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A14612 The contrition of a Protestant preacher, converted to be a Catholiqve scholler conteyning certayne meditations vpon the fourth penitentiall psalme, Miserere / composed by Iames Waddesworth, Bachlour of Diuinitie in the Vniversity of Cambridge, & late parson of Cotton, and of Great-Thorneham in the County of Suffolke, who went into Spaine with the Kinges Maiesties first Embassadour-Legier, as his chaplayne ... Wadsworth, James, 1572?-1623. 1615 (1615) STC 24924.5; ESTC S2953 166,461 144

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truste or confidence but the cau●e of truste and confidence which we get throughe faith And S. Augustin saith Credere nihil aliud est nisi cun assensu ●ogitar● to beleeue is no●hing else but to thinke of a matter with assent therunto And S. Bonauenture maketh a double certeinty one of faith in the vnderstanding anothe● of hope in the will By the fi●ste we beleeue firmely as true all propositions of Gods worde in generall and by the second we haue good confidence in the particuler application of those thinges which may perteyne to our selues as good for vs For attingimus Deum we are joyned or doo reach vnto God only by our vnderstanding and our will in our vnderstanding is faith and because our will considers thinges eyther as juste and so we loue them or as p●ofitable and so we desire them therfore in ou● will is both hope expecting our heauenly profitable Good ●harity louing all that is equally just And so we haue the 3. Theologicall vertues faith hope and charity 6. In the thirde poynte Faith is not a distincte knowledge but an obedient assent captiuating the vnderstanding to the obedience of faith for where there is a playne knowledge of truthe it needeth not to captiuate the vnderstanding to obedience Therfore the Apostle twice reckoneth knowledge faithe as two seuerall giftes of God and the common phrase is oportet discentem credere A learner must beleeue viz such thinges as he doth not or cannot vnderstand S. Hilary said It hath rather a rewarde then neede of pardon to be i●norante what thou beleeuest as in the mistery of the Trinity Saint Prosper alledging those wordes of scripture Excepte you beleeue you shall not vnderstand collecteth thence that faith procedeth not of vnderstanding but vnderstanding cometh f●om faith and S. Augu●tin accordingly prayed credam vt intelligam non intelligam vt credam o Lorde let me beleeue that so I may vnderstand not by vnderstanding to beleeue w●erfore faith going before know●edge is not all one with knowledge For firste there is apprehension next is Assent which twoo togeather make faith and thirdly is knowledge n●w in ●arte and hereafter fully when fides shall be vides when we shall knowe as we are knowne 7 Note al●so that this apprehension is ey ther indistincte and in grosse or it is euident and particuler this laste is neither necessary nor enoughe vnto faith the firste is necessary but not enoughe for both of them must haue Assent Therfore if a country-man or oth●r ignorante playne soule doo giue his firme Assent to that which he apprehendes but grossely he hath faith wheras a heathen philosopher or other cunning Clarke ●houghe he haue neuer so cleare an apprehension yet he hath no faith if he haue not assent and credite to that which he vnderstandeth wherfore faith consisteth more in Assenting obedience then in vnderstanding knowledge 8. Likewise this Assent is double eyther grounded on reason and the euidence of the matter or vpon the authority of the Teacher The firste may be called knowledge but the latter is properly faith So saith S. Augustin That which we vnderstand we ● we it vnto reason but what we beleeue vnto Auctority And yet thus thoughe faith be not knowledge yet is knowledge both profitable to encrease out loue of God and commendable in them who desire so to profite And therfore with Dauid I will teach the wicked in matters of faith what to beleue yeilding their Assent to the infallibility of the churche and in matters of knowledge how to vnderstand by illustration of argumentes grounded vpon reason for these are the wayes of God and of certeyn truthe which if they be not sensibly demonstrable to fleshly eyes yet are they euidently credible to spirituall hartes Thus I will teach thy wayes which are thy iustifications HOW MANY OTHER PATHES DOO LEAD vnto the wayes of iustification and that we are not iustifyed by faith only Sect. 6. ANd the vngodly will be conuerted vnto thee How shall a wicked heretique or ignorante