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	rome_n	4,081	5	7.0107	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57286	A Rowland for an Oliver: or, a sharp rebuke to a sawcy levite In answer to a sermon preach'd by Edward Oliver, M.A. before Sir Humphry Edwin late Lord Mayor of London, at St. Paul's Cathedral, on Sunday October 22. 1698. By a lover of unity.	Ridpath, George, d. 1726.	1699 (1699)	Wing R1462A; ESTC R219686	15,209	25

A Rowland for an Oliver Or a Sharp REBUKE TO A Sawcy Levite IN ANSWER To a Sermon Preach'd By EDWARD OLIVER M. A. Before Sir Humphry Edwin late Lord Mayor of London at St. Paul's Cathedral on Sunday October 22. 1698. By a Lover of Vnity Printed in the year 1699. and sold by the Booksellers of London and Westminster AN ANSWER TO Mr. Oliver's Sermon IT was a Circumstance peculiar to the Deliverance of the Children of Israel out of Egypt that not so much as a Dog moved his Tongue against them and such a Circumstance perhaps as the Church is in no Age to expect the like The King and Parliament have thought fit to set the Dissenters at Liberty and to give them a Manumission from their more than Egyptian Taskmasters in which every true Protestant rejoic'd as hoping that it might be an effectual Preparative to unite Protestants among themselves at home and that it would tend to confirm and strengthen the Protestant Interest abroad But a certain Party of the Church of England have notwithstanding the concurrence of the greatest and best of her Bishops in settling the said Liberty by a Law been always uneasy and peevish since and constantly bawling against Dissenters and not content with a Badg of servitude still fix'd upon them by which they are excluded not only from all Ecclesiastical Preferments or Benefices but from all places of power and trust in the Civil Government nothing will satisfy them except they have liberty to bite and devour their dissenting Brethren as in former Reigns And it 's very well known not only what heavy Censures his Majesty has lain under by that Party because of his Fatherly Protection granted to Christians of all Denominations but what Obstruction they laid in the way of his Affairs in Council Parliament Army and Navy nay how uneasy the● have made him in his very Houshold so th●t it would seem highly necessary that a due Enquiry should be made by what secret Springs those Persons are acted that continue thus to foment Divisions amongst us It is worthy our observation that this spirit of Discord at home seems to be invigorated and gather strength at the same time when the spirit of Persecution rages afresh against the Protestants abroad It is not at all to be doubted but as C●in was stir'd up against his Brother Abel by that wicked one that all his Successors in Persecution are still influenc'd by that same malignant Spirit who hath been a Murderer from the beginning but at the same time it cannot be denied that Satan makes use of Men as his Instruments to sow division and discord Nor is it unworthy our Observation that as the Papists abroad and our implacable Ceremony-mongers at home have their Spirits fermented at one and the same time it is also in a great measure for one and the same Cause viz. because they cannot bring all Men to submit to their Ceremonies and Modes of Worship of human Institution and in truth of the two our English Formalists seem to be the least excusable because they own themselves not to be infallible disown human Tradition as a Rule of Faith and in all their Controversies with the Papists make use of the same Arguments against the Church of Rome that we make use of against the Ceremonies and Discipline of the Church of England They are still the more blame-worthy because formerly they laid the charge upon the Government that these things which are the subject of discord were still continued amongst us but now that we have a Prince who hath solicited that his Subjects might be united and those things that are the Cause of Contention remov'd they are so far from complying with him in it that they are ready to fly in his face upon that account This if we may believe Dr. Burnet the present Bishop of Salisbury who cannot be suspected of partiality in the case was far from being the temper of the Church of England-Bishops at least the best of 'em in Queen Elizabeth's days that Learned and Moderate Bishop in his Letters containing an Account of what seem'd most remarkable in Switzerland Italy c. p. 42. says He saw the Originals of Letters writ by several of the English Bishops to Bullinger at Zurich in Queen Elizabeth's time whereby it appears that the antient habits were preserv'd rather in compliance with the Queen than out of any liking they had to them That Bishop Jewel that great Ornament of the English Church in a Letter Feb. 8. 1566 wishes that the Vestments together with all the other Remnants of Popery might be thrown out of their Churches and out of the Minds of the People and laments the Queen's fixedness to them In January that same year Bishop Sands wrote to the same purpose Contenditur de Vestibus papisticis utendis vel non utendis dabit Deus his quoque finem Horn Bishop of Winchester July 16. 1565. regrets the Act concerning Habits and expresses some hopes that it might be repeal'd next Session of Parliament if the Popish Party did not hinder it In many Letters on that subject 't is asserted that both Cranmer and Ridly intended to procure an Act for abolishing the Habits Bishop Grindal in a Letter of Aug. 27. 