Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A07475
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An examination of certaine motives to recusancie. By W. Bedell
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Bedell, William, 1571-1642.
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1628
(1628)
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STC 1786; ESTC S113798
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20,794
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67
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Confession of sinnes in the â—…acrament of Penance Thus Pope Benedict the eleventh teacheth the whole Church out of the Chaire of Saint Peter in a Decretall Epistle Extravag com l. v. de privileg c. inter cunctas And this ridiculous interpretation the Author of these Collections if ever he have professed his faith by the rule of Pope Pius the fourth hath sworne to admit But sith profession of faith is so necessary why doe they withdraw Catholicks from this duty which is performed twice every day in the Common-prayers of the Church of England in a tongue understood in the very forme wherin it was professed in their names at their Baptisme And every Sunday and Holy day in the Creed of the Romane Church thirteen times in the yeare in Athanasius Creed the conclusion whereof hath these words This is the Catholick Faith which except a man beleeve faithfully he cannot be saved I think this Author could not have chosen a fitter text to diswade from Recusancy then this is which sheweth the necessity of making profession of our faith if wee will be saved The truth is these men have no respect to the glory of God or the salvation of soules but onely to the maintaining of their owne faction To make shew to be of the Church of an heretick is to deny Christ before men He that is not with me is against me He that gathereth not with me scattereth Matth. 12. 30. IT is marvell he could not remember another speech of our Saviours in the Gospell He that is not against us is for us So much the more because the occasion thereof was a case very like unto ours One cast out Devils in Christs name and the Apostles forbad him because he followed not with them Forbid him not saith our Lord for he thâ—…t is not against us is for us Luk. 9. 49. What then Is he contrary to himselfe No doubtlesse But in the one he teacheth us to admit and receive all that prosesse his Name into our society yea and if they will be singular yet to rejoyce that his Name is preached with Saint Paul Phil. 1. 18. In the other when it is slandered and blasphemed as it was by those which said He cast out devils by Belâ—…ebub not to be neutrall but to undertake the defence of truth and innocency against malice and falshood for in that case not to confesse him is to deny him Now since the reformed Churches doe not onely speak nothing amisse of our Saviour but are ready with S. Paul to die for his Name what rage is this of the Court of Rome to cast them out to forbid them to preach or others to heare them or pray with them to persecute them with sire and sword as if they were worse then infidels and misbeleevers Thus the Scriptures are plaine that men of divers religions may not communicate one with another in the act of their religion And this is observed by the Lutherans the Calvenists the Anabaptists and all other sects in other Countries onely England admitteth to their society Lutherans Calvenists Puritanes Brownists and Catholicks whereas the generall Councels of Nice of Sardick of Chalcedon of Constantinople of Ephesus whensoever they condemned the Arrians and other hereticks they forbid the Catholicks to frequent their company This meanes God ordained that we may know which was the faith which was first taught by the Apostles which could not have been discovered from heresies if all the former hereticks had equally been as in shew of the same Church bearing the name of Christians no lesse then the Catholicks THe Scriptures proove no more then hath before been admitted Men of a false religion may communicate with those of a true men of the same true religion for the substance with those that in circumstance doe differ from them Latines with Greeks Aethiopians Russians Where he saith the contrary is observed in other countries I am verily perswaded this is utterly untrue there is never a one of these and joyne the Romists to them which if not for reason of conscience esteeming themselves to have the truth and rejoycing that another enclines to embrace it yet out of desire to encrease their owne partie is difficult to any that resorts to their assemblies as desirous to joyne with them That which he addeth touching the Councels besides that after the Scriptures it is as vaine a labour as to light a candle in the Sunne it is a meer crack of names to proove that which no man denies that Catholicks may not frequent the companies of blasphemous hereticks yet he sets not downe any one Canon of all these for the purpose and he mentions that of Sardick for a generall Councell where it was but a particular and that which wee now have not that which was anciently in Saint Augustines times But none of all these forbad the hereticks to be admitted to heare Sermons or to be present at the praiers of Catholicks yea the fourth of Carthage expresly enacts that they should not be forbidden And the Councell of Nâ—…ce receives the Novatians without difficultie yet promising they would communicate with these that had married the second time and such as had fallen in persecution The latter of which two being the oâ—…ly thâ—…ng for which the Donatists refused society with the Catholicks they were not onely invited but by the terrour of Lawes â—…ged thereto no lesse then Recusants are with us A plaine argument that then it was holden That where the Catholick faith is rightly confessed society in Gods worship is to be maintained Where he addeth that God ordained this meanes that we may know which was the faith first taught by the Apostles I doe not thinke he understands himselfe what meanes could this be to discerne which was the faith first taught when as the Apostles tould before that of themselves should arise men speaking perverse things which would not faile to challenge to themselves the names of Christians and separate from their opposites And it is a speech unworthy of a man of any ordinary capacity that the faith could not be discerned from heresies but by names Christ pretending to convert the Pagans ordained this separation in externall acts of religion that they might know to which Church to repaire without danger of errour in embracing Christianity THat which must be a mark to discerne two things one from the other must not be common to them both A Pagan therefore that desired to imbrace Christianity without errour how should he know by separation whither to repaire if Arrians doe no lesse separate from the orthodoxall Christians then they from the Arrians And at this day if as he said right now Lutherans and Calvenists doe as well separate from others as others from them how can this be a note to discerne without errour where true Christianity is to be found In our daies the Lutherans and the Calvinists undertook to convert the Infidels in New France both