man learne thy wayes of truthe By obedient faith How shall an vngodly Catholique or a lewde sinner be conuerted vnto thee in a good life By iustifying faith It is faith which beginnes first to iustifye a sinner and secondly allso the iuste shall liue by his faith In matter of our iustification alwayes faith must be one yet only faith doth neuer iustifye Neither firste as the only Disposition vnto iustice nor 2. as the only formall cause of our iustice nor 3. as the only encreaser or preseruer of our iustice 2. Luther on the Galathians once said that faith is our formall iustice for which a man is iustifyed making faith an essentiall cause of our iustification But since all protestants reiect that saying and make it only a bare instrument as a hande receiuing an almes and so to iustifye vs only relatiuely Yet touching the concurrence of other vertues and good workes the Electorall Wittembergians or softer Lutherans following Melancthon with whom herein concurreth Caluin they require the presence of good workes as necessary signes and fruites of faith yet denying them to haue any efficiency vnto iustification But the Saxonians and harder Lutherans following Illyricus deny any necessity of good workes to iustification either in presence or in efficience alledging these sayinges of Luther Faith doth iustefye without and before charity and in his disputation whither workes auayle to iustification he auoucheth That faith excepte it be without the least workes doth not iustefye nor is faith These and many other be their particuler dissentions among themselues thoughe against Catholiques good workes they all conspire That only faith iustifyeth 3. But the Councell of Trent beside faith which is the firste Disposition requireth allso Dispositions of feare hope loue penitence a purpose of vsing the necessary Sacramentes and a purpose of a new life in obseruing Gods commandements The firste then is faith as S. Paul saith It behooueth him that cometh to God to beleeue that he is and that he is a iust Iudge and a punisher of euill and a mercifull father and rewarder of good Out of the one procedeth nexte feare which likewise as well as faith is an introduction or disposition to iustification For Ecclesias saith He that is without feare cannot be justifyed and Esay saith From thy feare we haue conceiued brought forthe the spirite of saluation 4. Then from beholding of mercy and rewarde thirdely groweth Hope which likewise doth iustefye as the Apostle expressely speaketh we are saued by hope and in the psalmes often They shall be saued de●iuered because they hoped in God Fourthly after hoping for Good foloweth ●oue of the Benefactor which loue is before remission of sinnes eyther in time if it be an imperfecte loue only beginning or in nature if it be perfecte in all ou● harte abounding as our Sauiour said to S. Mary Magdalen Manie sinnes are
thou giuest as a nurse and to worke what thou commandest as a laborer For Salomon calls him sluggarde who hides his hande in his bosome will not put it to his mouthe not so much for meate as to performe with his hande what he speakes with his mouthe And thus let vs folowe S. Peters aduise As euery one haue receiued grace so to employe it towardes others in grace of speache grace of action that as the holy ghoste appeared in fashion of a tongue so allso he is called in holy scriptures Digitus Dei the finger of God our Sauiour saying he caste out diuells by the finger of God that is by the vertue of the holie spirite which is a finger of action as well as a tongue of speache that as our coūtryman venerable Bede hath written a Treatise teaching men to speake or expresse their mindes by the signes motions of their fingers as we vse to talke with dumbe me● so we shoulde learne according to our English phrase to handle our tongues well i. by the workes of our handes to make good the wordes of our tongue For otherwise that accusation of Ieremy will fall vpon vs mendacium operatus est we haue wroughte alye whiles our bad actions doo falsefye our good speches or when we doo good for hypocrisy not for sincerity it is a monstrous lye because ordinary lyes are spoken but such a lye is wroughte operatus esi mendacium a lye with a wroughte latchet which may be seene Contrarywise a true seruante of God one who will teach his fellowe seruantes the iuste complete will of his maister he must learne Salomons lesson Read my lawe as the apple of thine eye vidz with attention And write it on thy fingers namely in execution so the prophet saith the worde of our lorde