Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	church_n	faith_n	fundamental_a	2,204	5	10.1723	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A42816	Logou thrēskeia, or, A seasonable recommendation and defence of reason in the affairs of religion against infidelity, scepticism, and fanaticisms of all sorts.	Glanvill, Joseph, 1636-1680.	1670 (1670)	Wing G812; ESTC R23387	21,978	41

infer That Reason is in a sense the Word of God viz. that which he hath written upon our minds and hearts as Scripture is that which is written in a Book The former is the Word whereby he hath spoken to all Mankind the latter is that whereby he hath declared his will to the Church and his peculiar people Reason is that Candle of the Lord of which Solomon speaks Prov. 20.27 That light whereby Christ hath enlightned every one that cometh into the world John 1.9 And that Law whereby the Consciences of the Heathen either accuse or excuse one another Rom. 2.15 So that Hierocles spoke well when he said 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To be perswaded by God and right reason is one and the same thing And Luther called Philosophy within its own bounds The truth of God 3. The belief of our reasons is an exercise of Faith and Faith is an act of Reason The former part is clear from the last particular and we believe our Reasons because we have them from God who cannot mistake and will not deceive So that relying on them in things clearly perceived is trust in Gods veracity and goodness and that is an exercise of Faith Thus Luke 12. The not belief of Reason that suggests from Gods cloathing the Lillies that He will provide for us is made by our Saviour a defect of Faith ver 28. O ye of little Faith And for the other part that Faith is an act of Reason that is evident also For 'T is the highest reason to believe in God revealing 4. No Principle of Reason contradicts any Articles of Faith This follows upon the whole Faith befriends Reason and Reason serves Religion and therefore They cannot clash They are both certain both the truths of God and one truth doth not interfere with another 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Aristotle Truth agrees with all things that are Whatsoever contradicts Faith is opposite to Reason for 't is a fundamental Principle of that That God is to be believed Indeed sometimes there is a seeming contradiction between them But then either something is taken for Faith that is but Phancy or something for Reason that is but Sophistry or the supposed contradiction is an error and mistake 5. When any thing is pretended from Reason against any Article of Faith we ought not to cut the knot by denying reason but indeavour to unty it by answering the Argument and 't is certain it may be fairly answered For all Hereticks argue either from false Principles or fallaciously conclude from true ones So that our Faith is to be defended not by declaiming against Reason in such a case which strengthens the enemy and to the great prejudice of Religion allows reason on his side But we must indeavour to defend it either by discovering the falshood of the Principles he useth in the name of Reason or the ill consequence which he calls proof 6. When any thing is offered us for an Article of Faith that seems to contradict Reason we ought to see that there be good cause to believe that this is divinely revealed and in the sense propounded If it be we may be assured from the former Aphorisms that the contradiction is but an appearance and it may be discovered to be so But if the contradiction be real This can be no Article of Revelation or the Revelation hath not this sense For God cannot be the Author of Contradictions and we have seen that Reason as well as Faith is his I mean the Principles of Natural Truth as well as those of Revelation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Aristotle Truth is throughout contrary to falshood and what is true in Divinity cannot be false in Reason 'T is said indeed in the Talmud If two Rabbins differ in Contradictories yet both have their Opinions from Moses and from God But we are not obliged to such a non-sensical kind of Faith And ought not to receive any thing as an Article in a sense that palpably contradicts Reason no more than we may receive any in a sense that contradicts other Scriptures Faith and Reason accord as well as the Old Testament and the New and the Analogy of Reason is to be heeded also because even that is Divine and Sacred 7. There is nothing that God hath revealed to oblige our Faith but he hath given us reason to believe that he hath revealed it For though the thing be never so clearly told me If I have not reason to think that God is the Revealer of what is so declared I am not bound to believe except there be evidence in the thing it self For 't is not faith but vain credulity to believe every thing that pretends to be from God So that we ought to ask our selves a Reason why we believe the Scripture to be the Revelation of Gods will and ought not to assent to any sense put upon it 'till we have ground to think that that sense is his mind I say we must have ground either from our particular Reasons or the Authority of the Church otherwise our Faith is vain credulity and not faith in God 8. A man may hold an erroneous opinion from a mistaken sense of Scripture and deny what is the truth of the proposition and what is the right meaning of the Text and yet not err in Faith For Faith is belief of God revealing And if God have not so revealed this or that as to give us certain ground to believe this to be his sense he hath not sufficiently revealed it to oblige our Faith So that though I deny such or such a sense while I believe it is not from God his veracity and Authority is not concerned since I am ready however to give a chearful assent to whatever is clearly and sufficiently revealed This Proposition follows from the former and must be understood only of those Doctrines that are difficult and obscurely delivered And that many things are so delivered in Scripture is certain For some are only hinted and spoken occasionally some figuratively and by way of Parable and Allegory some according to mens conceptions and some in ambiguous and Aenigmatical Phrases which obscurities may occasion mistake in those who are very ready to believe what ever God saith and when they do I should be loath to say that such err in Faith Though those that wrest plain Texts to a compliance with their interests and their Lusts Though their affections may bring their judgments to vote with them yet theirs is error in Faith with a witness and capable of no benefit from this Proposition 9. In searching after the sense of Scripture we ought to consult the Principles of Reason as we do other Scriptures For we have shewn That Reason is another part of Gods Word And though the Scripture be sufficient to Its end yet reason must be presupposed unto It for without this Scripture cannot be used nor compared nor applied nor understood 10. The essentials of Religion are so plainly

