivating my understanding to believe God who cannot deceive when I have the greatest moral Assurance imaginable that he speak's to me and for my Salvation 21 Now here enter's that other Principle hinted at above I mean the pious affection of the will in every Believer which power when once enlightned by the previous judgement of Credibility grounded upon rational Motives for nihil volitum quin praecognitum hath from that judgement assurance that no assent of the mind is or can be of greater concern than an humble submission to what ever God speak's and command's though no evidence of his speaking be drawn from the Motives inducing to believe The reason hereof is clear because upon this assent eternal Salvation depend's and the omission of it brings with it eternal misery Besides the great confidence all have of pleasing God who command's us to believe and the fear we may justly apprehend of wronging his Divine Majesty in case we demurr or boggle when we are thus incited to believe cannot but drive the VVill forward with all the force it hath to move the intellectual Faculty to à most firm and infallible assent of Faith Hence it is as S. Bonaventure observes cited Reas and Relig Disc 3 c. 8. n. 15. VVhat power the will hath to â—lieiâ—â— Faith that men truly prudent and apprehensive of their eternal good are not drawn
and other Motives and layd open to the understanding of primitive Believers who saw Christs wonders the Will thereby enlightned could easily with her pious affection move the Intellectual power to elicit à most firm assent of Faith because God speak's or command's Beliefe which assent if ultimately resolved we shall find securely fixed both upon the Truth of the Revelation as also upon the real Truth of the Motives also joyntly believed And thus the Motives which were only inducements to Believers solely considered that is as they constituted à Revelation and themselves evidently credible can under the notion of Truths conjoyned with the Divine Revelation terminate à certain and infallible assent of Faith 27 Perhaps some half Scholars in speculative learning will esteem all now said confused stuff and very likely as Halfe Scholars talk not valved the Dr expresses himself P. 427 desire the Reader to try his faculty upon it whether it be intelligible No great matter for that say I. Let Smatterers talke I appeal to the judgement of such as have been long versed in Schools and hope to enlighten the unlearned by this one clear Instance 28 Had Christ our Lord after his raysing Lazarus from the dead said only thus much to the then present Spectators You have seen this one great wonder my Disciples and others have been Eye-witnesses of many more An Instance gives light to my Assention wrought by me I speak now to you in the words which my Evangelist shall hereafter register in the Gospel Iohn 10. 25. The works that I do in my Fathers name they give Testimony of me and withall declare that I am truly God and the Messias sent into the world Believe me induced to assent by the works you and others have seen and moreover believe that these seen wonders are not counterfeited but true Miraculous works In this case it is clear that the same Miracles first known by sense or as they apply'd the Divine Revelation to the Believers understanding made themselves together with the Revelation no more but evidently credible and therefore forced none to believe but left that free yet they imposed an obligation upon all rational men of believing the real truth of these Miracles and the Truth of the Revelation whereof neither those primitive Christians nor we ever yet had any Evidence This is to say in plainer terms and mark well the distinction Miracles and all other exteriour Motives as seen or known move to à beliefe of themselves under the notion of Truths though not evidently seen or known as Truths but believed so 29 The whole discourse in this Chapter goes upon à supposition that the Motives of credibility are not essentially connected with the Divine Revelation though if that essential connexion be admitted which is true Doctrin and much avail's to raise Faith above the strength of all exteriour Motives An act of Faith terminated upon the Revelation and the truth of the Motives more certain than humane knowledge yet the act of Faith terminated upon the Revelation and the Truth of the Motives far surpasses in certainty the knowledge which any in this life can have of that connexion for the knowledge of that Connexion is only got by natural discourse whereas the assent of Faith it self rest's upon the most supream Verity I mean God speaking to the world And thus in all opinions the certainty of Faith is defensible As à rational assent Faith depend's upon the Motives of Credibility because God speak's by such Signs As purely Divine it rest's upon the Divine Revelation applyed by rational Motives whereunto I add the lumen fidei which represent's the Truth of the Motives and the Revelation more clearly and immediatly then any natural discourse can do and upon that account much conduces to the Infallible certainty of Faith as is largely declared Reas. and Relig Disc 3. c. 9. n. 6 The last certainty comes from the pious affection of the will as is already declared Having said thus much I desire Dr Still to weaken any one of these Principles upon Good Authority or solid reason CHAP. VII Reflections made upon the Doctors following Discourse Of his Mistakes concerning the Churches Testimony and the obscurity of Faith 1 I Am forced courteous Reader to passe by many impertinent excursions of the Dr his ill language also with other lesser faults for fear of making this Treatise too bulky which may displease him neither do I need to enlarge my self much upon his obiections from P. 365. to P. 400. For they are all solved in my two former Treatises Some few particulars I shall add more to satisfy others in this speculative matter of our Analysis than to answer the Dr who in very deed hath his full Answer already 2 In the. P. now cited he complain's of my shuffling because he hear's no more of the Churches infallible Testimony whereby men believe the Scripture to be the word of God I stand astonish't at this clamorous Adversary Where were his Eyes where was his attention if ever he read my Treatises The very chief aime whereof is to shew not only to Christians but to Iewes and Gentils also that the first known ground of true Religion is à Church manifested by Supernatural Motives proceeding from an infinit power and wisdom This Church I have amply proved to be God's own assured Oracle The Primum credible or first believed Teacher in this present state and that God speak's as immediatly and infallibly by it now as ever he did by Prophet or Apostle As therefore those whom the blessed Apostles taught having seen the Apostolical Signs immediatly believed upon their word So with as great reason may we having penetrated the Churches glorious Marks assent immediatly upon Her word and believe all She obliges Christians to believe But to have assurance of the Scriptures Divine inspiration as likewise of its true infallible sence are believed Articles grounded upon the Churches Infallible Testimony or rather upon God speaking by this Oracle and here we must rest or can believe Nothing The Churches Testimony God's own Testimony I must therefore once more blame the Doctor who forsooth thinks the Faith whereby the Churches Infallibility is believed ought to have such à Divine Testimony and so à process in Infinitum or à Circle will unavoydably follow Such à Divine Testimony Mr Dr you understand not what I teach I say expresly that the Churches Testimony is God's own Testimony as immediatly assented to upon Church Authority for he that hear's the Church hear's God as ever Doctrin was believed upon any Apostles word Thus much supposed and largely proved what need have we of another Testimony distinct from that of the Church Out of all I concluded that as there was neither vicious Circle nor process in Infinitum in those who terminated their faith upon S. Paul's preaching for example so there is neither the one nor other fault in me when I assent to this truth The Churches
Testimony is God's own Testimony and ground my faith upon it Se more of this subiect Reas. and Relig Disc 3. C. 6. n. 26. 3 We have another quarel P. 367. Where I am told if all the necessity of the Churches Proposition be no more then to convey the Divine Testimony to us and the Dr who cites my 3. Disc c. 4. n. 18. wishes me to take pains à little better in proving that Such à condition must have Infallibility belonging to it I answer Mr Dr misrelates my Doctrin for I speak not in that place of the Churches Proposition but of her Motives whereby the Divine Testimony whether God speak's by Scripture or the Church is applyed to us Let him therefore take the pains to cite more exactly or surcease to charge me with that I never taught From this very gross errour proceed's another Infallibility saith he is then only necessary when it is relied upon and is the ground of believing and not where it is à meer condition of understanding In real truth there is nothing here but à want of understanding in Mr Dr. Pray Courteous Reader peruse what I have Disc 3. C. 6. n. 18. 19. where I say the Churches Testimony is not à meer extrinsical condition disposing to believe upon the Divine Testimony in Scripture but a ioynt Motive with it which compleat's the ancient Revelation in order to the beliefe of our Christian Mysteries Therefore when I believe the Church to be infallible because S. Paul teaches She is the Pillar and ground of truth and believe it also because God speak's that very truth by the Church I no way separate the ancient Revelation from the Churches Testimony but by one Indivisible act of Faith be-lieve both at once Hereof I have given à clear Instance in the Chapter now cited n. 22. 23. And constantly find by experience that to evacuate the Dr ' s Arguments no more is necessary but only to point at what is noted in my former Treatises 4 P. 369. He first pretend's to tell us VVhat these Motives of Credibility are 2 How far they are necessary to Faith 3. VVhat influence they have vpon the assent of Faith Had he followed these particulars closely according to his own opinion he might well have given no little advantage against himself but in lieu of doing so he wisely start's aside and for two or three pages only relates what Suares Cardinal Lugo and other great Divines say of these Motives and though all of them speak much to my sence and in things material have nothing contrary to me Yet P. 375. He blames me because I must say that the proofs taken from these Motives do not perswade men to believe or which is all one have no Influence vpon the act of Faith Would to God this Dr would either not write evident untruths or consider better what he writes Pray you reflect Do not I say Protest without Princ. Disc 1. c. 5. n. 11. That the Motives to Faith manifestly point out that true Society of Christians wherein Gods Verities are taught and make it discernable from all heretical Communities Do not I say n. 12. That if Gods goodness could permit these Motives like false Charms to delude the world all might with just reason exclaim as Rich. de S. Vict once did If we believe an errour it is you o God who have deceived us Do not I say n. 14. That without Motives never any since Christianity began rightly believed in Christ our Lord in Apostle or Church Have I not Reas. and Relig. Disc 2 through two whole Chapters laid down the Efficacy of these Motives and shewed what influence they have upon Reason and Faith also Have I not proved them c. 7. n. 3. 4. to be God's own Language or publick way of speaking The Dri unjust Cavils to the world And. c. 16. n. 30. plainly assert that to separate the lustre of Motives from Christ and his Church implies à subversion of Christian Religion And yet with me saith our worthy Dr they perswade not to believe nor have influence upon the act of Faith though I say Faith never was or can be without them 5 But from whence comes this gross mistake of the Dr Marry from hence because I say that the act of Faith as Faith wholly relies upon other Principles Good Mr Dr cannot you conceive how one indivisible act where in there are no separable parts wholly relies or depend's upon several Principles though with à different respect Take One act of Faith Necessarily depend's upon several Principles for example à Conclusion deduced out of well ordered Premises as à vital operation it wholly depend's upon the intellectual faculty that produces it As à thing in being it wholly depends upon Gods general concurse which gives existence to every creature yet as à Conclusion it wholly relies on the Premises The whole influence of one of these different Principles abates nothing but is well consistent with the whole influence of their other associated causes Iust thus it is in an act of Faith As vital it wholly depend's on the Intellectual power as supernatural wholly on the infused habit or something equivalent For its Being it depend's on Gods universal concurse whereby every thing exist's but as à rational operation it wholly depend's on the Motives inducing to Faith not that the motives considered meerly as inducements concurr by way of efficiency to that act any more then premises to à conclusion but because the judgement of Credibility which actually inform's the mind in the very instant à Believer first elicit's Faith illuminates his intellectual power and manifestly shew's what he is ready to believe is evidently Credible or worthy à most certain assent because God speak's by his own Oracle O! but the act of Faith precisely fix't upon the Divine Revelation reasons not and consequently saith our Dr seem's unreasonable or hath no ground to rely on 6 This difficulty I have both proposed in express terms and solved Reas. Relig Disc 3. C. 16. n. 25. and say there an act of Faith may be considered two wayes First as it is à prudent reasonable submission to what ever God reveals 2. as terminated upon the Revelation proposed by the Church or any other infallible Oracle Under the first notion of à prudent submission it either necessarily implies or presupposes the rational prudent judgment of credibility set fast on such Motives as converted the world which judgement rightly denominat's Faith à reasonable Obsequiousness But again consider the act in it self I mean as it precisely tend's upon the Revelation and à Mystery not evidently seen it where an Act of Faith reasons not cannot reason at all nor more prove or Scientifically know its obiect as it rest's there than Science as science believe Thus I then answered and though the Doctor hitherto never took the least notice of my reply yet we shall find him hereafter when his rational Evidence of Christian Religion comes
Faith to the Churches infallibility upon Motives confessedly fallible an assent be not required beyond all proportion and degree of evidence First Who tells you Mr Dr that the Motives are confessedly fallible The Church never defined so I with others expressly say they are Metaphysically certain and have infallible connexion with the Divine Revelation It is true some Divines hold them fallible but it is only an opinion and therefore too weak to support your stout expression confessedly fallible or to make the contrary opinion improbable But suppose them fallible I have notwithstanding shewed how the act of Faith is most certain and infallible and shall here for the better satisfaction of à less learned Reader upon this hint given by the Dr apply all I have said above to the Catholick Church Thus I discourse 12 God an eternal Truth who perfectly comprehend's all things intuitively Seing himself one Essence and Though the Motives to Faith were fallible Faith yet stand's firm three distinct Persons reveal's that Verity and to the end all may assent to it by Faith He adorn's his own Oracle the Catholick Church with the Royal Signs of his Power and wisdom The Church thus illustrated speaking in the name of God or which is all one God speaking by Her proposes that high Mystery and obliges all to believe it The Signs or Motives whereby he speaks to reason manifest in the Church make it evidently credible that eternal Truth speak's and in order to Faith are the only exteriour rational lights we have in this present State from whence Faith takes it rise and whereupon it necessarily depend's But the highest measure of certainty these motives considered as rational inducements can give any is only as I say to make the Mystery evidently credible not evidently true Yet on the other side when we prudently reflect upon God's powerfull speaking by Signs and Motives and withall ponder the weight of his Command which obliges us to assent not only to the Credibility of à Mystery but to its very Truth à pious will both can and is bound to move the understanding to passe as it were above that Credibility and to believe the Infallible truth of the Revelation which revealed truth by help of other Principles mentioned in the foregoing Chapter advances Faith to infallible certainty and therefore farr transcends that intellectual light rising from the Motives and also goes beyond the plainest signification of words Christ ever spake because Faith as Faith ultimately relies not upon the bare signification of words or on the exteriour sight of Miracles but upon the real Truth of Gods Revelation pointed at by words and works though by such outward Signs not eviâ—vidently proved true And thus you se first what the obscurity of Faith implies or wherein it consist's It consist's in this that through Obedience to God's Command we raise our selves above the force of all Motives inducing to Faith and firmly believe upon anothers Authority I mean God's Divine Testimony that to be infallibly true though we neither se the Testimony nor the thing attested evidently true You se 2. That our Dr ' s long Tattle of Faith transcending the Motives of Credibility serves only to amuse an unwary Reader or rather to tell the learned that he shamefully mistakes and handles one difficulty in place of another for according to his promise he should either have proved that Faith it self or the Church is fallible but all this while he run's astray and never meddles with that main Question contenting himself to impugn and most weakly à School opinion only 13 And here by the way I cannot but wonder at our Dr ' s simplicity who cites Doctour Holden saying That no assent of Divine Faith can have any greater true and rational certainty then the assent of the Medium hath by which the obiect of Faith is applyed to the understanding First What if Dr Holden differ from others in explicating the certainty of Faith doth he therefore hold it fallible or only morally certain This followes not 2. Dr Still should here have told us what is meant by those words The assent of the medium by which c For if the Catholick Doctour teach that the Medium now spoken of is the Divine Revelation applyed by Motives Metaphysically certain he may well assert that Faith as true and rational mark the words can have no greater certainty then that medium known by natural discourse gives yet this hinders not that higher certainty grounded on the Revealers Authority believed and upon God's command as is already explained 14 Dr Still from his P. 376 to P. 400. besides endless Tautologies all tending to shew Faith unreasonable for want of Motives already answered and much ill language not worth answering gives me little to reflect on Yet his 383 P. must not passe wholly unexamined where got into à Dungeon he cryes out against the obscure tendency of Faith upon its own obiect though he knowes or should know that old Maxim Fides est credere quod non vides The truth is grounded vpon our Saviours words to S. Thomas Blessed are those who believe and have not seen It s grounded on S. Peters words 2. Epist 1. 19. A light shining in à dark place upon S. Austin's Doctrin Epist 85. Faith hath its eyes wherewith after some manner quodammodo All Authors ascribe an obscure tendency to Faith it may se that to be true which yet it sees not and the Authority of many other Fathers Therefore S. Thomas rightly conclud's 2. 2. q. 5. a. 2. corp That the Intellectual power assents to à matter believed not because it see 's it either in it selfe or by any resolution made into the first Principles Seen but because it is convinced by the Divine Authority to assent to things Quae non videt which it see 's not Hence also Catholick Divines inferr that the very act of Faith purely considered as Faith see 's not by any evidence the Truth of what we believe otherwise to se evidently and to believe would be the same thing contrary to Christ words which annex happines to believing without seeing or clear evidence had of that obiect yet in darkness never to be perfectly dispelled untill we se God in the next life 15 But saith Dr Still The great things we believe are received upon the Authority of the Revealer yet so that we assert we have as great evidence that these things were revealed by God as the matter is capable of Here is no man knowes what hudled up in this dark expression As the matter is capable of Let us therefore proceed plainly You Sr believe the Mysterious Trinity because as you think God reveal's it in Scripture Have you by your act of Faith for here we speak not of the previous rational Evidence of Credibility Evidence that such à Revelation which was and is yet God's free act and might not have been doth now really exist Have you evidence of the true Sence