was made in the hande of Aggaeus where he mentioneth making of it in his hande for reuealing of it to his knowledge because our knowledge is vayne without practise as in Geometry the Mathematiques one quarter of an howres practicall demonstration will make you to vnderstand more then a whole weekes theoricall study and as the 7. planets giue more influence then the fixed starres because the one are fixed in their spheres and the other haue their peculiar motions for influence procedeth from lighte motion not from lighte alone and therfore we must like S. Ihon Baptiste as well burne mooue in heate of charity as shyne stand still in lighte of faith Not as the Lacedimonian of the nightingall to haue a sweete voyce only and nothing else Nor Iacobs milde voyce Esaus roughe handes Nor as Agis said of a witty Sophister that when he helde his peace he had nothing good in him Or as Stratonicus cōming by a fountyen asked of the inhabitantes nexte it whether the water were good they answered we vse to drinke of it Thē saith he it is like to be naughte for your faces complexions seeme to be corrupted iudging of their founteyne by the operation effectes therof as we likewise shall be discerned by our deedes what is in the founteyn of our hartes WHAT BE THE WAYES OR PROCEEdinges of our iustification what faith doth teache vs in these wayes Sect 5. 1. WHerfore least penitent or thirsty men shoulde drinke of corrupted founteynes I will directe as many as I can to the cleare waters of healthfull doctrine whose springes are only within the boundes of the Carholique churche I will teach the wicked thy wayes vidz such as haue bene in wickednes of sinne or of heresye I will shew them thy wa●es of iustification 2. I will teach them that somtime thy lawes and thy wayes are called iustifications praying with Dauid I woulde my wayes mighte be directed to keepe thy iustifications 2. sōtime they are said to be iustifyed who are only declared to be iuste which is imputatiue righteousnes wherof Esay said wo be to you who doo iustifye the wicked for bribes 3. somtime for the first iustification or obteyning of iustice vnto a sinner wherof S. Paul saith whom God calleth he iustif●e●h 4. somtime for encrease or proceeding in further iustice which is called a second iustification of one allready iuste of which S. Iames speaketh concluding that a man is iustifyed by workes and not by faith only and S. Ihon willeth him who is iuste to be further instifyed 3. I will teach them that the end of our iustification is the Glory of God the saluation of our soules That the cheife efficient cause of our iustification is the Goodnes Mercy of God the efficient by-way of merite is the passion of Christe the efficient by-way of instrument vnited is the humanity of Christe the efficient by-way of instrument separate are the Worde Sacramentes their Administers The materiall cause or subiect of our iustification is the minde of man es●ecially the will wherin this iustice is wroughte remayneth The formall cause in habite intrinsecall is the habite of grace or charity infused in habite extrinsecall or exemplar it is the very iustice of our Sauiour Christe in which S. Paul admonisheth vs we shoulde beare the image of the celestiall man i. Christe as we haue borne the image of the terrestriall man Adam But the formall cause in Acte are good workes which in one respecte are the Effectes of our iustice and in another haue allso so efficiency in our iustification as likewise haue feare faith hope loue repentance all which laste as dispositions preparing our minde will doo euery one in some sorte iustifye I will teach them that faith necessary to iustification is not to be restreyned only to the promises of Gods mercy but it must beleeue all Truthe which God hath taughte And that faith is seated principally in the vnderstanding not in the will as a confidence for so it should be all one with hope And that in the vnderstanding it is a firme assent vnto all thinges which God propoundeth to be beleeued and not a knowledge of them 4. Touching the firste Our Sauiour in the holy Go●pells and in the Epistles and Actes of the Apostles they doo often require other pointes of faith to be beleeued beside the promises of mercy as that Ch●iste is omnipotent that he is the Sonne of God that he is God and man and the true Messias that he was crucifyed and rose agayne c. so all the other Articles of the Apostles Creede whatsoeuer the Caluinistes say to the contrary are poyntes of justifying faith w●thout beleefe wherof no man can be saued and yet moste of them perte●ne to other matters then to promises of mercy 5. Touching the second that faith is an assent of the vnderstanding in beleefe not a confidence of the will which perteyne● to hope and therfore S. Paul saith that in Christe Iesu we haue truste and accesse in confidence through his faith therfore faith is not a