1566 writes that all the Bishops who had been beyond Sea at their return dealt with the Queen to let the matter of the Habits fall but she continued inflexible and Cox Bishop of Ely one of the most violent Men of the time in one of his Letters bewails the aversion they found in the Parliament to reform those abuses Then by the Testimony of these Great Men who may well be called the Fathers of the Church of England it appears the things in controversy betwixt us are Popish Remnants and that the Popish Party did then hinder the Acts concerning them to be repeal'd And it is very well known that these things have been continued ever since and some Additions made to them by the Influence of the Popish Party who were rampant in the beginning of Charles the First 's Reign and had no little Interest at Court and in obtaining the Act of Uniformity after the Restoration of K. Charles II. This being uncontrovertibly true we have reason to believe that the same Party in concert with the Jacobites are still the Incendiaries and make it their business to add Fuel to our Flames but we have this Happiness that they cannot now as formerly make Tools of the Court and by his Majesty's prudent Conduct the highest places in the Church are many of them fill'd with Persons of a more generous and Christian Temper than to comply with such angry ill-natur'd Men that would again sacrifice the peace of the Nation to their own peevish humours It remains then that the Tools they now work upon are some of the inferiour Clergy and such of the dignified ones as are perhaps discontented that they are not elevated to an higher Dignity from them or the

of the Primitive Church in the Times of the Apostles that there were no other Ceremonies then to be found in her but the Celebration of Baptism by washing of Water and of the Holy Supper a●cording to the Lord's Institution in taking the Bread and Wine and distributing them after thanksgiving and the Imposition of Hands upon those who extraordinarily received the Holy Ghost and for a 〈…〉 the Sick I would pray then this Youngster to consider whether the Judgment of those Great Men of his own side or that or such an Upstart as he is most to be valued and whether we have not reason to reject those Ceremonies when Camero a Friend of their own says in the same place The Superstition the Mother of Cere●onies 〈…〉 and prodigal Spiritual Whoredam 〈◊〉 it is 〈…〉 with the Bodily both of 'em most have their Pa●●●ings their Trinket● and Inv●aglements I could give him more Quotations of this sort but these are enough to 〈◊〉 the World that it were fitter for him to go home to Corpus Christi● College and read a little more than thus to endeavour to perpetuate a Schism in the body of Christ by Preaching up those Ceremonies which the Greatest Men of the Church have complained they were forc'd to comply with out or Necessity and not out of choice If he did but ●dve●t to his own Concession that the Romanists take both from the Truth and Spirituality of the Christian Religion by confounding their Will-Worship and Idolatry with the Essentials of Christianity it were enough to cure him of his Fondness for Ceremonies and I would fain know of him whether enjoining the Sign of the Cross in Baptism and kneeling at the Communion which he cannot pretend have any other Foundation but the Will of Man don't fall under the same Charge he brings against Popish Will-Worship so that our Author has been as unhappy i● stumbling upon this Parallel as the E. of Roscommon a noted Papist was to translate that part of Horace into English Verse Olim truncus era● ficulnus inutile lignum c. where the Poet brings in the Clown debating with himself what use he should put a Log of Wood to and at last he resolv'd to make a God on 't Then his malicious Charge against Dissenters in general as derogating from the Essentials of Religion by Enthusiastical Notions serves only to discover the Confusedness of his own Brain or the Rancour of his Breast He many know if he pleases that the main Body of Dissenters allow no other Rule of Faith and Practice but the Sacred Text tho' some who perhaps go under that Name may be tainted with Enthusiasm and how those that bring every thing to the Touchstone of the Law and the Testimony and make no Account of pretended Revelations or Impulses can be call'd Enthusiasts let him determine In looks Ten times more Enthusiastical in him to trump up the Authority of what he calls the Church above that of the Scripture which enjoins a mutual Forbearance in Things indifferent and expressly forbids ●nd ●●ning one another for Meats Drinks and Days 1 Cor. 8. Rom. 14.5 c. than any thing he can charge upon the Presbyterians He must or at least ought to know that the man Pl●a which these of 〈◊〉 Party make use of to defend that wherein they differ from us ●s Succession 〈◊〉 and Tradition which he himself own Page 〈…〉 strangely mistaken and that Tradition deserves ●ut little Credit 〈…〉 borrowed from the Pre●byterian Heap to 〈…〉 Papists and to be qu●● with us 〈…〉 from the Popish Heap that is the Authority of the Church and Primitive Practice to throw at the Presbyterians as we shall see afterwards Mr. Oliver 〈…〉 Page 〈◊〉 That ●he 〈◊〉 and Samaritans differed chiefly in the Place of 〈◊〉 Sacrificed ●ut why did not he take Notice that this is als● one Point of the Difference 〈◊〉 his Party and the Dissenters which is clearly determin'd 〈◊〉 by the Gods of Truth himself for the 〈…〉 He knows that those of his ●action ascribe a Sanctity to the very Places of VVorship even whilst there is no VVorship perform'd in them and therefore at all times uncover themselves in Cathedrals and many of them in 〈…〉 Ch●rches especially in the Cha●●els for which they cannot shew one 〈◊〉 of Scripture but on the contrary our Saviour here informs us that the Day shall come when Men shall Worship him in Spirit and Truth without regard to any particular Places and we ●●nd that ●he himse●● and his Apostles practic'd accordingly and worship'd either in private Houses Mountain Ships Sea-coasts or any where as Providence offer'd an Opportunity without a formal Consecration of any particular Place which he knows is contrary to the Pract●●e● of the