to remain to the worlds end the Prophets ceased to prophesy of His appearing in flesh and had no longer that Infallible gift Answearable hereunto one might assert were it needful that the High Priests infallible power in judging fail'd also at that time though the Dr will have à heard task to prove that Caiphas's Judgement was erroneous in case he ponder well S. Iohns words c. 11. 50. You know nothing neither do you what he repeat's to little purpose hath been Solved consider that it is expedient for us that one man dy for the people and that the whole nation perish not And this he said not of himself but being the High Priest of that year he Prophecyed That Iesus should dy for the Nation and not only for the Nation c. Observe well It was expedient that Christ should dy and though à wicked man spake the words yet the Spirit of truth which guided his tongue for he spake not of himself erred not And this proves that God often preserves truth as well by an unworthy Prelate as by one really worthy where Order and Office is to be regarded and not the dignity or Indignity of the person Now whether all the subordinate Judges of the Sanhedrin were infallible is à new question not pertinent to the matter in hand It is more satisfaction then I owe the Dr to shew that the Supream Judge of the Sanhedrin who ever presided over the rest much less the whole Church of the Iewes erred not Witness S. Joseph of Arimathaea Nicodemus and innumerable others dispersed all Jury over who all were faithful and free from errour 10 Concerning the other Question hinted at None I think can doubt but that the High Priests in all grand Judicatures were infallible which Priviledge Moses certainly enjoyed and Amarias also 2. Paralip 19. 11. Moses induced by Iethro his Counsel Exod. 18. 13 made Choice of some others to Judge in causes of lesser importance reserving greater matters to himself Num. 11. 16. God commanded Moses to call together seventy of the Elders in Israel for his assistance appointed to bear the burthen with him and at their election had the Spirit of Prophesy After Moses death the Prophets Iosue Samuel David Elias Eliseus c succeeded and these certainly were Infallible But there is no need of staying longer upon this point being as I said not pertinent to our present Enquiry relating to the Infallibility of our Christian Church 11 The Dr P. 408. err's not à little while he supposes the Infallibility of the Roman Church to be lodged in the Supream Ecclesiastical Iudges and no where els To this I answered directly Reas. and Relig Disc 3. C. 12. n. 14. much wonder it is the Dr ' s eyes saw it not and said when we resolve Faith into the Churches Infallible Authority we understand by the Church the whole diffused body of Orthodox Christians made manifest by Supernatural Motives and not in the first place the Representative in General Councils For that more explicite Beliefe had of General Councils connaturally presupposes when à right Analysis is made the other general Truth assented to Viz. This manifested Society of Christians is God's own Church and the only way to Salvation Hence all Catholicks avouch that the whole Catholick Body consisting of Pastors to teach and Hearers to learn cannot totally err or swerve from truth whereunto properly belong those promises of the Gospel Hell gates shall not prevail against the Church The spirit of truth abides with Her for ever She is the Pillar and ground of Truth c. 12 The Dr err's again in his next An other Errour of the Dr. page where he demand's why the concurrent Testimony of all Christians may not afford as sufficient à ground to believe the books of the new Testament without an Ecclesiastical Senate as those Jewes who no more believed Christ Infallible than the Sanhedrin did might have à sufficient ground to believe that the Prophesies came not in old time by the will of God This I take to be the sence of the Dr ' s Querie which after his manner he spin's out to à tedious length I answer though the Jewes had sufficient ground to believe that those ancient Prophesies were not from man but God yet the concurrent Testimony of Christians in the Dr's Principles is no certain ground to believe the Authority of the books of the new Testament First because all that Testimony with him is fallible and may be false and if the Jewes The Churches Tradition is infallible had no surer Ground to believe the old Prophesies they could not assent to them by Divine Faith In our Catholick Principles there is no difficulty at all because we hold the Tradition of the Church infallible Yet as I noted in the last Treatise the first consent of Christians owning these books Divine presupposed them taken as Divine upon the Authority of an Infallible Oracle and first made them not accepted as Divine for no man will say Scripture is first owned as à book Divinely inspired by the Holy Ghost because Christians Say so but contrary wise therefore they say so and agree in that truth because God antecedently to the universal consent assured all by an Infallible Oracle that they were of Divine Inspiration 13 P. 410. we have fearful Doings about à man of clouts where the Dr sadly complain's that I fall unmercifully to work with this man of Clouts He means himself that I throw him first down and trample upon him then I set him up again to make him capable of more valour being shown upon him then I kick him afresh and beat him of on side then on the other and so terribly triumph over him that the poor man of Clouts blesseth himself that he is not made of flesh and bones for if he had it might have The Dr's more than rediculous Complaints cost him some aches and wounds What in the name of God put the Dr into this strange trembling fit Wil not every one that read's these Threnes judge that I have dealt most rudely with à Doctor and deem my crime horrid one surely of the first magnitude to be wash't away with teares and sorrow Please to hear it Marry I said Disc 2. c. 3. n. 9 and the Dr cites my words That I verily thought Mr Still mistook one obiection for an other And is this all Not one syllable more I assure you that can give offence unless he be angry with me for not calling him Doctor when I knew nothing of his Doctorship 14 P. 411. He ask's how those believed Infallibly who only heard of Christs Miracles but saw them not I answered n. 15. Every immediate Conveyer or Propounder of Christ's Doctrin needs not to be Infallible though before those Hearers whether Barbartans or others believe Every one that proposes faith need 's not to be infallible an Infallible Oracle must be known and relyed on Se more hereof n. 16.
my own body risen from the dead You have none Therefore rely boldly on your senses and reason also and judge me to be the same Individual Saviour I was before For there is no Principle natural or revealed which contradict's this belief or that enjoynes you to deny your Senses either in this or any other sensible obiect But for the change of bread into my body you have my express words the world hereafter will profess that truth all over Christianity my Church shall maintain it the best Christians upon earth believe it Innumerable Martyrs shall dy for it undeniable Miracles confirm it and the most learned Doctors that ever lived shall leave this my Doctrin upon Record to the utter confusion of all Hereticks The Dr may demand upon what ground can I imagin that our Saviour would have argued thus against his Disciples I answer my ground is incomparably more sure than any the Dr can give or endeavour to perswade by that the Apostles were ever so sottish as to have thought of his ridiculous Obiection For all I say here are Truths owned over Christendom and worthy to be spoken by out Saviour but his Obiection never wise or Orthodox man seriously proposed before himself 6 What followes in the Dr is no more but one Tautologie after another The Dr's Tautologies Or the same thing already casheired said too often over When saith he the assurance of Christian Religion came from the judgement of the Senses of those who were Eye-witnesses of the Miracles and the Resurrection of Christ if the Senses of men may be so grosly deceived in the proper obiects of them in the case of Transubstantiation what assurance could they have who were Eye-witnesses of them A long period with many falsities to no purpose I have answered to what here import's that though our senses be deceived in the case of Transubstantiation which is not true yet we have as much certainty in every other thing we se or and weak way of arguing feel as the Dr hath when he sees or feels the pulpit he preaches in Vnless this Sequel be allowed of My eyes are once deceived if yet so ergo they must alwaies be deceived Or à Iugler can make me se what is not ergo I never se what is Again saith he The Drs repeated Obiections Take away the certainty of the judgement of sense you destroy all certainty in Religion I have answered We neither take away the Obiect of sense nor like well his miscalled judgement of sense for sense hath still its own proper obiect though were it otherwise in this Mystery his Inference of all certainty destroyed has no Sence in it 3. Saith the Dr. I must by virtue of your Churches Infallibility believe something to be true which if it be true there can be no certainty at all of the truth of Christian Religion This is only the some thing needlesly repeated already answered And so is that which some others do obiect If the sense of seing be deceived so likewise may the sense of hearing and consequently none can have assurance of what either Christ spake or the Church teaches Who can read this stuff with patience Yet it is gravely set forth in Sermons as most weighty and convincing and which is worse thought worthy to appear in Print 7 The Solution of all in à word is Our senses in this Mystery are not deceived nor so much beguiled as the eye is when we se à straight stick crooked in the water for here the Medium makes that to appear crooked which is not there in the Eucharist the immediate obiect of sense is seen as before without the least Illusion Yet grant which is not true à deception here it is à folly above expression to infer that our senses are beguiled in every other obiect set before our eyes clearly solved and this the Dr must prove or he evinces nothing Thus much noted I challenge and charge the Dr to discover in his next Answer any thing like à fallacy in my whole Discourse But when will this be done think ye Then I say and not sooner when the Dr makes this Consequence good If Christ changed bread retaining the outward semblance of bread into his own body we may prudently judge that he also changed those stones the Divel shew'd him Matt 4. into good bakers bread though outwardly they still appeared stones The first change is grounded upon as great Authority as any Mystery of Faith is none excepted For the second we have nothing but fancy only Now if after all I have said the Dr as his usual If the Dr tell his old stories over again he will be called à Bungler custome hath been silently passes by my reasons hitherto alledged and only tells his old stories over again of our senses being deceived c. I shall retort his own words upon him and conclude that his School find's no answer to my Arguments 8 Another grand errour of this Dr is that he attributes more to the Evidence of sense in order to its proper obiect à visible Miracle for example than can be allowed The Sense of seing take this for an Instance the like is of feeling hearing c is only terminated upon the outward appearance of things and as it penetrat's not the substance of the bread so neither see 's it the inward life or motion of the Soul in à mortal body Whence it followes though we grant that Sense is never beguiled as to its proper obiect yet it often gives occasion of deceipt in other matters wholly out of the reach of sense You shall se what I here hint at by one Instance Suppose the Dr saw the Divel that often transform's himself into an Angel of light doing his feates to delude the senses with à false Miracle or if he denies Divels he must grant that power to Antichrist who will shew many seeming wonders Suppose this be one that à man in outward appearance dead to all senses by Antichrists Charms stand's up again and moves as others do I ask how will the Dr who gives so much credit to his eyes and senses distinguish by Sense only between the true resuscitation of Iairus daughter Luke 8. 55. and this counter feit Miracle of Antichrist In his Principles he cannot difference them if guided by the Evidence of sense and all that reason Can discover by Sense only 9 Hence to take off the Dr ' s errour as to the Blessed Sacrament we discourse further He Iudges what he see 's in The Dr by virtue of his own Principle must own Antichrist's Miracles for true Miracles a consecrated Host to be truly bread because his eyes and senses tell him it is bread These the Dr thinks give in stronger Evidence for its being bread than any proof to the contrary can perswade that it is not bread Yeild this and the Dr yeilds all He is obliged to own this seeming Miracle of Antichrist for
à true Miracle because his eyes and senses will have it true I prove it The exteriour Evidence in both Cases is the very Same for as sense see 's and feel's this man to be like one truly dead though he is not dead So it also see 's and fee'ls this wafer after Consecration to be like true bread though it be not bread and reason as I now said purely led on by the conduct of sense judges alike in both cases therefore if the Dr Conform's his Judgement to the perswasion of his senses in the one and truly hold's à consecrated host to be bread he cannot but upon the same Evidence Judge that Antichrist's Miracle is à true Miracle No disparity can be given O! but Scripture so often forewarning us of Antichrist's false Miracles much abates yea wholly withdrawes every sound Christian from believing them true Is it possible Can Scripture let in so much light upon us Can it make us to deny what our eyes see and fingers feel to be true Why therefore cannot the clearest words that Christ ever Spake This is my body My flesh is meat indeed My blood is drink indeed force us to deny the weak suggestion of our Senses called by the Dr the Strongest Evidence Why should not those Sacred words move us Submissively to confess that as no real Miracle lies under that outward guise of Antichrist's What plain Scripture forces on us to believe in the blessed Sacrament apparent wonder Scripture drawes us to own this truth So no real bread lies under the outward apparence or visible forms of bread and wine or if Scripture work 's so powerfully upon us as not to believe that to be bread which to our Senses looks like bread where in is Our offence greater than the Dr ' s who believes that to be no true Miracle which to our Senses looks like a true one In à word the Dr must either quit his so much cryed up Evidence taken from Sense or will be forced to grant which is horrid that Antichrist Shâ—ll work as true Miracles as ever Christ wrought 10 Again how can the Dr Assert that Christ's Miracles wrought before the writing of Scripture were done to confirm all the Doctrin registred by S. Paul and the other Disciples afterward Nay how can he prove they were wrought to confirm the truth of our Saviours own Doctrin without giving some further proof then the outward sight of à Miracle is Hence I said the Dr erred when he told us that the assurance of Christian Religion came from the judgement of the senses of those who were Eye-witnesses of the Miracles and the Resurrection of Christ First no Eye-witnesses saw our Saviour actually rysing from the dead but afterward yet had they seen him in that instant can the Dr judge that the assurance of the Apostles Faith came from that sight Doth he or any ground Faith upon the sight of those who beheld Christs Miracles while the very best Eye-witnesses believed not because they saw them but upon this strong Motive that Christ told them he was sent from God to teach eternal truth and that now risen he was the same Saviour who had been dead Gods Infallible word therefore rightly called Divine Revelation not seen by any mortal eye grounded the Apostles Divine Faith relies not upon the sight of à Miracle Faith and so it likewises doth all true Christian Faith in the world to this day Now if the Dr tell us when he saies the assurance of Christian Religion came from the judgement of sense his meaning only was that the sight of those Miracles were Inducements to believe Christ's revealed Doctrin and made that not evidently seen evidently credible He first speaks improperly in calling those visible matters of fact the Foundations of Faith Account P. 119 And. 2. destroyes the certainty of Christian Doctrin by endeavouring to prove it immediatly true before he evinces it evidently credible And this he doth by introducing à new set of Motives different from those of the Catholick Church which both Jewes and Gentils scorn and in reallity neither evidence the Truth to such men nor the Credibility of Christian Religion much lesse have any reference to the Thing he calls Protestancy as will appear afterward 11 To make my Assertion good turn courteous Reader to the Doctors Account Part. 1. c. 7. P. 204 where he offer 's to resolve the Faith of Protestants though he never meddl's with the Novelty as I have largely proved Protest without Princ. Disc 1. c. 9. In this place I am to show that his Discourse tend's to the ruin of true Christian Religion also Supposing what he will have with all might and main Supposed that there is no Infallible Church 12 There are saith he three Questions to be resolved in the resolution of Faith First if I be asked on what grounds I believe the things to be true which the Dr's discourse deâ—â—â—ed in 〈◊〉 own â—ords are contained in Scripture My answer must be from the greatest evidence of truth which things of that nature are capable of If therefore the persons who are supposed to have writ those things were such who were fully acquainted with what they writ of and cannot be suspected of any design to deceive men by their writings and if I be certain that these which go under the name of their writings are undoubtedly theirs I have sufficient grounds to believe the truth of them He add's more These writers cannot be suspected of ignorance for they wrot these things when the story was new and some of them had been conversant with the person and actions of him whom they writ of That they could have no intent to deceive appear's from their simplicity and Candour both of their actions and writings from their contempt of the world and exposing themselves to the greatest hazards to bear witness to them Finally that these writings have been unanimously received by Christians and never doubted of by Iewes His pretended rational evidence for the first act of faith or Heathen Philosopher Thus the Dr plead's for the evidence of the first act of Faith whereby he believes those things true which are Doctrin more at large not in to leave it unexamined as he usually doth mine but to shew the unreasonableness of it while he makes all along à bare Supposition his best and only proof Or speak thus and you fully express all he saies Some body wrot the things contained in Scripture Ergo all that appear's there is true because writen 13 To prove by reason that the things contained in Scripture are true he first begins with Ifs. If the persons who are supposed to have written such things were fully acquainted with what they vvrot of If they cannot be suspected of any design to deceive men If is be certain that such uvritings are theirs c. Observe I beseech you These conditional Propositions carry no other weight with them but thus much only if