se dixit c. where he said He performed not by the affection of consent and fullfilling action but in the very motion of concupiscence calling that a Deede which was but an vnwilling motion of a thoughte And s● the lawe non concupisces bindeth against actuall desires with consent not against the first motions remayning as effectes of originall corruption and so concupiscere est post concuspiscentias ire and those first motions are fomes peccati the fewell of sinne and without consent no way indeede sinne no more then wood is fi●e vntill it be k●nled And so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1. the wisdome or sensuality of the flesh is enemy to God by which sensuality he allso meaneth actuall sinne and not originall And so generally for the moste parte when any Ancyent Doctor calleth concupiscence indefini●●●● sinne they speake of actuall concupiscence with consent Or doo so terme the effectes of originall sinne after baptisme not because they are absolutely sinne but because they are remnants of sinne and doo allure vnto sinne 9. If it be said that all is sinne which agreeth not to the lawe of God or is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is true taking sinne in a generall sense for vi●ium a defect as there be vitia naturae vel artis defectes of nature or of arte viz to be blind lame c and such an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or sinne we may calle our naturall concu●iscence which of it selfe without con●ent is no more sinne speaking properly strictly then to be hungry or thirsty against our will Or no more then dreames of murder vnchaste imaginations of men asleepe wherof they gaue no faulty occasion being awake And thoughe such dreames doo not agree e●actly with the lawe of God yet who will strictly properly call them sinnes They agree not with the lawe in their substance materially but formally in their intention they are not against the lawe As a woman ravi●hed or forced against her will without any consent the Action materially agreeth not with the lawe exactly and yet therin who can accompte her guilty of sinne 10. Finally we cannot say the first motions of cōcupiscence are sinne because we oughte to abhorre them because God doth hate them for all is not sinne which deserueth to be hated Because euill of punishment may be hated as well as euil of Gui●te and whatsoeuer allureth to sinne may be hated thoughe it selfe be not sinne And so we abhorre the first mot●ons of concupiscence as occasions not indeede as sinnes And allmighty God hateth all euill euen of punishment and so he detesteth Death and is said not to haue made death not as the first Author sed vt peccati vl●or but as the iust punishe● of sinne by death He hateth all euill of punishment or of guilte in respecte of the evill it selfe not in respecte of the occasiō of good which he draweth out of the evill And so of our worldly aflictions saith S. Augustin Vvho would suffer miseryes or difficultyes Thou doost cōmand vs o lord to endure them not to loue them none doo loue what they suffer thoughe to suffer they doo loue for thoughe he ioye in suffring yet he had rather he had nothing to suffer In like sorte we may not desire concupiscence not because it is sinne except we consent but because it induceth to sinne and is troblesome greiuous c. neyther ought the iudgment of God to displease vs who woulde haue it to remayne for an Agony and exercise of vertue and tolde his Apostle My Grace is sufficiēt vnto thee for his strenghte is perfited in our weakenes THE CONCLVSION OF THE FORMER DEclarations about Originall sinne with some shorte admonitions to mortifie his force Sect. 9. 