say are Fundamentals of Religion for It supposeth and stands upon them There are others which are not so absolutely necessary as these but yet very incouraging and helpful I reckon Four here also Viz. 1. THAT God will pardon us if we repent 2. THAT he will assist us if we indeavour 3. THAT he will accept of Services that are imperfect if they are sincere 4. THAT he will reward or punish in another world according to what we have done in this This I count to be the summe of Religion general and Christianity takes in all those Duties and all the Principles advancing the Duties to nobler measures and incouraging them by new motives and assistances and superadding two other instances Baptism and the Lords Supper And for the Principles It confirms those of natural Religion and explains them further and discovers some few new ones And all these both of the former and the latter sort are contained in the Creed Here are all the Fundamentals of Religion and the main assisting Principles also And I call nothing else Religion but plain Duties and these acknowledged Principles And though our Church require our assent to more Propositions yet those are only Articles of Communion not Doctrines absolutely necessary to salvation And if we go beyond the Creed for the Essentials of Faith who can tell where we shall stop The summe is Religion primarily is Duty And duty is All that which God hath commanded to be done by his Word or our Reasons and we have the substance of these in the Commandments Religion also in a secondary sense consists in some Principles relating to the Worship of God and of his Son in the ways of devout and virtuous living and these are comprised in that Summary of belief called the Apostles Creed This I take to be Religion and this Religion I shall prove to be reasonable But I cannot undertake for all the Opinions some men are pleased to call Orthodox nor for all those that by many private persons and some Churches are counted essential Articles of Faith and Salvation Thus I have stated what I mean by Religion THE OTHER thing to be determined and fixt is the proper Notion of Reason For this you may please to consider that Reason is sometimes taken for Reason in the Faculty which is the Understanding and at other times for Reason in the object which consists in those Principles and Conclusions by which the Understanding is informed This latter is meant in the dispute concerning the agreement or disagreement of Reason and Religion And Reason in this sense is the same with natural truth which I said is made up of Principles and Conclusions By the Principles of Reason we are not to understand the Grounds of any mans Philosophy nor the Critical Rules of Syllogism but those imbred fundamental notices that God hath implanted in our Souls such as arise not from external objects nor particular humours or imaginations but are immediately lodged in our minds independent upon other principles or deductions commanding a sudden assent and acknowledged by all sober mankind Of this sort are these That God is a being of all perfection That nothing hath no Attributes That a thing cannot be and not be That the whole is greater than any of its parts And such like others which are unto Us what instincts are to other Creatures These I call the Principles of Reason The Conclusions are those other notices that are inferred rightly from these and by their help from the observations of sense And the remotest that can be conceived of all these if it be rightly inferred from the Principles of Reason or duly circumstantiated sense is as well to be reckoned a part and branch of Reason as the more immediate conclusions that are principles in respect of those distant truths And thus I have given an account also of the proper notion and nature of Reason I AM to shew next 2. That Religion is reasonable and this implies two things viz. That Reason is a friend to Religion and that Religion is so to Reason From these two results their correspondence and agreement I begin with the FIRST and here I might easily shew the great congruity that there is between that light and those Laws that God hath placed in our Souls and the duties of Religion that by the expressness of his written Word he requires from us and demonstrate that Reason teacheth All those excepting only the two Positives Baptism and the holy Eucharist But there is not so much need of turning my discourse that way and therefore I shall confine it to the Principles of Religion which are called Faith and prove that Reason mightily befriends these It doth this I. By proving some of those Principles and II. By defending all For the clearing both these you may consider That the Principles of Religion are of two sorts Either 1. such as are praesupposed to Faith or such as 2 are formal Articles of it Of the first sort are The Being of a God and the Authority of the Scripture And of the second such as are expressely declared by divine Testimony As the Attributes of God the Incarnation of his Son and such like I. For the former they are proved by Reason and by reason only The others we shall consider after I. That the Being of a God the foundation of all is proved by reason the Apostle acknowledgeth when he saith That what was to be known of God was manifest and to the Heathen Rom. I.XIX. and he adds ver XX. That the invisible things from the Creation of the World are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made And the Royal Psalmist speaks to the like purpose Psal. XIX The Heavens declare the Glory of God and the Firmament sheweth his handy works And again Psal. 148.3 Praise him Sun and Moon praise him ye Stars and Light which intimates that these Works of his afford matter to our reasons for religious acknowledgments And reason proves the existence of God from the beauty and order and ends and usefulness of the Creatures for these are demonstrative arguments of the being of a wise and omnipotent mind that hath framed all things so orderly and exactly and that Mind is God This Article then Reason proves which was the first branch of the particular and I add that it is Reason only that can do it which was the other This you will see when you consider that there are but three things from whence the existence of any being can be concluded viz. Sense Revelation or Reason For Sense it hath no more to do here but to present matter for our Reasons to work on and Revelation supposeth the being of a God and cannot prove it for we can have no security that the Revelation is true 'till we are assured it is from God or from some Commissioned by him The knowledge of his Being therefore must precede our Faith in Revelation and so cannot be deduced from it Thus