what is supposed True be true it is true and we ought to assent to it Just as if one should say if Peter be à man of his word I may believe evidenced null and forceless him but as that conditional proves not Peter honest no more do these Assertions of the Dr being only conditional prove any thing true without à Minor to this sence But these things are so which Minor is wanting The Dr think 's he proves his Assertions upon these grounds That the writers of Scripture cannot be suspected of Ignorance having had long conversation with him they wrot of Their simplicity and candour in writing gives evidence they intended no deceipt with all the rest that followes I answer these are nothing like rational proofs but meer unproved Suppositions whereunto neither Iewes nor Gentils give credit I evince this demonstratively Put the book of holy Scripture into the hands of à Heathen Philosopher who never heard of Christ of the Church or of any other Motive for Christian Religion but only takes so much as the Dr here proposes and what the Scripture it selfe barely relates Would this Philosopher think ye after his pondering the Dr ' s Discourse and reading Scripture forthwith acquiesse and say all is true he reads He were worse then besotted did he so If prudent he would tell you he had joyntly perused with Scripture the Turks Alcaron and as he found strange wonders written of Christ in the one book so also he met with great matters recounted of Mahomet in the other for which the Turks pretend to have universal tradition but whether Scripture or the Alcaron speaks truth whether such men as the Dr mentions related exactly the Miracles of Christ and his true Doctrin with those Miracles the Philosopher knowes not nor shall ever know without à further proof taken from the testimony of some other Infallible Oracle which makes the truths in Scripture evidently credible and then proposes all as Divine and infallible Verities 14 The ultimate reason hereof is most convincing All matters contained in Scripture whether Miracles or The reason of their nullity said forth Doctrin are not ex terminis any Self evidence nor can they give by themselves so much as à great moral certainty of their Truth or Credibility Therefore they must be proved either true or evidently Credible by another Certain Oracle or can never draw belief from any I am sure S. Austin who discoursed more profoundly than the Dr ever did judged So when he told the Manichaes He would not believe the Gospel unless the Authority of the Church moved him to believe it and upon this firm ground all must believe or believe nothing The Dr ' s whole discourse proves only this conditional truth that if the Primitive Christians had reason to believe the Doctrin of Christ upon the inducement of his Miracles they did well to believe but that such Miracles were wrought he shewes not save only by Scripture it selfe hitherto neither proved True nor Divine I say proved For no Christian doubt's of the truths there contained though all justly question whether the Dr makes them to appear Truths by à bare telling us of some Contents in that book which neither Jew nor Gentil nor indeed any can believe unless more be said than the Dr bring 's to light 15 In à word here lies the whole errour He makes the Christian Doctrin Wherein the Dr's errour lies couched in Scripture to prove it selfe and drawes his rational Evidence of Credibility from the Mysteries believed Observe well He believes the Resurrection of Christ from the dead for this is an Article of Faith can he I beseech you make the Resurrection it self as believed the rational Motive of believing it while after all his discourse we are yet to seek for à proof of that very Scriptures Truth and Divinity also whereby the Resurrection is attested 16 The Dr may reply his evidence is not taken from the Mysteries of Faith Apos◠reply 〈◊〉 seen and prevented and from our Saviours Miracles the like is of Apostolical wonders as they are believed but from the Humane consent of the Primitive Christians who either saw or heard of such matters of fact wrought by Christ and his Apostles which common consent passing among so many grave and pious men made them in those dayes evidently Credible and Morally certain though we abstract from all Divine Revelation in Scripture and the Churches Infallible Authority I answer first if the Dr run's this way his whole discourse fastidiously spun out against the Miracles of the Roman Catholick Church fall's to nothing for if the common humane consent of the ancient Christians Supposed neither Devine Revelation nor infallible raised The common consent of the ancient Christians and modern for Miracles parallel'd our Saviours Miracles to Moral certainty or evident Credibility Then why should not the like common humane Consent of Christians Now make the Miracles owned in the Roman Catholick Church morally certain or evidently credible And I speak of Miracles approved by the Church not of every forged tale or pretended false wonder which were not wanting in the Primitive times If therefore the Dr say that all since the Apostles dayes have been grosly deluded in recounting the Miracles wrought in the Catholick Church both Jewes and Gentils will shrewdly pester him and avouch as boldly that those Primitive Christians over Credulous what Iewes may obiect like papists in these dayes were no less beguiled in their crying up Apostolical Miracles What say you to this Mr Dr The parity taken from the primitive times and ours I shall urge more fully hereafter and tell the Dr he shall long sweat at it before he solves what I here object if which is ever to be noted we stand only upon à common humane consent of men called Christians and abstract from the Authority of an Infallible Church 17 I answer 2. The enquiry here made concern's not only the bare truth of these matters of fact recorded in Scripture but implies more for we ask how what is here chiefly enquired these matters of fact are rationally proved truths written by the Assistance of the Holy Ghost or how when supposed wrought sixteen Ages since they are now conveyed and applyed to us as Truths of so high à nature No common consent of Christians meerly humane and long since past can give Sufficient certainty hereof sufficient I say to ground Divine Faith Wherefore seing Scripture evidences not it's own truths nor any reflection made upon Scripture can clear these doubts an infallible living Oracle manifested by supernatural Signs must speak and tell us that these matters of fact were written not like other things in humane History which are lyable to errour but by the special direction and inspiration of the Holy Ghost 18 Hence we proceed to the second Question If saith the Dr I be asked why I The Dr's second question proposed believe the Doctrin contained in
made flesh This is my body c. But how is any man wiser for that How is our knowledge or faith improved by such à maimed or half perfect Tradition While no man can certainly tell us what the true meaning of those sacred words is No man can determine the debates which arise among Christians the Arians and you that draw plain Contradictions out of these words now cited Such à conveyance or tradition as could end these long strifes would be to your purpose and comfort Mr Dr but you have none of it because you slight the Tradition and Authority of an Infallible Church Though therefore you tell us twenty times over you believe all truths expressed in Scripture yet while you cannot assure us upon tradition or any other sound Principle what those necessary truths are which Faith in necessaries is determinately to pitch upon you only trifle away your time and cheat your Reader in seeming to discover great How the Dr Cheat's his Reader matters whereas in real truth you speak not one word to the purpose If to solve the difficulty here briefly touched you run up to your own discerning faculty permit the Arian to keep you company and blame him not if he trust to his discerning faculty quite contrary to yours Se more hereof above Chap. 4. n. 10. Thus much premised 27 To answer the Dr I say first Fallible Tradition which may be false Our Answer to the Dr. the Dr own 's none Infallible gives not so great certainty of Miracles Supposed true in Scripture as Eye-sight did to those who beheld them The reason is Fallible Tradition in the Dr ' s Principles easily alters in time and may tell one Story for another whereof more presently If therefore that Tradition conveyed by hearing altered as I shall shew most shamefully and if fallible no wonder at the change what certainty have Fallible tradition worth little in Divine matters we now in this present Age either of the Miracles or of the Doctrin recorded in Scripture by virtue of it Or how can the Dr parallel the certainty of à Miracle conveyed down by fallible Tradition with the sight of it This must needs be à lame Parallel For when I se à Miracle I need not to prove the outward appearance of it evidently seen but when that appearance passes down Age after Age upon Hearsay or à faultering Tradition which may change the Story from what it once was I must either prove that Tradition true or cannot prudently rely on it chiefly in this present case while we dispute against Iewes and Gentils who utterly deny those Miracles to have ever been truly wrought by Christ The ancient Jewes all know said Christ cast out Divels by the help of Beelzebub and these modern men of the Synagogue calumniate as boldly to this day 28 I say 2. Those ancient Miracles if saith à Jew ever any such were together with the Doctrin which is thought to be proved either true or evidently credible by such wonders can be no more certain now than the fallible Tradition is which conveighs them to us But this Tradition gives no man so much as moral certainty either of the Miracles or Doctrin I prove the Minor That The reason why worthless in the Dr's Principles ancient Tradition say Sectaries notoriously changed not long after the Apostles dayes when à universal deluge of errours spread it selfe the whole Christian world over and the efficacy of Christs true Doctrin together with its old Tradition was blotted out of mens memory when the Roman Catholick The Dr charges this Idolatry upon the Roman Church Church once confessedly Orthodox unluckily began Her universal Apostacy and professed open Idolatry when the Arians denyed the Mystery of the Incarnation and Trinity Others the two VVills in Christ others his Sacred Humanity others the Resurrection of the dead others the necessity of Divine Grace and others finally professed yet more horrid Doctrins In so much that the whole Christian word part of it one way part another erred most grosly in the very fundamentals of Faith In those dismal dayes say I when all Christian Societies nameable and the Roman Church with them became so infatuated as to change the first received truths taught by Christ and his Apostles the ancient true Tradition could not but change and faile also therefore at this day Tradition is worthless and unualvable because no man can know upon any sure Principle what it anciently was 29 The Dr may reply All called Christians own the Bible and the Miracles there related of Christ and his Apostles which are sufficient to prove Christs Doctrin true so far at least Tradition never failed Small Comfort God knowes to have Tradition of the Scriptures bare letter which yet is not had in our Sectaries Principles Se Reas and Relig Disc 1. c. 6. n. 2. If the Christian world long since cheated out of their ancient Faith bequeathed to posterity à false Doctrin in Lieu of that which The Arians and all hereticks lay as great claime to Christs Miracles as the Dr or any other doth Christ and his Apostles taught and with that à false Tradition also Moreover were those Miracles with their Tradition proved most true the Arians will as well lay claim to them for à proof their Doctrin as the Dr can do for that Religion he professes and the like may all others pretend if called Christians though of à quite different belief in the very Essentials of Faith unless this consequence utterly false be good Christ our Lord wrought such and such Miracles Ergo Protestancy is à better Religion then Arianism Pelagianism is better then Nestorianism and so of the rest The Dr therefore must either make this out that Christ and his Apostles wrought their Miracles to confirm all the erroneous Sects in the world or he speaks nothing to the purpose when he tells us in his Account What the Dr is obliged to clear P. 205. That the Motives of Faith both to them the ancient Christians and to us are the same only the manner of conveyance is different those Primitive Believers Saw them we hear of them by Tradition In saying this he either thinks that such Motives prove the truth of all Religions called Christian which is horridly false or only prove the true Christian Religion among so many dissenting Sects Grant this and we are in as much darkness after the supposed Truth of these Miracles and the Dr ' s long discourse as we were before and can never know by his Motives only which is the true Religion I earnestly desire the Dr would please to solve this one difficulty which I judge cannot be Solved 30 By all hitherto clearly laid down we se 1. The Dr ' s rational Evidence so much talked of brought to nothing but empty words for his whole proofs are meer unproved Suppositions He endeavours to evince by Miracles internal to Scripture the Divinity of the book which
these as inducements lead to it but upon God's speaking by the Church as is now declared 5 Having thus cleared the first act of Faith from all danger of à Circle because it ultimately rest's upon God's speaking by the Church made by it self immediatly credible without recourse to Scripture yet not known to be Divine or God's infallible word I add moreover N 9. If we speak of another distinct consequent and more explicit act of Faith whereby we believe the Churches Infallibility evidenced null and forceless when this Oracle declares the Scriptures true Sence which proves her Infallible there is no difficulty at all because this interpretation of Scripture brought to its last Principle is ultimately resolved into and therefore again believed upon Scripture and the Churches Infallible exposition together for thus ioyntly taken they ground Faith and not like two disparate Principles as if we first believed the Scriptures sence independently of the Churches interpretation and then again believed the Churches exposition to be infallible because the sence of Scripture known without any dependance on Church Authority saith She is Infallible Our good Dr set's down these words more at large and desires the Reader to try his faculty upon them what tolerable sence he can make of them I answer more learned faculties in Speculative matters then the Doctor 's is have made sence of them and that 's enough to ward off his weak blow of contempt Now I am to discover his fallacious and more then simple way of Arguing against me 6 The whole difficulty is brought at last to the true decision of this Question Whether one Infallible Oracle while it explicates the darker Sence of another The difficulty concerning à vicious Circle proposed likewise Infallble cannot be believed for it self without à vicious Circle One or two Instances will clear my meaning The Prophet Ioel. 2. 28. long before S. Peter lived Prophesyed of the effusion of God's divine Spirit upon all flesh which words dark in themselves that great Apostle Acts. 2. 