1. THus I haue said somewhat of sundry questions about Originalle sinne wherin if I be tedious to some yet to others I know it will seeme to shorte I confesse it is a matter more lamentable then disputable for all wherfore in our meditation vpon this corruption let vs mourne with Dauid That in iniquityes we were conceiued and our mothers broughte vs forthe in sinnes 2. For thoughe Baptisme doo cleanse vs yet some sorowful remembrance therof is good to humb●e vs. Baptisme takes away omnem labem all the guilte all the spottes and nature of sinne paste non omnem somitem not a●l the fewell and inclination vnto sinne to come Wherfore come o my soule in our present conforte let vs prayse our Redeemer who had purifyed and washed all the vncleannes of our Birthe and in our folowing diligence by the helpe of his grace let vs be carefull to mortefy and kepe vnder all corruptions of our life O my soule be thou watchefull ouer my body I will not say kill my flesh because it is a parte of my selfe and I may not hate it yet remember it was a meanes in our conception by which the purity was stayned I say when thou werte infused it did blemish that lustre and integrity which now thou shouldest haue if thou werte not in his corrupte prison thoughe it defiled not the cleannes and purity of thy nature which thou first haddest by creation and which we may recouer and better by the grace of Christe if we keepe our flesh in due mortification Let vs make gaynes by our losse and winne more reward by our paynes O blessed be our Redeemer Iesus who hath giuen vs this possibility Let vs resiste and suppresse the motions of our concupiscence that we may aduance and increase the vigor of our spirite Nay o my soule thou arte bound to doo no lesse for if in Adam his soule had not first consented to her owne fond affections and desires the body had bene yet still in obedience therfore as the rebellion of the flesh was first occasioned on thy parte so to pay for this faulte the disquietnes of continuall concupiscences must be endured by thy mourning patience and ouercome by thy mortifying diligence 3. Be thou watchfull ouer thy discerning reason least ignorance make falsehood truthe be heedfull to thy irascible corage least impatience driue a way that which is good and be carefull about thy concupiscible choyse least sensuality follow that which is bad Wheras contrarily our concupiscibility should only embrace good our irascibility should only hate bad and our reason should only be fixed on truthe But alas we are witty and apte for errors therfore labour to be discrete we are headdy subject to passions therfore endeuour to be moderate we are headlong prone to pleasures therfore striue to be temperate 4. O my soule these are our frailtyes our reason dimme our passions strong and sottishnes in our desires neither is it marueil for we are conceiued in sinnes conceiued in iniquityes In our carnall generation the vse of reason is suspended the heat of luste is enflamed and pleasure is soughte in vncleannes O 〈◊〉 better remedyes then in the merites and examples of our Redeemer
when the storme is passed the vowe is forgotten the Saynt is beguiled or they are soone weary of well dooing they must needes go backe to the flespottes of Egipte Non discēdunt à peccatis sed recedunt non desinunt sed relaxant these go not awaie from sinne they doo but go aside they do not cease but slacken their iniquityes Their time of amendement is but like a parenthesis in a speache being only in●erposed as in the by after which he presently followeth his former discourse ●r as a mad mery company at table full of wyne and good cheare and more full of immoderate mirthe laughter swearing scoffing and telling of lew de tales vntill peraduenture some body amongest them at the end of their meale at leastwise for custome say a grace and then all putting off their hattes euery one for shame if he haue any beginnes to set himselfe for a more sober countenance except some like a Puritan holde his hatte before his eyes to dissemble and couer his continued laughter But so soone as the grace is ended as men paste grace they presently returne to their vnruly reuell Such are they who faste a daye and become gluttons a whole weeke who are abstinent in lent and all the yeare after luxurious who are demure at sermons lasciuious in chambers who in his prayers turnes vp the white of his eye and presently in his dealing woulde teare out his neighbors harte who is sober or continent for a few dayes about Easter or any other time to come to the blessed Sacrament but ere long after he returnes to his quaffing potte or to his cursed harlotte Or whosoeuer else beginnes to be a penitent and before his end growes weary and faynte From all these faylers the grace of the sacramentes is subtracted the giftes of the holy spirite are taken away and deseruedly they are caste out from the face of our lord MEDITATION VIII Redde mihi laetitiam salutaris tui spiritu principali confirma me Docebo iniquos vias tuas impij ad te conuertentur Restore vnto me the ioye of thy saluation with thy principall spirite confirme me I shall teach thy wayes vnto the wicked the vngodly will be conuerted vnto thee IESVS IS THE IOYE OF OVR SALVATlON which a sorowfull soule desireth to be restored and a confortable soule prayeth to be continued Sect. 1. 