preaching Christ but being in faith one differing from another the Infidels not knowing which to chuse for true Christians they sent them both back againe THis is as true as the golden Legend excelleth all other books as much as gold all other mettalls I marvell out of what Countrey the Lutherans went into New France or by what way they were sent home againe The Author of this fiction seems to have imagined that New France is as neare and accessible to France and Germany as the Frank County and the Infidels there as able to discerne what makes a different faith as the Colledge of the holy Inquisition at Rome But the blinde swallows many a flie There is but one truth and one onely true Church wherein it is conserved and of whom it must be learned in this onely Church are Gods people aâ—…d in this he hath ordained Sacrificâ—… Sacraments and a peculiar externall service to worship him that he may be knowne to be their God and they to be his people IN the multitude of opinions there is but one truth And among sundry truths there is but one necessary to salvation that wherein the holy Scriptures as the Apostle saith are able to make us wise by the faith in Christ Iesus The Keeper of this truth and of the Scriptures in which it is treasured is the Church not of one City but the Catholick Church that is the fellowship of Saints dispersed through the whole world This is that Church in which onely are Gods people In this he hath ordained the commemoration of Christs Sacrifice till his comming againe with a service not now consisting in rites and ceremonies but reasonable as the Apostle teacheth Rom. 12. which for the particular manner of it may bee divers in divers places but for the generall must be with understanding and edification 1 Cor. 14. 15 26 and with comelinesse and order vers 40. Such is God be praised the service used among us in the Churches of England That the new invented service of God is schismaticall and the doctrine now preached is heresie by the judgment of the primitive Church and for such condemned see the fathers of those daies who as the Apostles ordained have noted all such as have taught contrary to the saith which was delivered to the Churches by the Apostles HItherto hath been the endeavour of the Authour of this Collection to proove it unlawfull to hold society with those of a contrary religion Now hee goes about to shew that the Church of England is of a contrary religion But herein he behaves himselfe so superficially and sleightly as if he would have it presumed and taken for granted or received upon his word without proofe And for the former hee hath alledged some twenty texts of Scripture though some of them very impertinently as hath been seen For this there is not so much as one word of Scripture where there was most need both in respect of the matter being the convincing of heresie and the men against whom hee deales ever resting in the authority of Scripture and appealing to that rule and Touch stone He saith the new invented Service of God is schismaticall This if he meane it of ours is a slanderous speech without proofe That it is so he bids us See the fathers of the primitive Church Why how should the Fathers if our service be newly invented condemne that which they never saw or heard This is to trifle and presume his Readers are simple Innocents that will take such generall proofe as this See the Fathers of those daies What if they be no Schollers What if they have no leasure What if they be told that the Fathers of the Primitive Church doe by their describing the service of God in their owne times as it were in a table picture out ours That for the present service of the Romane faction of all the old Fathers they have not one Well yet in this his modesty is to be commended that he would not say the service of God which we use is hereticall but schismaticall We take his Confession and sure it proceeded not from want of will to speak the worst but from lack of matter to furnish out his accusation if he should have said otherwise For the substance of our Service being a Confession of our sins the pronouncing of Absolution to the penitent beleever according to the commission of the Gospel the Psalmes the Lessons out of holy Scripture the Hymne of Saint Ambrose called Te Deum that of Zachary the blessed Uirgin and Simeon the Apostles and Athanasius Creed the Lords Praier the Collects for the most part the same which themselves use but in a tongue understood Slaunder it selfe never yet durst accuse it of heresie The like may be said for the celebration of the Sacraments and the rest of the acts of the publick Ministery And here I desire the Reader to consider how he shuffelleth in this second part of his Argument for he began with men of a contrary religion and hereticks now he falls to such as have a schismaticall Service Which of the Fathers ever accounted difference in Service hereticall or schismaticall when as neither any particular forme was prescribed by our Lord Iesus Christ nor delivered by the Apostles or yet ordained by any generall Councell to be used in the Catholick Church The liturgies of the Greek Church which goe under the names of Saint Iames Saint Mark Saint Basil Saint Chrysostome are extant differing each from other and from those of the Latine Church whether the later of Saint Gregory or the ancienter of Saint Ambrose In Gregories time it is plaine that the Churches of France had not the same service with the Church of Rome for when as Austen whom he sent to plant the faith among the English demanded why there was one custome of Masses in the Romane church and another in the churches of France Saint Gregory bids him That he should chuse whether in the Romane or any other Church whatsoever might most please God and establish it in the new Church of the English In this Church of England even to the day of the reforming the Service we had divers orders as of Sarum York Hereford Bangor And so had they in Italy it selfe till Pius Quintus reformed the Breviary and Missall after the Romane use enjoyning all Churches to follow that unlesse where they had for above 200 years a custome to celebrate otherwise And Pius acknowledgeth that in the reformation of his Breviary those things that were impertinent and uncertaine were remooved and the Missall restored to the ancient rule and rite of the holy Fathers Which reformation notwithstanding and that Pius decreeth by his Bull prefixed that nothing should at any time be added taken away or altered yet in the time of Clement 8. it was again corrected in some things corrupted as Marsilius one of the Uenetian Divines