16. interpret's as spoken of the pouring out of Gods Spirit upon the Apostles in the feast of Pentecost This is that saith S. Peter which was said or foretold by the Prophet Ioel. Observe well S. Peter was proved an Infallible Oracle before he interpreted this Passage of an Infallible Prophet so is the Church proved Infallible before She interpret's any words in Scripture S. Peter used or exercised his Power of interpreting infallibly not first proved infallible by his Interpretation but upon other grounds wholly independent of that Sence he gives to the Prophet So is the Church first proved infallible independently of all and every Interpretation She gives of Scripture Finally as that darker Sence of the Prophet made clear by the Apostles Infallible Interpretation indivisibly concurred to the Faith of the Primitive Christians so also the darker Sence of Scripture cleared by the Churches interpretation indivisibly concur's to the Faith of Believers now 7 Ponder well the force of this Instance and you will soon se through the Dr ' s trivial Obiections I say in à word An Instance worth reflection Had S. Peter proved himself in the first place Infallible by the Sence of that Scripture he then interpreted the Circle would have been Manifest because the thing proved which is the infallible explication of Ioel is assumed again or first made use of to prove S. Peter and his explication infallible But when the Apostles Infallibility in every Doctrin of Faith stood firm upon other grounds though he had never written Scripture nor interpreted any Prophet that man must be quicker sighted than Aristotle who find's à Circle in it This is our case as to the Church She is in à general way supposed and proved infallible in every Catholick Doctrin independently of this or that particular taught by her one particular is the true Interpretation of Scripture more rightly called the exercise and use of her infallible Assistance then the proof The use of the Churches power destroies not â—â—er power of it but evinces not herselfe in the first place to be infallible because She interpret's for that is antecedently proved upon other grounds therefore unless the use of Her power wherewith She is indued to interpret infallibly destroy that power it is impossible to catch her in à Circle while she interpret's 8 Thus much premised You shall se the Dr ' s Obiection melt like wax before the fire Iudge Reader saith he P. The Dr's own words 428 whether here be not à plain Circle Because they believe the Church infallible because the true sence of Scripture saith she is so and again they believe this to be the infallible sence of Scripture because the infallible Church saith so Judge Reader say I whether one plain distinction overthrowes not this feeble fallacy and thus it is We first believe the Church infallible because the true Sence of Scripture saith she is infallible I deny it for that first act of Faith is not at all founded on Scripture We believe the Church infallible by à second more distinct and explicit Faith indivisibly fixed on Scripture and the Churches Interpretation together I grant that most willingly Now this second act of Faith must if we make à right Analysis be at last resolved into this other general Truth VVhat ever God speak's by the Church is certain and infallible which general Truth stand's firm without recourse to Scripture at all The reason is Whatever Argument proved the Church God's infallible Oracle in all She taught before Scripture was written proves Her also without depending on Scripture the same Infallible Oracle still 9 The other part following in the Dr ' s discourse is wholly as lame VVe believe again this to be the Infallible Sence of Scripture because the Infallible Church saith so I answer we believe so indeed but by à second more explicit act of Faith which The Dr's absurd fallacy unravelled supposes the Church proved infallible antecedently to her Interpretation where there is no shadow of à Circle for if the Church be owned infallible in every matter of Christian Faith thus much only followes that when She interpret's the same God that once spake obscurely in Scripture declares his meaning more clearly by his own Oracle the Church 10 One example where you shall have the Dr ' s circle as round as à hoop will yet give more light Imagin those words of the Apostle 1. Tim. 3. 15. The Church is the Pillar and ground of Truth to be as Sectaries will have them obscure or not openly significant for the Churches Infallibility Suppose again that S. Paul or any other infallible Apostle had delivered in clearer terms the true Sence of them nay suppose he had told us the true meaning of those words The Pillar and ground of truth is just so as Catholicks now believe Could Mr Dr or any man living have found à vicious Circle here had S. Paul been owned
and proved an Infallible Teacher independently of his clearer interpretation It is impossible while we believe S. Paul speaking obscurely for S. Paul delivering the Sence of his own words more clearly 11 Now Sr look upon your own pretty Circle VVe believe say you the The D's Circle retorted upon himselfe Church to be infallible because the true sence of Scripture saith so And you believe the Church to be the pillar and ground of truth because the true sence of S. Paul's words explicated by Apostolical Authority saith so Moreover Say you VVe believe this to be the Infallible Sence of Scripture because the Infallible Church saith so and could not you Sr have believed such à Sence of the words now cited had S. Paul delivered it because either he or some other infallible Apostle said so This is only to assert in plainer Terms that the darker sence written in Scripture by one Infallible Oracle can be cleared by the Interpretation of the very same or any other Infallible Oracle which lead's no man into the least danger of à vicious Circle 12 Pray tell me Mr Dr when you in your Account interpret our Saviours words This is my body according to the Sence you judge true do you intangle your Reader in à vicious Circle By your new way of Arguing it's plain you do For those who read or hear your interpretation assent to it as true because the true Sence of Scripture saith so And again they believe this to be the true Sence of Scripture because you say so Your Interpretation has some influence upon the assent of those that believe it be it Condition Cause or what you will otherwise it signifies nothing but And yet made more Clear stand's like an useless cypher in your book This granted your Circle is manifestly vieious for you run in à round from your supposed true interpretation of Scripture to the true Sence of Scripture and back again from the true Sence of Scripture to your supposed true Interpretation Mark well Your Interpretation is proved or believed true by the true sence of Scripture here is your only ground and the true Sence of Scripture is again proved or believed true by your supposed true explication Hence it followes that either your interpretation is not according to the true Sence of Scripture God forbid say you or that the true Sence of Scripture correspond's not to your supposed true explication or finally this must be granted that you run round in à Circle and prove the one by the other 13 Perhaps to avoid à Circle it will be said you prove not your Interpretation true by the true sence of Scripture but evince that upon other grounds distinct from Scripture Viz. by the Authority of Fathers your often alleged sence and reason and God knowes what Is it so indeed Dare you Sr most shamefully quit the only main prop you rely on which is Scripture when you stand most in need of it whereof more presently and yet charge on me à vicious Circle while I believe the true Sence of Scripture because an infallible Church declares that Sence Cannot I more rationally would I seek Subterfugies evince the Infallibility of the Church by other proofs drawn from Fathers Church authority and reason and plead as you do to avoid à Circle were it necessary But I like no such Shuffling I positively assert the Sence of Scripture is therefore proved and believed true because the Infallible Church saith so though if questioned further I must bring in my reason why I believe this Oracle Infallible yet the immediate ground of my beliefe is the Churches Interpretation given upon Christs words now cited and I rest upon her Authority by Faith though this Interpretation be not the first ground why I believe her Infallible but that other more general received Truth that proves Her Gods own Oracle in all she delivers as matter of Faith which general Truth observe it well is most rationally evinced without any recourse to or dependance on Scripture And this is only to say that à Divine Oracle first proved Infallible can interpret Scripture without danger of à vicious Circle 14 What I here assert is undeniable for had any Apostle explained those words in the Gospel I and my Father are one answerable to the Sence now believed in the Church Viz. That Christ our Lord is the eternal Son of God consubstantial with his Father could not the primitive Christians have as firmly fixed their beliefe upon those words Infallibly interpreted as the Disciples fixed their Beliefe upon our Saviours Interpretation when Luke 8. 9. he fully explained the Sence of that Parable concerning the Sower and Seed These and the like Interpretations are believeable matters of Faith upon this Principle that every Interpreter whether Christ or Apostle was supposed and proved Infallible independently of that Sence they gave to God's sacred words and so is the Church as is already declared 15 The Dr ' s Confusion and whole mistake lies here that he has not yet got perfectly into his head the right notion of à vicious Circle and therefore P. 428. wishes I had told him the Secret I will do it briefly and then make his errour more known 16 A vicious Circle Mr Dr ever implies two Propositions or in à Circular What à Vicious Circle implies discourse two Syllogisms Here we will insist upon Propositions being more plain and easy then to proceed by long Syllogisms Know therefore when any first Proposition is assumed to prove the second and this second is made use of without further light to prove the first again or that very thing which is asserted by the first the Circle is notoriously vicious For example One endeavours to prove man to have Free-will because he is indowed with an intellectual Faculty then return's again and proves him intellectual because he hath Free-will the second Proposition implies à Circle because the thing proved which is Liberty or Free will not otherwise evinced but by mans being intellectual is made use of to prove that Power and so in effect Liberty or Free-will becomes à Medium to prove it self by 17 Observe well This vicious consequence whereby man seem's evinced à free Agent or indowed with liberty takes all the force it hath from the Antecedent of his being intellectual and wholly relies on that Medium If therefore as it here fall's out that Consequence whereby Liberty is asserted without any more light or further proof be again assumed as the only Medium to prove man intellectual Liberty or Free-will by its proving man intellectual proves it self and thus hic nune is both Antecedent and Consequent Antecedent as it is the Medium to prove man Intellectual and Consequent as it is the thing proved by Intellectuality which flaw is ever manifest in all vicious Circles as Aristotle notes well Lib. 1. Post cap. 3. 18 Now on the other side should I take this Consequence concerning Liberty which is deduced
Infallibility To what purpose Should we lose time Have not I answered that the Churches Infallibility stand's firm upon other grounds before Scripture be either owned Divine or the Sence of its difficult passages can be known Have not I moreover said that that general Truth of the Churches Infallibility must necessarily be proved and supposed antecedently to the belief of this or that particular Interpretation For who can fix his Faith upon the exposition of any Divine Oracle without being first ascertained it is God that speak's by it The Instances given above most clearly evince what is here asserted Please to make use either of our Saviours interpreting his own Parable Luke 8. concerning the Sower and seed or of S. Peters exposition given to the Prophet Joel They are one and the same in order to my present Intent We prove or believe that to be the true Sence of our Saviours Parable because eternal Truth interpreted it so but do we again first prove or believe him to be eternal Truth because he then delivered the true Sence of that Parable to his Disciples No. For by this lame way of arguing we should prove the Sence of the Parable to be true upon our Saviour Interpretation and again prove him à true Interpreter because he interpreted Mark well the Dr's confusion We Catholicks saith he believe the Church to be infallible because the true The Dr's Confused Doctrin Clearly driven back vpon himselfe Sence of Scripture saith she is so And you Sr believe our Saviours Interpretation upon that Parable to be true that Parable is now Scripture because our Saviour interpreted it so Again we believe this to be the Infallible sence of Scripture because the Infallible Church saith so And you Mr Dr believe this to be the Infallible Sence of that Parable because Christ said so Here Sr you have your own Circle in express Terms Judge whether it stand's not something awry What must be done then to get out of this Confusion All must answer Though we believe our Saviours Interpretation by an Infallible act of Faith yet we first prove him not infallible because he interprets but suppose his Infallibility made out and proved upon other grounds independently of his explication And this is our Answer also as to the Church whereof enough is said already and more than ever the Dr will or can Answer 24 P. 430. the Doctor once more run's on with the same Tautologie and because I said the Scripture and Churches interpretation indivisibly Concur to that latter act of Faith whereby we believe the Sence of Scripture explained by the Church he tells me This indivisible concurrence Seem's to him an odd piece of Mystical Divinity I Answer no great matter for that as odd as it is he must own it if he believes S. Peters infallible Interpretation upon the Prophet or the exposition given to the Royal Prophets Testimony Psal 131. 11. Foreseing saith the Apostle His Tautologies and ill words he spake of Christs Resurrection Acts. 2. 31. Se more of this indivisible concurrence Reas and Relig Disc 3. c. 11. n. 10. The rest our Dr hath to his page 433. is either the like Tautologie VVe prove the Churches Infallibility by the Infallible Sence of Scripture and the infallible Sence of Scripture by the Churches Infallibility Or most uncivil language or finally a foul ending with à gross mistake for he thinks our Faith rest's upon no Infallible Authority because we have none to rely on but Motives Confessedly fallible It is à perverse errour already refuted 25 To end this Controversy about à vicious Circle wherein the Dr. P. 431. account's me à Conjurer and one that speak's things which neither he nor any one els can understand I have right me thinks to enquire by what means or upon what grounded Motive can the Dr come to à certainty of the Scriptures true Sence In proposing this Question I might easily retaliate and tell him Though he Conjure cheat and shuffle his whole life long he shall never yet clear this one difficulty without recourse to an Infallible Church The proof of my Assertion stand's sure upon this most undoubted principle The true Sence of A difficulty proposed and the Dr is desired to Answer Scripture in many passages relating to Necessaries for Salvation is no Selfe-evidence nor can it be certainly known by that endless Search or mispent industry of private men as appear's by those many most opposit and plain contradictory Interpretations which the learned of different Religions give to these and the like Expressions in God's word I and my Father are one The word is made flesh There are three that give Testimony in Heaven c. Not one of these Passages though pondered and compared with other Texts in Holy Writ doth Evidence its own true Sence Therefore the means whereby it is discovered or the Oracle which infallibly ascertain's it must necessarily be both distinct from the dark words now cited and also more clear and plainly significant than the yet concealed Sence is we seek for Now further Neither Calvins private Spirit nor the Dr's rational Evidence nor Tradition without nor Grace within as Bishop Lawd speaks in the Dr ' s Account P. 186. n. 15 nor finally any other Medium which is not Scripture can infallibly declare this Sence as is largely proved both in this Treatise and the last Therefore an Infallible Church must either do God and man this good Service and certainly tell us what Scripture Speak's in these Necessaries for Salvation Or the true meaning of God's Word will be just like Some useless airy nicity not worth knowing still matter of debate ever disputable but never known Thus much said in answer to the Dr's Speculative part we passe in the next Discourse to à serious view of his long Drollery and simple exceptions made against the glorious Miracles wrought in the Roman Catholick Church and Shall God willing evince that in this Treatise where he thought to triumph most he is foiled and hath disgraced none but himselfe An end of the first Part. A DISCOVRSE CONCERNING MIRACLES WROUGHT in the Roman CATHOLICK CHVRCH in vindication of their Truth against Doctor Stillingfleets unjust Cavils VVHERE The Miraculous Translation of the Holy House OF LORETO is Asserted and proved an undeniable Verity BY E. W. The second Part. ANTWERP Printed by MICHAEL CNOBBAERT at the Sign of S. Peter in the Year 1674. Dr Stillingfleet in his second Discourse Chap. 3. P. 434 makes an Enquiry into the Miracles of the Roman Church I follow him as he goes along and lay open the ill Success our Inquifitive man hath had in his Search which will I hope appear to every one after à full view taken of what is proposed in the ensuing Treatise Peruse and judge Courteous Reader CHAP. I. How I formerly argued in behalfe of our Churches Miracles The Dr in his Enquiry waves my Arguments Of the difference between Christ's Miracles and those wrought by