1. VEspasian the Emperor was called deliciae hominum Delighte of men because he gaue such curteous answers to all that neuer any went from him di●contented But with much more truthe and reason doo we call lord Iesus the Ioye of our Saluation of whom neuer any asked hartily pardon and conforte who w●nt away denyed or greiued He came to heale the sicke to ●eeke the loste not to condemne but to saue the wor de that whosoeuer beleeueth in him should haue life euerlasting w●o hath w ished vs from our sinnes in his ow●e bloud who dyed for our offences and ro●e agayne for our ju●tific●tion who verily did beare our infirmityes and our sorowes he did vndergoe who was wounded for our iniquityes afflicted for our wickednes and by his tortures we are h●aled Allmighty God not sparing his only sonne and he being God equall to his Father not ref●sing to become man and to dye for vs not his freindes nor his seruantes but his enem●es and slaues vnto the Diuell redeeming vs from hell and damnation to be equal● with Angells and heyres with himselfe of eternall glory Wherfore o my soule I will glory in our lorde and I will rejoyce in God my Iesus for in all these pointes recited He is the Ioye of my Saluation 2. Lighte is pleasing and confortable d●●kenes is irkesome and odious of lighte comes de●ighte but blacknes followes desperation He that neuer before saw lighte yet loues the sunne at first sighte But blind Tobias who had seene daye sittes musing with himselfe o what a Ioye would it be to recouer mine eyes who now sitte in darkenes and see no lighte of heauen Holy Dauid had seene much lighte of heauen for euen now he said The doubtefull and hidden thinges of thy wisedome thou hast manifested vnto me The wisdome of God we knowe is the Sonne of God And was there or is there any thing more doubtfull in nature then God to become man or more hidden to reason then for him so to redeeme the worlde by suffering on the crosse wherfore these hidden doubtfull secretes are called a stumbling blocke to the Iewes as thinges ignominious shamefull are estemed folly by the Gentiles as matters impossible and ●idiculous for to flesh and bloud without faith they are doubtfull hidden Vnto Dauid as a Prophet these doubtes and secrets were in some sorte reuealed he knew the Messias should procede of his linage and aboue all he expected whiles he was in Gods fauour to be partaker of the Benefites of his redemption but hauing fallen into sinne he perceiued himselfe to be gone out of the ioye of lighte into the horror of darkenes and not to haue any parte of saluation in those gracious promises Therfore desirous of his former estate he doth aptely praye Restore vnto me the Ioye of thy saluation and fearfull any more to susteyne 2 like losse he carefully addeth And with thy principall spirite confirme me vid least ● fall agayne 3. O mercifull God how long haue we sitte in darkenes and in the shadowe of death● vntill by thy bowells of me●cy thy morning starre from aboue hath visited our hartes in the Ioye of saluation and enlightened our mindes to guide our feete into the way of peace To come from hellishe darkenes to lighte from aboue is Ioye of heauen To be taken out of the shadowe of death into the way of peace is saluation of Iesus O swete Sauiour by thy bowels of mercy we beseech thee to visite vs in this Ioye and to enlighten vs in this saluation then shall thy seruante departe in peace when myne eyes doo beholde thy saluation 4. Saluation and Ioye are well joyned for euen the future hope of saluation hath present possession of ioye for who doth firmely hope to be saued he doth cherfully rejoyce in his hope But S. I●rome translating this Ioye of saluation to be Ioye of Iesus he doth include much more for in Iesus are conteyned all the infinite theasures of the Deity and of our felicity vnto Iesus is committed all power in heauen and in earthe Iesus is the brightnes of eternall lighte Iesus is the figure and substance of his Father Iesus is the hope of Israell and of the nations Iesus is kinge of kinges and lorde o● lordes Iesus is Prince of peace Iesus is the wisdome of his Father Iesus is beautifull aboue the sonnes of men Iesus is the glorious sunne of justice Iesus is the way truthe and life Iesus is the water and founteyn of life Iesus hath the wordes of life Iesus is the bread of