the Apostles and in the Church VVhat is meant by Church Miracles Of the Cheats which run through the Drs whole Enquiry 1. THough little might Suffice to refute the Dr's strange rambling and unprincipled Discourse yet because the weightiness of this matter concerning Miracles worthily deserves à larger Examination we shall God willing bestow more pains upon it in another small distinct Treatise in this we chiefly insist upon plain matters of fact Now if you desire to know how I argued against the Dr for the truth of our Church Miracles Reason and Religion Disc 2. C. 7. 8. you Shall have it very briefly 2. I first urged C. 7. n. 7. our Saviours Miracles in the Church fore-told by our Saviour own Prophesy Iohn 14. 12. I say unto you He that believes in me the works which I do he shall do and greater works then these shall he do which Truth even Calvin and other Sectaries upon this Passage far more rational than the Dr apply not to the Apostles only nor to every believing Christian but assert it belong's to the whole Body of the Church This Prophesy without doubt contained à truth and we see it with our eyes evidently fulfilled not only in the Conversion of whole Nations to Christ justly accounted Miraculous by S. Austin far more in number then those our Saviour Converted but also in other Signal wonders wrought by God's Servants in this only Catholick Church 3 To this Authority frequently urged by Catholick Authors our Dr answer's nothing but as his manner is quarrel 's because I parallel Church Miracles and our Saviours together and seem's to think I difference them not at all though I with every one most willingly grant that Christ Iesus shewed himself the greatest Our Saviours Singular prerogatives in working Miracles Thaumaturgus the world yet beheld and far surpassed all Angels and men whether Patriarks Propnets or Apostles in working Miracles His singular Prerogative first appeared in this so Faith teaches that the wonders he wrought were done by his own Power and Virtue as S. Cyril upon the. 6. of Luke ponder's without borrowing assistance from any power above him for as God he had no Superiour wherefore calling the Disciples together Matt 10. He impowred them powerless of themselves to do wonders to cast out Divels and cure the infirm 2. As S. Thomas notes 22. Quest 178. a. 1. The Grace of working Miracles was no Constant and permanent Gift imparted to any save only to our Saviour who by virtue of his Hypostatical union could doe wonders when and as often as he pleased A third singular Prerogative peculiar to Christ arose from his being Lord of the whole world and therefore wrought wonders all Nature over As supream Master he commanded à new Star to shine over him at his birth and at his death darkned the lights of Heaven with à word of his mouth he made the figtree barren and commanded the winds and sea to obey him In his Sacred Passion he split the rocks rent the vaile of the Temple moved the earth as if all nature had trembled to behold the God of Nature dye 4. Observe now I beseech you when we say Church Miracles answer in number and worth to those of our Saviour we are far from ascribing the singular Prerogatives These prerogatives more particularly Specifyea already mentioned to either man or Angel save only to the Word Incarnate Neither goe we about to perswade that the Miracles which Christ wrought and rationally proved he was one immediatly sent from God to redeem the word Iohn 11. 42 were ever done in the like manner or Circumstances by any For as he was first in Power and Excellence so also he shewed himself the first most Victorious Conquerour over Sin and infidelity vanquishing by his glorious wonders without violent hands Iudaism and Gentilism Again herein he hath preeminence above Mortals that all the Miracles wrought by his Servants whether Apostles or others may be rightly called Christ's Miracles not only because done in his Name but upon this account also that they are wrought by his Power For if as S. Austin teaches when one Baptizes Christ also Baptizes with him upon the same reason we may justly say when à Miracle is wrought by à holy Person Christ our Lord by the Power and virtue he gives works it with him and therefore is not only the most powerful Thaumaturgus but effectually shewes it in concurring with all that do these wonders 5. Notwithstanding to verify the Prediction of greater Wonders we say That far more and of the like quality with those of our Saviours have for the good of mankind temporal and spiritual been wrought in the Church which is evident For more blinde Our Assertion of greater wonders proved have seen more lame have walked more deaf heard more dead have risen again more poor have received the Gospel in the latter Ages of the Church than before when Christ and his Apostles preached These mentioned in the Gospel Matth 11. 4. I insisted upon and are without dispute greater in the Church witness that one Miracle of Nations Conversion of Nations greater receiving the Gospel Neither can the Dr gainsay my Assertion but by denying all humane Faith and plain matters of fact recorded by such as have written largely of this subiect One of the last Authors is the Erudite Silvester Petra Sancta in his two learned Tomes called Thaumasia verae Religionis Printed Anno 1643 and 1646. where the Miracles of the old and new Testament are paralleld and the Churches continued Miracles most amply set down with their undeniable Proofs But of this subiect more hereafter Now to my second Argument 6 I argued 2. n. 9. If Miracles Gods The Necessity of Miracles laid forth own Seals and Characters were at the first preaching of the Gospel rational and necessary Inducements for men to believe Christ's Doctrin as also to distinguish the Orthodox Church from the Conventicles of Iewes and Hereticks There is the like necessity of their Continuance in after Ages The reason hereof is thus given n. 11. The Conversion of Infidels to Christ was not wrought by the Apostles only or all at once but successively in the ensuing Ages when other Infidels rose up as barbarous as uncivilized and Ignorant of Christ's Doctrin as the former converted by the Apostles had been if therefore Miracles were wholly Necessary when those first blessed men preached How come they now to be unnecessary when these latter Infidels are preach't to and gain'd to Christ These never made so happie à change because they heard Truths barely taught but were convinced upon this strong Motive that very many frequently saw our Christian Verities Confirmed by Signs and wonders from Heaven Se this reason further urged n. 12 though silently passed over by Mr Dr. 7. Chap 8. I shew how efficacious Church miracles have been in after Ages and moreover prove that those who deny them strive against God
want's learning judgement and common Civility His defect in learning appear's most in this Treatise His want of Judgement Truth and Sincerity will be more manifest in my second Part where I rescue the glorious Miracles wrought in the Roman Catholick Church from à vast number of forgeries and Calumnies His transgression against Civility is so notorious that almost every page in his books overcharged with it cries shame upon him Wherefore wonder not if here and there I twitch him à little though with no proportion to his rude and uncourteous handling me and others Thus much noted know courteous Reader that 5 The most or rather all Doctor Stilling fleet hath against me in his first discourse besides much ill language cast out of that sanctified mouth to embellish his general Preface with you have at his 77. page There lies the main business I am to consider though all is so profoundly simple that I am ashamed to read it As for the sornful words he gives no more regarded by me then the chattering of à magpie I tell you plainly they shall never break my head nor vex my heart Let that young Cock crow on his own dunghil if it do him good let him peck at what dead skull he pleases no great hurt say I while no more is done My task is to look after substance could I meet with it but I am fob'd off with meer tittle tattle all along with jeers and drollery and therefore must deal ingenuously courteous Reader and openly Nothing like à difficulty proposed by the Dr. profess before God and the world that though I have with all possible diligence weighed the utmost strength of Dr Still Arguments against our Church Doctrin yet I find not one that carries with it so much as the face or à shadow of difficulty as shall by God's Assistance be proved in this short Treatise And I easily believe that those other worthy Authors the Doctor slights and flurts at all have their lashes well able to answer for them selves will manifestly make it out that he only trifles and speaks nothing to the purpose against their learned labours My endeavour is to answer for my selfe Se more in the Preface to the Reader 6 Doctor Still in the page now cited pick 's up à few of my Assertions taken out of the Book intituled Protestancy without principles and after his usual manner proceed's very disingenuously for he either mangles them as best served his turn or wilily strip's them of all their proofs which without any labour might have been added and given vigour to every Proposition Finally he wholly waves the ultimate reason I alledge for the Churches infallibility Protestancy without Princ P. 28. where I prove that Christian Religion is ruin'd if for ought any man can know all Churches all Pastors and Guides teach Christ's Doctrin so fallibly that it may be false 7. Now à word or two of my Assertions related by the Dr. I say first All true believers not all men as the Dr miscites in the Assent given to Gods revealed verities are infallible and prove the Assertion God the first Verity reveal's infallibly eternal truths for this end that all believe him as he speak's if therefore he speaks infallibly all that believe him as he speak's believe infallibly I ground this Doctrin upon the Apostles words 1. Subiective Infallibility in true Believers Thessa 2. v. 12. Therefore we thank God without intermission because when ye received the word of God which you heard from us ye received it not as the word of men but at it is indeed the word of God who works in you that believe Hence I infer'd He that receives the delivered word of God as it is truly God's word and not the word of man He in whom God work 's belief by Divine grace believes Gods revealed truths infallibly And then Concluded Whoever disown's such infallible Believers ioyntly disown's infallible Faith and said this reason proves à subjective Infallibility in true Believers Thus the Blessed Apostles who received the word of God from Christ our Lord had Divine Faith and firmly assented to Christ◠sacred Doctrin were first infallible believers and afterward infallible Teachers also What harme in these Assertions I challenge the Dr to speak à probable word against them upon any known or owned Principle for hitherto he hath returned no Answer 8. I Assert 2. P. 20. He that hear's an infallible Teacher hath the Spirit of truth and he that hear's not an infallible Teacher wants the spirit of truth Holy Scripture speaks as I speak Iohn 1. c. 4. v. 6. we are of God he that knowes God hear's us he that is not of God heareth us not hereby we know the Spiririt of truth and the Spirit of errour Hence I infer'd that à fallible teaching of Christs Doctrin which by the force of its proposal or delivery may deceive and be false is lyable to cavils and disputes In saying this I wrong not in the least Christs infallible Doctrin but only assert that à fallible or false delivery which may easily deprave it is not Christs infallible Doctrin because as yet it is not made sufficiently Credible nor ultimately applyed to à Hearer as Christ's Doctrin An Arian for example read's these words I and my Father are one and so also doth Dr St. Both read the Doctrin of Christ yet contradict each other and the one depraves and perverts it by his false and fallible delivery I say this false and fallible teaching most easily distinguish'd from revealed truths in Gods word is not Christs infallible Doctrin If the Doctor boggle at this distinction whereof he takes no notice the worst I wish him is more light and learning 9. The Doctor saies I assert in my 21. Page No man can be an Heretick that denies the obiective verities revealed in Gods word unless he be sure that his Teacher reveales those verities Infallibly There is no such Proposition in that 21. page much less any words importing that à Teacher reveal's Teachers in this present state good Dr propose infallibly the ancient revealed Verities and often add à clearer explication which implies not if we speak properly any new Revelation You have more of my Propositions in Dr St which I own and wil defend as they stand with their reasons in my Book even to the very last P. 22. and. 24. where I say As long as the infallibility of à Revelation is remote from me for want of an undoubted application made by an Infallible Proponent the Revelation can no more convey certainty into Faith then fire at à great distance warm I give this reason omitted by the Dr. It little avail's to know that God speak's infallibly for every one has that assured unless in the circumstance he speak's to me and for my salvation I yeild my infallible assent to his word which cannot be without assurance had from the Proponent of Faith that he Speaks as I ought to believe infallibly
particular Revelations because they are ordained by Providence to ascertain every one in particular of what God speak's no hurt at all I easily accord but his words and meaning Seem quite contrary for first he will have all the Guides of the present Church inspired in their teaching as the Apostles were inspired by some celestial vision or Divine illustration Or he thinks they cannot teach Infallibly Nay more Nothing saith he P. 82 Can make the Faith of particular persons Infallible but private Inspiration which must resolve all Faith into Enthusiasm and immediate Revelation Were this true which the Dr never offer 's to make out by any proof but his own fallible word every private person might as securely write holy Scripture as any Prophet or Apostle for the chiefest Prerogative granted these great Masters was that the very words they wrote expressed the internal inspiration of the Holy Ghost or his private Revelation and upon this account are rightly called Gods own words When the inspiration was clear they expressed it clearly when obscure obscurely as we se in the dark Prophesies of the old Testament and in the Book of the Apocalypse 17 Catholicks in lieu of the Doctors Inspiration and Revelation ordinarily use The word Assistance used by Catholicks the word Assistance or Guidance of the Holy Ghost which neither implyes Enthusianism private Revelation or Prophetical illumination but the safe conduct and infallible direction of that Blessed Spirit whereby the Guides of the Church are preserved from errour in the substance of that Doctrin they oblige Christians to believe whereof see more in my last Treatise Disc 3. c. 12. n. 9. To assert therefore as the Dr doth that nothing can be more absurd than to say There are infallible Believers without infallible inspiration is not only an unproved whimsy but to speak in his homely language more then absurd if he knowes what Inspiration properly import's 18 P. 83. He saith first that those persons whom God hath imployed to make known his Doctrin must give assurance that he hath secured them from mistake and errour and then add's But to suppose that we cannot believe the first Infallible Proponents he means the Apostles unless there be such in every age is to make more difficulties and to answer none And therefore he saith in the foregoing Page It is unconceivable that ' persons should be more infallible in judging the Inspiration read Assistance of the present Guides than of the first Founders of the Church For then all my beliefe of the Infallibility of the first Proponents must depend on the evidence which the present Guides of the Church give of their Infallibility 19 This vulgar Obiection solved over and over in my two last Treatises contain's nothing like à difficulty and the Dr who will not I hope disdain to be one of the Guides of the English Church must confess it to be wholly strengthles for when he preaches to his people in The Dr's objection solved Holborn and doctrinally explain's that great Mystery of the Incarnation or tells them I suppose truly though not infallibly of an admirable Hypostatical union whereby two distinct natures Divine and humane are joyned together subsisting in one Divine person and in saying thus much gain 's belief from his Auditors when this I say is done One that 's curious demand's of those Hearers upon what motive dare they ground their faith in believing so sublime à Mystery It 's answered they believe it because God an Eternal Verity deliver's the truth in Holy Scripture But ask again whether Scripture in express Terms makes mention of that Hypostatical union or of the two different Natures united together They answer No Yet tell you that their Doctor to lay forth the Mystery more fully assures them all is true and because he is their Guide they no more suspend their Faith but believe Now if in the third place you demand whether the Verity of this Mystery depend's upon the Dr's teaching which is the only thing here stumbled at They answer no for the Verity was proposed from Christs time yet this influence his Teaching has over their Faith that he both shewes what was anciently revealed and now applyes that ancient Doctrin to their weak capacities not hitherto so exactly conceived or laid forth 20 Here you have something like that I would express and if the Dr were as infallible in his teaching as we now suppose him to speak truth we should soon agree In à word Catholick Faith as S. Thomas excellently well observes 1 Part. q. 1. art 8 ad 2. necessarily relies upon the Revelation made to the ancient Prophets and Apostles who wrote Divine Scripture and yet more primarily upon Christ our Lord's teaching Now as the Apostles often declared more fully what our great Master of truth infallibly delivered and in this sence explain'd and compleated his Doctrin so also the Church of Christ in all Ages since declared more amply what both Christ and the Apostles taught concerning the Mysteries of Faith and in this sence not only explain's what they taught but proposes it also infallibly as the certain Doctrin delivered by Christ and his Apostles and upon this account is rightly called Conditio applicans à necessary condition applying it to our capacities Hence you se though the ancient Truths were primarily matter of Faith yet to Believers in succeeding Ages they stand as it were remote from all and need this immediate Proposal of the Church living and actually teaching 21 The reason hereof if you make à true Analysis of Faith is clear For ask why I believe the Incarnation I answer the first Guides of the Church revealed it in Scripture but enquire again what assurance have I of that Revelation which is not exterminis evident much less are all the particulars belonging to the Mystery already laid forth evident I answer the Attestation of the present Church manifested by supernatural wonders gives me my last assurance and How the Infallibility of the first proponents of Faith depends upon the Churches present Guides therefore either is à partial formal obiect of Faith as I defend Reason and Religion Disc. 3. c. 12. n. 8. 9. or at least an intrinsical necessary condition as shall be afterward declared Thus you se how and in what manner the beliefe of the Infallibility of the first Proponents depend's on the rational Evidence which the present Guides of the Church give of those first Proponents Infallibility The verity of the Mystery attested and considered in it selfe depend's not upon the present Guides for it was true before they taught but à farther and more exact declaration of it not discoverable before the Church speak's and the immediate application of it respectively made to Believers depend's on these now living Guides And this also the Dr must confess when by his preaching he truly applyes the high mysteries of Faith to the understanding of his Hearers 22 The Dr takes not his measures right in
appointed another far easier whereby his will may be known and without which Scripture cannot be understood it is only supposed and not proved that every vulgar person who relies on his private judgement is secured from errour after à sincere endeavour to find his faith of all necessaries in Scripture alone And this I shall evince against the Dr by urging one Argument proposed in my Two last Treatises ◠Cast your thoughts seriously upon those vast multitudes who call themselves Christians and observe how they stand divided or parted in Faith Take these for example The Arians Antitrinitarians the Manicheans Protestants and Papists also Most certainly all these together neither believe nor defend the true Doctrin of Jesus Christ for they hold plain contradictions and this not only in lesser matters esteemed by the Dr unnecessary to Salvation but in the most primary Articles of Christian Religion Some deny Christ our Lord to be truly the high God and Consubstantial with his eternal Father Others to be truly Man Some speak well of God's unity but refuse to own à Trinity of persons Others finally submissively yeild to these great Mysteries and hold them as undoubted revealed verities the beliefe whereof is necessary to Salvation after à due Proposal Of such Articles I profess to speak waveing at present all others if any be of lower concern and now propose my Argument 5 Christ our Lord who delights in no mans perdition but will 's all to be saved and come to the knowledge of his revealed truths 1. Tim. 2. 4. hath either pointed out à clear way or given some obvious and certain means whereby these Christians that hold contradictions in the very Necessaries for Salvation may be brought to à unity in Faith Or contrarywise hath not left any such easy way or means If not Christ is à most uncharitable Saviour who on the one side obliges us to believe the fundamental Necessaries yet on the other cast's all even the most learned upon an impossibility of ever finding them for if the certain means whereby to find what we seek for fails as is now supposed our enquiry after Necessaries is meerly à lost and fruitless labour 6 Doctor Still who tells us that God is not wanting in Necessaries to the Salvation of mankind thinks as you have heard That Scripture pondered by every mans discerning faculty without any other infallible Guide is the best Teacher the clearest light and chiefest means whereby all sincere Endeavourers may easily attain the knowledge of these Necessaries First the Dr makes here too much hast for he should on this occasion have given in an exact Catalogue of his Necessaries these being of so high concern that if one be mistaken or left out of his catalogue which is absolutely Necessary Faith faulters and Salvation depending on Necessary Faith miscaries also But our Dr was wise and thought it best to sculk in Generalities for fear of being caught To be briefe let us suppose the beliefe of the Incarnation that is of Christs being really true God and true man may be deservedly called one of the grand Necessaries for Salvation If the Dr boggle at this I know well how to proceed with him Thus much supposed 7 My Argument goes on The Learned Socinians the learned Arians My Assertion proved with others read and ponder the same Scripture you read Mr Dr. They want no more the Faculty of discerning between Truth and falshood then you They pretend to have as much of Gods grace as you can pretend to and are as loth to damn themselves by maintaining a wilful errour against Scripture as you Yet this matter of fact is evident That they plainly contradict you in the belief of Necessaries and so doe other most learned Christians also What redress now Where have we the means prescribed by Christ to make us all of one Faith in this one Necessary already Specified Scripture you se abused by you or the Arian breed's these dissentions though none yet knowes by your Rule who is in fault and therefore can be no fitt means to end them for the sence of it in the matter now proposed is the only thing in controversy This ground failing all sincere endeavour to learn what that book teaches without more help fail's also 8 Because the Drs Faith is as much unknown to me as his person by some hints I guess it to be à very odd one I will press my Argument farther and demand Whether if à learned Arian after an exact perusal of Scripture makes this sincere judgement by his discerning Faculty that the high God head of Christ is neither revealed in that book nor worthy beliefe he may boldly abiure Christ God and man and yet be saved In like manner I ask whether à learned Protestant if after à serious reading he judges that Christ is truly God and believes quite contrary to the Arian may be saved also In case the Dr say all these though of à most opposite beliefe concerning Necessaries may attain Salvation and I verily think his Principles carries him A difficulty proposed concerning necessaries to that desperate concession with what conscience can he oblige Christians under pain of damnation to believe Christs Godhead as à revealed verity most necessary to Salvation For in real truth it is not so because men professing Christianity may be saved without that beliefe and if Salvation may be had though this Mystery be with contempt rejected it followes that nothing of Christian Doctrin can be judged more Necessary and so the Turks beliefe of one God will be Faith enough to save all I might here add more and tell you that the ancient Church most injuriously censured the Arians as Heretiques liable to damnation upon their denying Christ's Godhead for that denyal in the supposition made is not damnable 9 Perhaps the Dr will say Some only of these open Dissenters who hold contradictions in Necessaries are in the right way to Salvation but others not because his Rule is neglected for some out of slothfulness or for want of God's grace endeavour not sincerely to know the Scriptures meaning in such matters If this be his reply the difficulty proposed return's again as vigorously as ever We therefore ask by what clear way or means Christ most certainly hath afforded means can à serious Seeker after Necessaries discern between these sincere not erring Christians and those others who err Unless these be easily distinguished unlesse it be known to what particular Church those first belong under what Pastors they live what sure Guides they rely on And the second misled be likewise pointed out as perverse and negligent an Enquirer after Necessaries may as well close with the Arian and believe as he believes as ioyn with the most Orthodox Christian in the world The reason hereof is evident for to know only in à general way that some Christians have à right beliefe and others not while all of a different faith profess to believe right
Scripture to discover that yet concealed Infallible truth and sence also or that Christ is wanting in Necessaries to Mankind Now that not only Truth but an Infallible Divine truth and the genuine sence of Gods Revelation are obiects of faith when we believe Necessaries is most undeniable unless one will say that we believe truths but abstract or regard not whether they be Divine and Infallible truths we believe the words of Scripture without their sence c. 14 I say 2. There is an Oracle appointed by God to declare the Truth the Infallibility and sence of every revealed Necessary and prove my Assertion The The necessity of an Infallible living Oracle end of Divine Revelation is to settle in all faithful minds à firm beliefe concerning the Truth Infallibility and meaning of every revealed Necessary for why doth God reveal truly and infallibly but to beget in us true and Infallible â—aith But Scripture it selfe evidences not this Divine truth Infallibility and meaning nor tell 's us which are Necessaries therefore an Oracle appointed by God is both impowred and obliged to declare these particulars certainly and Infallibly I say Infallibly for if it faulter but in one or give us only weak Topicks and doubtfull probabilities the end of God's Infallible Revelation is frustrated and our Faith can be no more but wavering and uncertain that is no Faith at all This Argument I urged against the Doctor Reas and Religion Disc 2. c. 19. n. 2. 3. But no answer from him yet 15 I Argued 2. what ever Necessary for Salvation is proposed doubtfully and fallibly may by virtue of that proposal be à fiction and false But à Necessary thus doubtfully proposed appeares not like to one of God's infallible revealed Necessaries for what God reveal's is infallibly true therefore as doubtfully proposed it appeares à changeling only à fallible truth wholly unfit to support Divine Faith Some will say it is yet in it selfe à Divine truth though proposed fallibly Who knowes that If neither Scripture nor Oracle distinct from Scripture nor all the Doctors and Pastors on earth can infallibly avouch that S. John spake à Divine Infallible Truth when he said The Word is made flesh much lesse can they ascertain any of the sence of these Infallible and moral Certainty imply à difference words or evince that they contain à Necessary for Salvation One may yet reply The Truth the Infallibility and sence of these words are morally certain and faith of Necessaries requir's no more To Answer I suppose that moral certainty as it is distinguished from Infallible certainty may in rigour be false or if not that moral and Infallible certainty import the very same thing or degree of certainty Thus much supposed I ask when we affirm that God has revealed the Mystery of the Incarnation in Scripture do we say he hath told us that Secret by à Revelation which because only morally certain may be false or à lye It s blasphemy to judge so for all that the first verity speaks is most Infallibly certain 16. Or contrary wise do we say that Divine Faith terminated upon the Revelation though likely to be true is yet because only morally certain possible to be false or à lye Grant this and it followes that that high perfection of Infallibility intrinsick to Divine Revelation lies out of sight and in order to Faith is as if it were not and therefore can have no Influence upon beliefe The reason hereof is manifest for although we know if God Speak he speak's infallibly yet all the men on earth cannot know infallibly by Faith or by any other act previous to faith that his infallible Revelation engaged in this Mystery assert's it or is certainly in being because the best and surest certainty men can attain in this life A moral certain Faith which may be false is not Faith of any Revelation is only Moral and may be false But such à knowledge determin's none without fear and hesitancy to judge absolutely that God speaks infallibly or that he speak's as beseem's God for our Salvation By this short Discourse you se it is in effect the very same to say God reveal's not infallibly any one Necessary as to say we neither know nor can believe that he reveal's it infallibly For what strength or virtue can that perfection of Infallibility impart to faith if none can assent to it as it is infallible or apply it to his intellectual Faculty but only by à moral certain Faith which may be false Who ever desires more of this subiect may peruse Reas and Relig Disc 2. c. 15. Where I show that neither God nor Christ God and man nor Apostle nor Orthodox Church ever patronized à certainty in matters of Divine Faith which may be false nor to my knowledge did ever any Heterodox Christian content themselves with it in such Tenets as they held Essential or were with them matters of Belief I proved 2. n. 11. That none but Eternal Truth it selfe who is the first Revealer the Apostles and the Roman Catholick Church which proposes the high Mysteries of Faith can give Infallible assurance of their being infallible Divine Truths 17 Now this Church evidenced by Supernatural wonders neither Prophet or Apostle had ever greater is the Infallible Oracle I have hitherto pointed at in general Terms only Her Conversions Miracles and other publick Signatures of Gods infinit Power and VVisdom whereby she is proved God's Oracle are particularly declared Reas and Relig Disc 3. c. 15. And her Infallibility is amply evinced in three whole Chapters Disc 2. c. 14. 15. 16. But I know not how it fall's out Dr Still hath waved all my Arguments and not answered one 18 After à full consideration had of what is proved in this one Chapter all ingenuous Readers will I think conclude with me that never wise man made such à foolish Choice or exchange of means for Salvation as this Dr hath done Observe I beseech you Instead of Infallible certainty terminated upon Gods Revelation he is so strait hearted that nothing is allowed by him but à great moral probability which may be false In lieu of an Infallible Church which plainly declares her Necessary Doctrin he thrusts into The Drs foolish Choice and exchange of Principles our hands à Bible most certainly obscure and in place of the Guides of the Church who are by Christ's ordination to teach he substitutes his own fallible discerning Faculty or the private Judgement of all the Illiterate persons in his Parish These must read Scripture gloss and interpret Scripture and when that 's done all of them like Quakers after some few humms and pauses may believe what they think is true but not one amongst them shall ever know this way That God speak's in Scripture as he thinks and judges Pray tell me What if some of the Doctors own Auditors with their sincere and serious endeavour made concerning Necessaries dissent from him What if
this fundamental Mystery for ought any man living can know may be à Lye 3. That all Christ's Doctrin as it is now believed by Faith may be both fallible and false 4. That God obliges the whole Christian world to believe that as an infallible truth which really may be à falshood Lastly that all the glorious Martyrs in forgoing Ages were bound to maintain that with the losse of their lives to be à truth which only apparently was so and might in reallity be no truth If the Dr subscrib's to these consequences he has not one drachm of true Faith in his heart Now one word more with the Dr CHAP. VI. Dr Still grant's that Faith transcend's the certainty of those Motives which induce to believe Independently of his Concession that verity is proved and the ground thereof firmly setled How necessary it is to distinguish between the Credibility of à Mystery and the infallible believing it true Obiections answered Other difficulties proposed 1 Dr Still in his Account Part. 1. c. 7. P. 207. Speak's thus Moral certainty yeilds sufficient assurance that Christian Religion is infallibly true and he proves the Assertion because moral certainty may evidently shew us the Credibility of Christian Religion and that from the credibility of it the infallible truth of it may be proved will appear by these two things 1. That where there is evident Credibility in the matter propounded there doth arise upon men an obligation to believe And that is proved ...... from What the Dr teaches Gods intention in giving such Motives which was to perswade them to believe as appears by multitudes of places of Scripture and withall though the meer credibility of the Motives might at first suppose some doubts concerning the Infallibility of the Doctrin yet it is not consistent with any doubt as to the obligation to believe because there can be no other reason assigned of those Motives of credibility than the induceing on men an obligation to Faith 2. That where there is such an obligation to believe we have the greatest assurance that the matter to be believed is infallibly true which depend's on this manifest proof that God cannot oblige men to believe à lye it being repugnant to all our conceptions of the veracity and Goodnes of God to Imagin that God should require of men on the pain of eternal damnation to believe something infallibly true which is really false Thus the Dr. Reflect courteous Reader Is it so that from the Credibility of Christian Religion the Infallible truth of it may be proved There is then no doubt at all but if it be Advantage given by the Dr's own Doctrin proved infallibly true it may be also believed as it is infallibly true Doth the Dr concede that from the Evident Credibility of Christian Doctrin there arises in all men an Obligation to believe it and that this obligation is not consistent with any doubt as to the obligation of believing it I wish no more from an Adversary having enough to make good all I say concerning the Infallibility of Divine Faith Doth he finally assert that where there is such an obligation we have the greatest assurance that the matter believed is infallibly true because God cannot require of men to believe that as infallibly true which is really false I wholly agree with him thus farr yet withall affirm that he plainly contradict's his own Doctrin For if when there is such an obligation to believe we have the greatest assurance that is infallible assurance or nothing that the matter believed is infallible true it is undisputably clear that Faith which has that greatest assurance goes far beyond the certainty of the Motives which is only moral and not so infallible certain as the very act of Faith is Hence it followes that the Dr contradict's himself in all he teaches concerning the moral certainty of Faith and must while he hold's Faith infallibly certain grant that as terminated upon the truth of à Revelation it rises higher and goes beyond the strength of the motives which only afford moral certainty and not greater But of this more presently 2 In the mean time I wish the Dr would make what he saies here to agree with some odd expressions in his precedent page 206. There we are told that certainty implies the taking away all suspicion of doubt but in moral things all suspicion of doubt is removed upon moral evidence and here he saith Though the meer Credibility of the Motives only morally certain might at first suppose some doubt concerning the Infallibility of the Doctrin yet it is not consistent with any doubt as to the obligation to believe I Say contrary if it may at first suppose some doubt it must ever suppose it for this moral certainty grounded on the Miracles internal to Scripture as the Dr teaches growes not less nor more perswasive in time but is alwaies the same and therefore cannot remove all doubt from a Believers mind 3 Hence I argue This moral certainty at first capable of doubt comes in time to be infallible certainty or still retain's some doubt In case it be improved and grow up to infallible certainty it yeilds not in certainty to the very act of Faith where unto it perswades and so the Dr's distinction between moral certainty and An Argument proposed his term's Infallibly true becomes frivolous Moral certainty saith he yeilds us sufficient assurance that Christian Religion is infallibly true Say now that this moral certainty is still consistent with some suspicion of doubt it must either derive that doubt into the very act of Faith and make that doubtful or it ought to be granted that Faith rises higher and goes beyond the strength of that moral doubtful certainty contrary to the Dr's Principles I wish also he had explaind him self better in this other dark Proposition Moral certainty may be as great as Mathematical and Phisical supposing as little reason to doubt in moral things as to their natures as in Mathematical and Phisical as to theirs These words Supposing as little reason to doubt spoil all he saies for if moral certainty ever supposes some suspicion of doubt how can that be as great as Mathematical or Physical which supposes none But enough of this jangling 4 We now come to the main point and shall endeavour to shew that although the Motives were only Morally certain and not as I hold infallibly connected with Divine Revelation yet the act of Faith it self is infallibly certain and consequently rises above that weaker light of the Motives This I say to vindicate the absolute infallibility of Faith from all iust exceptions while Divines vary about the connexion of the Motives with the Divine Revelation 5 The proof of my Assertion stands firm upon two Principles laid down Prot. without Prin. Disc 1. C. 5. n. 6. 7. And Reas and Relig. Disc 3. C. 8. n. 16. In the first place I say and it s à Maxim known by the
light of nature that God who is Supereminently more infallible than all men and Angels are ought to be believed answerable to his Excellence with à most firm assent In the second place I assert though we have not Evidence of the Divine Testimony in it self yet when it is made evidently credible by clear Signs that God speaks to us and for our Salvation By Faith we assent not to the bare credibility of à Mystery we as rational creatures are obliged to submit and believe him because he command's us to believe and are thereupon bound to assent not to the bare credibility of the Mysteries proposed but to the very truth of them which is à further step and we must step so far because the evidence of the obligation grounded on Gods Command will have us do so Here then is our assurance of the truth of the Revelation assented to And is not this what Dr Still teaches in express terms Though the meer Credibility of the Motives might first suppose some doubt concerning the Infallibility of the Doctrin yet it is not consistent with any doubt as to the obligation to believe Yet more plainly VVhere there is an obligation to believe we have the greatest assurance that the matter to be believed is infallibly true 6 For à further explanation of this speculative matter Note first That known distinction between the Credibility of à Mystery and the Truth thereof is carefully to be reflected on which the Dr and all those who cry against the raysing Faith above the Motives unskilfully confound Their errour lies here that they only consider the connexion But to the Truth of the Motives with the Truth of the Mystery and say the understanding by virtue of the Motives only Morally certain cannot assent to that Truth and they say very right but ponder not on the other side the weight of God's Command which obliges us to trust the first Verity though we have no evidence of the Revelation in it self And thus to use the Dr ' s Instance P. 362. one not versed in Mathematicks who cannot assent to the truth of à Demonstration in à demonstrative manner may yet firmly believe it demonstrative upon his Masters credit who knowes the truth scientifically and were that Master Infallible he might justly chastise his Scholar did he boggle in believing the Truth Much more doth this hold in God when he command's our assent to à Truth evidently seen by the Divine understanding though obscure to us 7 Note 2. The motives we here speak of may as I observed in my last Treatise be considered two wayes First as anteceding Faith and naturally known ex sensatis being obiects of sense seen or heard of by undoubted History Thus we have assurance that there is in the world à great Moral Body of men called Catholicks agreeing in the use of Sacraments professing Obedience to one supream Pastor who manifestly shew the Succession of their Pastors from the Apostles times give evident Signs of Sanctity in thousands and thousands relate such and such Miracles wrought in the Catholick Church c. 2. These Motives may be considered as obiects of Faith and numbred among other Credâ—nda for we believe Christ and his Apostles to have wrought true Miracles the Church to be Holy and universal The twofold acception of Motives declared c. And thus the Motives assented to are not inducements to believe but Believed Articles This double acception of Motives all must own For before the Apostles believed in Christ they knew him to be à rational man saw his Miracles and by manifest signs discovered his Innocency and Holiness of life yet afterward they believed by Faith that he was truly man and not in appearance only that he wrought true Miracles and believed him as we now do both Holy and Innocent 8 Note 3. God has right to command us two wayes First by making his revealed will evidently known which implies as Divines speak Evidentiam in Attestante or à clear sight of his command and speaking 2. This supream Lord in case he make his will known by Signs evidently Credible has yet as much right to require obedience from us as if it were evident he speak's One clear Instance will give light to my Assertion An absolute Prince set's forth à Proclamation and some eye or eare-witnesses receive it from his own mouth and know it to be his Soon after the publick Cryer proclaim 's it in other places distant from the Court I say those who hear it proclaimed and se it attested by the Princes own marks and signatures are as much obliged to yeild Obedience to it as if they had received the contents of it from the Prince himselfe The right God has to Command Faith Pray tell me did you ever yet know that any town or City in England though distant from Court when his Majesty set's forth à proclamation authoritively sealed by his own hand boggle thus It may be the publick Cryer seign's what is not It may be he has received à forged Writ It may be he knowes not the King's mind therefore we will neither obey nor assent to the Truth of it but after all these Cryes and Signs only hold it credible that such is the Kings pleasure his will and command 9 Apply this to our present case and you have all God's Revelation hath been proclaimed the whole world over Patriarchs Prophets Apostles and the Church commissioned to speak aloud have Age after age published it and made the truth of it evidently Credible by clearer Signs then ever Prince set forth his Proclamation Have we the Princes own Seal and Marks for the one we have Gods own Seal and Marks for the other It is true we saw not the Prince subsigning his law or Proclamation and therefore want that evidence of Truth considered in it self no more saw we the Truth of God's Revelation when he first spake by his Prophets and Apostles How faith is mode Credible but the Signatures of his Truths annexed to his Revelation remain still and will do so to the worlds end And what after all these glorious signs shall we stand trifling with God in so weighty an affair as concern's eternal Salvation Shall we tell him because we se not evidently the Truth of his Revelation in it self but only the evident Credibility of it we will proceed warily and assent to its Credibility but with all either abstract from the Truth or absolutly deny it I am sure Christ delivered contrary Doctrin when he told S. Thomas Beati qui non viderunt crediderunt nameing those blessed who se not yet believe Thus much noted 10 I say first The evident Credibility of à Revelation obliges all to accept it not only as evidently Credible for so much is manifest without any what the Motives perswade to Submission but to assent to it as most absolutely true and in this sence Faith goes above the light of Motives One
by torments or inticements to deny in words any revealed verity yet few in their wits saith the Saint will venture to do so for à truth known by natural science Whereupon he inferr's that Faith is not so much à Speculative act as practical in order to the real effects of suffering and dying for God and his truth attested by Revelation though not evidently seen 22 Some may here demand whether the Will can make the Motives inducing to Faith to appear stronger then they are in themselves I answer it cannot For all know that as ratio Veri or truth moves the understanding so ratio Boni or Good moves the will and is its proper object The will therefore can strongly adhere to what it rationally loves and move the understanding to obey God when it is evidently credible by clear Signs that He speak's and requires obedience from us but to force the intellectual power to se more light in the Motives than they of their own nature can give is impossible One may here ask How then can the will as Divines teach supply the inefficacy of the Motives were there want of efficacy in them as there is none in my Opinion for I hold them infallibly connected with the Divine Revelation I answer No otherwise then by adding constancy and à strong practical firmness to the assent of Faith so much flame and fervour that if the intellectual power had yet more evidence the adhesion would not be greater And thus as both Holy Scripture and the ancient Fathers speak corde creditur ad Salutem A pious will can captivate the understanding and move it to believe to Salvation 23 By what is here said and further explicated in the place now cited you se Dr Still jumbling discourse P. 398. most weak and fixed upon no rational ground If the Will saith he can determine the understanding to assent beyond the strength of the Motives it may determine it to assent with out any Motives at all Not so Mr Dr. It is far easier to assent upon some Motives though weak ones then for none at all as is evident in the rash judgements men usually make when by the perversness of the Will they strongly judge upon most slight reasons such an one to be an Enemy who never The Dr's ill way of arguing rejected intended mischief to any much more therefore can this power by her pious affection when She has grave and most weighty reasons proposed to obey God move the understanding to comply with that obligation and to believe most firmly 24 Now comes in the Dr ' s jumbling If saith he the infallible assent of Faith comes from the power of the Will then to what purpose is any formal obiect enquired after or Motives of Credibility either Mark first an improper speech of an Assent comming from the power of the VVill. The assent Sr comes from the understanding commanded by the will to assent He goes on The Formal Obiect doth assign à reason of believing from the Obiect it self of which there can be none if the VVill by her own power elicit that which is the proper assent of Faith I Answer The understanding if we And his jumbling also speak properly elicit's the assent of Faith that is produces it and not the Wil. Now if the word Elicit import only à command it is more then profoundly simple to assert as the Dr doth that that command takes away from the formal Obiect all reason of believing Observe I beseech you God obliges all to keep his precepts and one is to believe the Incarnation upon this Motive or formal obiect that eternal Truth has revealed it The VVill because God requires that assent readily submit's and command's the understanding to believe the Mystery How can this command of the will any way lessen or take from the formal Obiect all reason of believing when it moves the understanding to believe because God speak's and will have us to believe so It is impossible unlesse You 'le say that because God enioyn's me not to steal and the Will thereupon moves me to abstain from Theft I take away God's law by my obedience which is à blasphemy It is true could the will being of it selfe à blind faculty elicit or produce Faith by its own power without any reason proposed and this gross errour lay deep in the Dr's head when he The Dr's errour Wrot he might then talk at random and tell us as he doth of no need of any Motives of Credibility of taking away the formal Obiect of Faith and such like Nonsence but all is contrary For the Will can never move the Understanding to elicit Faith without first having the formal obiect of Faith rationally proposed and applyed by most grave and weighty Motives as shall be now briefly declared 25 I observed above n. 5. That the Motives of Credibility may be considered two wayes First as rational lights preceding Faith or known by natural discourse answerable to our Saviours words Matt 11. 4. Tell Iohn what you have heard and seen 2. As Truths believed by Faith wherein there appear's no difficulty at all if which is evident one and the same Obiect can terminate two different cognitions Thus the Apostles conversing with our Saviour knew him by natural reason to be truly man and yet induced by prudent Motives they raised their Faith above sense above all natural knowledge and believed he was indeed Our Saviours Miracles as seen were rational Motives to à beliefe of their truth true Man They saw the outward appearance of his glorious Miracles but by sence and natural discourse had no strict evidence of their being Truths for sence may be deceived or of the end for which they were wrought however led on by prudent Motives they believed them true Miracles and not in appearance only Now I ask why could not our Saviours own Miracles as seen become rational inducements to believe the real truth of them not evidently seen All confess that as seen and known by discourse they had force enough to perswade to à Beliefe of what ever Christ spake and God revealed If so There can be no reason why they might not also induce to à firm beliefe of their own being true Miracles For if the sight of them had so much force as to cast light upon another Obiect Viz. The Divine Revelation and to make the truth thereof evidently Credible that very sight was no lesse powerful to give the like clarity of their being evident credible Truths At least all must say and 't is mainly for my present purpose that our Saviours Miracles together with the other external Motives seen or known by Natural discourse did ultimately constitute the Divine Revelation in à compleat state of Credibility which we call Gods own rational speaking to the world by Signs or the last application of his speaking 26 Now further When this rational Proposition or ultimate application of God's speaking was made by miracles
to à trial much born down with this very difficulty 7 In the mean while to give some hints at what I shall then say I ask when the Dr who talks much of Faiths evidence believes the Mystery of the Incarnation upon this sole ground that God reveals it in Scripture what rational evidence can he derive into his Faith if you precisely consider it as fixed upon the Revelation and Mystery together None arises from the nature of these things purely believed unless he stoutly affirm and he is as like to do it as any man living that he evidently see 's by his new eyes of Faith the intrinsick infallible truth of the Revelation in it self as also the two natures in Christ Humane and Divine I say by virtue of that act as it is precisely terminated upon the obiect believed which if I rightly understand him P. 387. fine he acknowledges to be obscure and upon that account unmeet to ground Evidence What then is to be done O saith the Dr I will fetch my Evidence not from the Nature of the things believed for they are remote and dark but from the evidence of sense as to the Miracles wrought by Christ from the Testimony of those who saw Christ our Lord and have delivered his Doctrin to us and given the greatest Evidence of their fidelity c. Se his pages 387 and 416. Very good let all yet be as he pleases 8 Hence it followes first That the Dr ' s act of Faith as it tend's upon the Revelation not evidently seen and an obscure Mystery together is so far blind yea and like a Mole working without light They are his own words P. 353 as that Faith is which he would impugn The Dr own 's Faith both clear and obscure and this I chiefly insist upon at present It followes 2. That his one indivisible act of Faith is both clear and obscure as fixed upon his supposed evident Motives it is clear and under another respect obscure as it adheres to an obscure obiect believed For so he speak's P. 387. I had rather thought saith he the more obscure the obiect had been for its little better then Non-sence to call an act of Faith obscure the greater necessity there had been of strong evidence to perswade c. One word Mr Dr by the way I think it far greater Nonsence to call obiects à parte rei obscure if we use proper language A pore blind man stumbles at à stone is the stone therefore obscure while another sees it clearly and stumbles not Thus all obiects obscure to our weak Capacities are clear and evident to God and Angels Clarity and obscurity Mr Dr as I have often noted but you never mend your faults when told of them are inseparable proprieties of vital operations and belong not to Things in rigour of speech though in à vulgar way with à respect to our acts the language may pass Again shift all you will if the obiect in your sence be obscure your act of Faith as it is fixed upon that clouded verity cannot but under that notion and respect be obscure also 9 It followes 3. That had the Dr pitch't on the true Evidence of Credibility which is not done I have all that for my Faith with much more to boot taken from the Churches long continuance Her Miracles Sanctity Conversions and other Motives Whereof see Reas and Relig. Disc 2. C. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. Now if the Evidence of Credibility once established necessary in the Church be ever prerequired as an inducement to believe as all confess it little import's Christianity whether it be discovered by the very act of Faith or the Iudgement previous to Faith supposing as I said above that this judgement inform's and illuminat's the understanding chiefly at every mans first Conversion Did I come short of the where the Evidence of Credibility is found Dr in the evidence of Credibility he might justly blame me but when in reallity he has none as we shall se hereafter and I introduce such an Evidence as converted the world Say I beseech you wherein am I faulty Marry in this may the Dr reply that I allow not evidence to the very act of Faith but only to the previous judgement of Credibility No hurt at all while the mind has the evidence of Credibility laid open and the Dr ' s very act of Faith such an one as it is is partly clear partly obscure 10 But to quiet the Dr I can without prejudice to my Opinion much less to Christian Religion grant with many learned Divines that one indivisible act of Faith rest's both upon the Motives and the revealed Mystery together Nay more I do hold that the Motives are God's own language whereby he speak's to the world not imitable by any Enemy for etiam factis loquitur Deus as S. Austin often cited affirm's Se Reas Relig Disc 3. I say 3. The The obligation of believing arises from the Motives obligation of believing first arises from the light of these Motives for no man saies he believes because he believes but therefore believes because antecedently to his Faith he judges it most reasonable note the rational ground upon God's command to believe what is revealed The Revelation therefore obscurely proposed to us cannot as obscure be the rational ground of our firm assenting to it and for this reason to avoyd confusion in the Analysis I attribute Evidence to the previous judgement of Credibility and not to the very act of Faith Though I scruple nothing to grant that I believe also for the Motives which as I now said have their influence upon Faith and therefore the Dr flatly calumniat's when he tell 's me over and over that I believe without reason without grounds and Motives That I have Motives and evident Motives P. 382 yet after all this Evidence believing hath nothing to do with them Iust as if à man should say P. 384. there is à particular way of seing with ones eyes shut He might better have said his intellectual Eyes were darkened when he read my The Dr's cavil groundless Treatise for no Author ever gave greater strength and efficacy to the Motives then I have done when I say not only Faith but Christ also the Church Scripture and all true Religion goes to wrack without them I further assert that à Believers mind is so far from being in à state of darkness in the instant it elicits Faith that even then it is environed with the light of these Motives clearly represented by the judgement of credibility the lustre whereof is so great that as many Divines teach they make Faith evident in Attestance This opinion I could maintain and yet defend the obscurity of Faith in order to its Material obiect as the Dr withall his pretended Evidence must do whereof more presently 11 P. 376. He seem's some what resty ruminates again his old difficulty and ask's whether in requiring an Infallible assent of
of those word's Truths whereof the Dr hath not Evidence whereby you judge the Trinity is revealed Have you evidence of their being words divinely inspired Have you any thing like evidence of the Mystery believed No All the Miracles which Christ and his Apostles wrought cannot make these particular truths to appear evident to any in this State yet Orthodox Christians believe them Infallibly true by Faith and therefore you Sr are as deep in à Dungeon as any you ieer at get out how you can 16 The rest that followes is nothing but an idle sporting with S. Paul's Doctrin Heb. 11. 1. Is it not pretty saith the Dr because Faith is called an Evidence therefore it must be inevident Because it is called an Argument therefore it can use none What stuff is here Who ever said that Faith uses not Arguments Or called it à Conviction but as the Apostle speaks of things not seen Soon after he has à â—ash at me and it reaches S. Austin also I had said no merit or thanks in believing had we evidence of the Mysteries we believe and I speak with S. Austin In Evangel Ioan. Trac 79. This is the praise of Faith if that which is believed be not seen For what great thing is it if that be believed which is seen According to that sentence of our Lord when he rebuked his Disciple saying because thou hast seen me Thomas Thou hast believed Blessed are they who have not seen and have believed CHAP. VIII The Doctor 's Discourse from page 400 to P. 416. Considered and found weightless 1 HEre the Dr would fain rescue another Argument taken out of his Account from the obiections I made against it Reas and Relig Disc 2. C. 2. n. 5. And you may se him hard put to it for The Dr hard put to his Shifts proofs when to shew the Church no way necessary to ground Faith he run's up to the woman of Samaria Iohn 4. to Barbarians and others who all received Divine Revelation and believed without an Infallible Church In plain English he would inferr that the Christian Catholick Church before it was perfectly founded or owned as God's Oracle did not then ground Faith therefore it could never do so after its compleat establishment Is not this an heroical attempt Tell me Mr Dr. what sence have we in this Inference The Samaritan woman believed Christ when the Church was not perfectly in being Therefore S. Austin when it was an absolute built moral Body erred much in saying He would not believe the Gospel unless the authority of the Catholick Church moved him to believe it VVhich authority once weakned saith the Saint in the same place contra Epist Fundam I cannot believe the Gospel S. Dyonisius and Damaris Act. 17. who knew nothing of the Churches beginning at Hierusalem on whitsunday hearing S. Paul an Infallible Oracle preach believed Ergo Christians that lived in time of the Nicene Council could not then believe the Church What Logick is this Nay more in the Dr ' s Principles that Article of our Creed I believe the Holy Church stands there to no purpose because forsooth in some extraordinary circumstances and occasions Faith may be had without knowledge of the Church of Scripture and of Christ also For many Divines hold that Barbarians by meer contemplating the visible works in nature may without the teaching of à living Oracle come to the knowledge of one God as à Rewarder and have Faith available to Salvation Now here is the Dr ' s erroneous Principle that which in some circumstances serves to beget Faith may ever serve and in all occasions 2 The unsoundness or rather Nonsence whereof I will demonstrate against Mr Dr. The ancient Christians had true Faith before the Canon of Scripture was extant Now that holy Book being published and received all over our Dr ground 's his Faith upon it only Ancient Christians had true Faith before scripture was written as it s understood by every man's discerning faculty what therefore once was no rule nor ground of Faith because not in being afterward becomes à ground when it is known and published Just thus we discourse of the Church When the woman of Samaria and some Barbarians believed the Church was not founded nor known or owned by all as Gods Oracle but afterward the foundation of it being perfectly laid and Pastors and Doctors appointed by Christ to teach the world it was owned for God's Oracle and then brought with it an obligation upon all to hear and believe it 3 The reason hereof more amply laid forth in my last Treatise is taken from the express constitution of Christ who erected the Church as à most facile clear and living Rule of Faith This great Master assures all that whoever hear's the Church hear's him That Faith comes by hearing and therefore Pastors and Doctors are appointed to teach to the Consummation of Saints unto the work of the Ministery for the edifying of Christ's Mystical body c. Wherefore Baronus in his Apodixis Tract 9. puncto 2. ingenuously professes That the Testimony of the present Church is à condition necessarily required to believe the authority of the Scripture because Faith comes by hearing Hence I argue A law made by Christ is to be observed the ordinary means appointed by the Law-giver Himselfe for the grounding of Faith ought in no case to be neglected But Christ hath obliged all who believe to rely on the Christian Church ever since She was made an Oracle known to the world as is largely proved Reas. and Religion through the whole Second Discourse therefore though by accident or in some very unusual circumstance men have had Faith without any knowledge either of Scripture or Church Yet now after the Churches compleat establishment and Her long continuance to exclude her Authority and believe upon any other ground would be so great folly and rashness that God may justly deny his supernatural Grace to such unadvised Believers who therefore would not have Faith to Salvation 4 Pray you tell me should à Barbarian that never heard of Church or Scripture yet may probably believe in God as à Rewarder of Good by à meer contemplation of the Heavens c. Should I say such an one come to the knowledge of Christ of the Scripture and of the Church gloriously illustrated with all her Motives Can this man think you in these new circumstances of à greater light neglect all and believe that God will reward good upon the old motive to wit the visible beauty or motion of the Heavens No That belief would now be imprudent and upon that account unavailable The Dr's grand Principle proved forceless to Salvation VVhat therefore serves to ground Faith in some circumstances serves not in all We have yet another Instance against the Dr who hold's there is à Thing in being called the Church of England where he preaches and pretend's to settle his Faith upon Scripture only Would he
those books to be Divine I answer 1. That in the Age when the Doctrin was delivered there was sufficient reason to believe it Divine He goes on Supposing then that we already believe upon the former answer that if Christ did such unparalleld Miracles and rose from the dead they who heard his Doctrin had reason to believe it to be of God He mean's Divine and revealed Doctrin for all Doctrin of God or from God is not in our Sence now Divine or revealed Doctrin Thus much said He asserts 2. If they the ancient Christians had reason then we have so now Viz. to believe upon our Saviours unparalleld Miracles From these matters of fact and Apostolical wonders the Dr takes his rational Evidence and conveigh's it to us by Tradition our exceptions made against his evidence which supplies the want of our Senses as to what Christ did and spake I shall presently insist more largely n. 26. upon his Tradition Here I am to show that his Evidence in order to Christians now living is nothing like rational Evidence if and this he requires we exclude the Testimony of an Infallible Church 19 To propose plainly what I would say and to give the Dr the fairest play imaginable I gratis admit all the Miracles and matters of fact recorded in the Gospel to be most true though hitherto not proved true by the Dr but then ask what use will he make of them He may answer he proves by these Miracles the Doctrin of Christ to be true Admit this also I demand further and here lies the main business that concern's us at present whether the Doctor can assure any by virtue of where the main difficulty is those Miracles who at this day among so many dissenting Christians in points of Faith most fundamental believe and profess Christ's true Doctrin For his rational Evidence if it deserve the Title of rational must drive hither at last or its worth nothing to Christians now living that is he must shew by these long since wrought Miracles whether Arians Pelagians Protestants or Catholicks have à right beliefe of Christs Doctrin for most certainly all of them believe not the true Doctrin delivered by Christ I say it is impossible to make this out unless the strangest Consequence that ever man heard of be good and it 's thus Christ rose from the dead He commanded the sea and winds and they obeyed his voice He gave life to dead Lazarus c. Ergo the Arians for example profess Christ's true Doctrin and Protestants not Or Contrarywise Protestants believe right and the Arians are in a wrong Faith Unless this Inference which is worse than Non-sence pass current the Doctors pretended rational Evidence taken from those ancient matters of fact is the most fruitless and most discomfortable Evidence that ever wise man pitch't upon whereof more presently n. 27. Note in the mean while he may perhaps and no more but perhaps tell us by his the Dr's rational Evidence demonstrated â—seless to Christians now living Evidence that Christs Doctrin in it selfe is true but shall never thereupon assure us who among so many Dissenters in Necessaries to Salvation believes or professes that true Doctrin He may tell us that horrid debates arise amongst the learned of different Religions but shall never tell us how they can be composed or ended by à bare owning the truth of Christ's Miracles which are carried up and down by à common humane consent of Christians though they have none to attest them Infallibly true in this present State 20 Please now to consider how differently we Catholicks proceed in this matter and satisfy both Jewes and Gentils We own all that Scripture contain's whether Miracles or Doctrin true and Divine To evince this we lead you not to à dead book or to matters of fact far off but to an ever living Oracle distinct from that book called the Holy Catholick Church which proves herselfe by her neerer visible matters of fact signal marks and undoubted Miracles as rationally à true Oracle whereby God speak's to the world as ever any Apostle did From this glorious signalized and long standing Church we take our rational Evidence and know if the Primitive Christians took theirs right from the Apostolical wonders we no way Inferiour keep parallel with them while we rationally rely upon our clear manifested Oracle Moreover we prove that this Church which hath power from God to teach and engages her whole Authority to teach Truth shewes herselfe by real Signs and Miraculous effects the greatest Oracle now under God appointed to instruct the world It is She if Controversies arise concerning Faith that composes all She assures us that the verities in Scripture written by the special assistance of the Holy Ghost are Divine She applies and conveigh's these ancient truths to us She tells us now How differently we proceed from the Dr in our rational Evidence and Infallibly what Christ's Doctrin long since made evidently Credible by his own most glorious Miracles is She finally ascertain's every one without doubt and hesitancy who they are that profess this revealed Doctrin And thus relying upon à rational evidenced Church we Shew our selves rational men and void of fear set our hearts at rest while the Dr by à bare relation of our Saviours Miracles now remote from us proves not one of these particulars but will forsooth evince the Doctrin in Scripture to be Divine upon à meer unproved Supposition that such matters of fact once were which yet cannot be evinced true sufficient as I said to ground Faith much less Divine without the Churches Testimony whereby full assurance is given to all in this present State that both Doctrin and Miracles are true and Divine 21 The Dr therefore should in the first place have proved the Divinity of Christ's Doctrin and from thence he might have inferred it's Truth but to evince it Divine to Christians now upon what the Dr should aimâ— at but perform's not à meer unproved Supposition Viz. That such matters of fact are true is a break-neck to his Discourse and an unaproachable way of ever comming to the Conclusion he intend's because his aime must be or he doth nothing to show by his Evidence what Society of Christians now living believes and professes the true Doctrin of Christ or how Chrst's true Society may be made discernable by those ancient Miracles from others that teach damnable Doctrin Herein he fail's and shall fail while an Infallible Church is rejected 22 These Considerations clearly laid down no less clearly evince the Dr ' s resolution of Faith to be frivolous and his rational Evidence unreasonable for tell me not by his Evidence what Society of Christians are now right in Faith prove me not that Scripture was written by Divine assistance Shew me not that the truths related there are Truths revealed by Almighty God the whole Doctrin of that book and all the Miracles in it signify nothing 23
from the Antecedent of mans being intellectual Should I prove that Consequence upon other grounds either by Authority or manifest experience because we se men freely eschew Evil and embrace Good should I from thence inferr that he is Intellectual the Inference now guarded by other proofs barely subsist's not upon the strength of its Antecedent but is à Verity known aliunde and therefore is rightly called Regressus utilis à rational profitable Regress free from The difference between a Circle and à profitable way of Arguing all vicious Circulation For as Philosophers teach grounding their discourse vpon Aristotle now cited A vicious Circle is à Regress or going back ab eodem ad Idem per eandem viam from the same thing to the same again and by the same way as appeares in the Instance proposed where the Antecedent assuming Intellectual proves Liberty and Liberty not known as I said upon any other proof but by that Medium Intellestual return's again and by the very same way proves Intellectuallity This is to say the Consequence as known by the Antecedent offer 's to prove at once both it self and the Antecedent together Had Dr St well reflected upon what is here noted he might easily have spared his lost labour spent upon à vicious Circle and it is à wonder be wanted reflection because Sextus Empiricus cited by him in the short discourse he has of that he calls à Diallel gives every one light enough to se what the Dr it seems saw not though Sextus be none of the clearest Authors 19 Thus much premised we proceed to the matter now in hand and Assert If any one should in the first place either believe or prove the Sence of Scripture to be true by the Churches Interpretation not otherwise believed Infallible or proved true but barely by her Interpretation and should again goe about to prove her Interpretation true by nothing but her own Interpretation which explains that true Sence the Circle would be manifest because the true Sence of Scripture interpreted by the Church is again assumed An application made to the matter now in hand as the only Medium to prove her Interpretation true which way of Arguing essentially implies à vicious Regress from the very same thing to the same thing again and by the very same way But if I first prove the Churches Infallibility in all She teaches upon other Grounds without any recourse at all either to the words or Sence of Scripture as is shewed above and from thence both prove and believe her Interpretation to be infallibly true that man who holds this way of Arguing Circular knowes no more what à Circle is than Doctor Stillingfleet A little touch upon the Dr ' s weak Obiections will yet give more clarity 20 Is not that à Circle saith he P. 428. when the Argument made use to prove another The Dr's Obiections answered thing by must it self be proved by that very thing which it is made use of to prove Very good Sr these general Terms hurt no body to your Application therefore in the next page The thing to be proved Say you is the Churches Infallibility the Argument to prove it by is the Infallible Sence of Scripture Answ I flatly deny the first proof of the Churches Infallibility to be the Infallible Sence of Scripture for the first Argument is taken from that general Truth whereby She is owned and proved God's Infallible Oracle in every thing She teaches concerning Faith and this independently of Scripture Here I say more It is impossible to prove her first Infallible by the Sence she gives of Scripture because that Sence is not known before She interpret's and no body goes about to prove any thing by meer insignificant Characters without their Sence Can the Dr who hold's the Church Fallible and must if he ever evince that prove it by Scripture probably take his Proof from Scripture not senced It is plain Dotage to do so He goes on But if the Infallible Sence of Scripture can be proved by nothing but by thē Churches infallible Interpretation then it is plain that is assumed as an Argument to prove Infallibility by which cannot be otherwise known than by this Infallibility What To argue from Scripture not Senced is Non-sense Infallibility doth the Dr speak of in these last ambiguous words If he say we prove the Infallible Sence of Scripture by the Churches infallible Interpretation I grant it Jf contrarywise he thinks we prove in the first place the Churches Infallibility by her own infallible Interpretation of Scripture he err's grosly as is already made manifest and therefore proves nothing 21 In à word either the Sence of Scripture is known by the Churches Interpretation or is clear by it self If known upon the Churches Interpretation the Sence is one and the same with that of the Scripture for these two Oracles can never clash or differ If known by it selfe as it is in many Passages relating to manners no more is required but that the Church ascertain us of the Scriptures Divine Inspiration So that still we depend upon the Church alwaies for the assurance of Scripture being Divine or from God and in the greatest Mysteries of Faith we rely on it also for the true Sence 22 A second obiection It is à little strange that there should be no difficulty at all in believing the Churches Infallibility upon the Sence of those Scriptures whose Sence could not infallibly be known without the Supposal of that Infallibility which is proved by them Answ It s more than à little strange that the Dr cannot distinguish between the first general act of Faith whereby the Church is believed Infallible without depending on Scripture and à second more explicit and Consequent act which wholly relies upon Her interpretation and Scripture together It is also strange if God pleases to speak obscurely as he certainly doth in many Passages of Holy Writ that another Infallible Oracle cannot tell us with he mean's without Two Strange Mistakes in the Dr. à vicious Circle The Substance of all he obiects here only amount's to thus much We prove or believe the Churches Infallibility upon the Sence of those Scriptures whose sence cannot be infallibly known without the supposal of that Infallibility If he mean's as he must by supposal and that Infallibility the Churches Infallibility I have answered the Church is not only supposed but proved also infallible before Scripture was written and before She ever went about to interpret that Divine Book 23 A third Obiection is the like Tautologie over again and therefore requires no other but the same Solution If saith he the Infallible sence of Scripture be resolved into and believed upon the same infallible Authority of the Church then I still enquire how this infallible Authority of the Church comes to be proved by this exposition of Scripture the Infallibility of which doth suppose the thing to be proved Viz. the Churches