Church of England I come here to consider his Explanation of what is meant by Worshipping God in Spirit which he tells us is when we are ●osses'd with a true and lively Sense of his d●vine Majesty Power and Rule over as humbly ●●knowledge hi● unspeakeable Goodness ●o 〈◊〉 his infinite Wisdome which searches our Hearts that we in all things submit to his all-wise Will when we love him with all our Hearts and all our Souls and yet Fear and Reverence him as a Father 〈◊〉 with the greatest Cheerfulness obey whatsoever he has 〈◊〉 pleas'd to command us wh●n we not only give up our Souls pure and spotless but keep our Bodies fit Temples too for the Holy Ghost and thus join'd offer up our selves one reasonable Service There 's scarcely any thing in this Definition but what is comprehended in this one Distich of Cato Si Deus est animus nobis ut carmina dicunt Hic tibi praecipuè sit pu●a mente colendus or what a meer Dei●t who owns no Revelation will grant but methinks one who pretends to be a Minister of Jesus Christ should not have been guilty of such a gross Omission as never once to have mentioned his Name in the Explanation of Spiritual Worship when nothing is more expressly enjoin'd in the Scripture than that all Gospel-Worship should be perform'd in his Name without which none of our Devotion is acceptable I would therefore advise this upstart Divine first to read and understand the Gospel better before he pretend to preach it and to know his own Duty before he offer to teach other Men theirs and out of pity to his Ignorance or to chastise him for his faulty Definition would refer him to John 14.13 where we are taught to offer up our Prayers in the Name of Jesus to Matthew 18.20 and other Places where we are taught to assemble in his Name to Matthew 28.19 c. where Ministers are commanded to preach and baptise in his Name to 1 John 3.23 where we are commanded to believe in his Name and to Heb. 13.15 where we are enjoin'd to offer Praises to God by him Now these being all Acts of Spiritual Worship is it not strange that this Novice in Divinity should

not so much as once have mentioned the Name of Jesus in his Definition of worshipping God by the Spirit I suppose he would be very angry at those who should forbear bowing at hearing of his Name which is no where ●●●manded and yet he pretends to explain Spiritual ●●rship without taking so much as once notice of that ●lessed Nane though there be none other under Heaven by which we can be sav'd Another thing he hath omitted in his Definition is that to VVorship God in Spirit must necessarily infer the worshipping of him according to the Direction of his own Spirit in the Sacred Scriptures without which all those Impressions of his Majesty Power Rule and Wisdom that he talks of signifie nothing The Heathens have express'd themselves to Admiration on all these Attributes and yet we cannot say that they worshipp'd him in Spirit because it was not according to his Revealed Will they worshipp'd they knew not what as our Saviour here tells the Samaritan Woman He goes on thus Page 10 That h●ving once this true Notion of the Almighty we ex●rt our selves in Acts of Piety and publick Devotion express our Sense of his Pow●r and Rule by our daily Supplications ou● Ackno●l●dgments of his Goodness by our continual Praises our Love by our Charity to our Neighbours and Zeal for his Wo●ship and Service and our Fear by abstaining from the lea●t Appearance of Evil and all this with Humility and Reverence Decency and Order with Obedience to Authority and Respect to those whom he has set over us these being most certain and spiritual Duties nay the only things wherein we are capable of t●stifying that we really do worship him in Spirit A little further he says That God is a Spirit and therefore his Wo●ship ought to deduce its Source from the Reason and Soul of Man And in the 1●th Page That if Worship takes its rise from the Heart then is it a Spiritual Worship And this he takes to be the true meaning of worshipping in Spirit It 's well he does but take it but I think it 's plain from what has been already said he mistakes it for all this while it 's evident that Cato in his Distich before-named had as true a Notion of Spiritual Worship as Mr. Oliver And therefore I will make bold to tell him that if he don't make haste to increase more in Spiritual Knowledge than hitherto he has done it will be a great while before he deserve to be made a Spiritual Lord but I am afraid he has already spoil'd his Lawn Sleeves during this Reign whatever hopes he may have in another I would fain know whether by part of his own definition of Spiritual Worship he hath not excluded himself from the number of Spiritual Worshippers by failing in his Obedience to Authority and in his Respect to those whom God has set over us in railing thus against those whose Worship is establish'd by Law as well as his own Does he think that when the King and Parliament pass'd the Act for Liberty they design'd that every little Pragmatical Priest should revile Magistrates to their faces and reflect upon the whole Dissenting Party in such a manner as he has done for non compliance to Humane Ceremonies in Divine Worship If it were so then the Nonconformists are only ty'd down to a Stake to be baited by every dumb Dog that cannot bark except it be for gain from his Quarter Such kind of Dogs as these the Apostle enjoyns us to beware of as well as of the Concision by which they made a Schism in the Church and would have forc'd Circumcision and other Jewish Ceremonies into the Christian VVorship Phil. 3.2 Just so our Author seems to be one of those that would tear the Flock and return again to the old Vomit of Persecution he and his Brother the Author of the Mystery of Phanaticism would make a delicate couple to be under the Conduct of some of Antichrist's Huntsmen for they seem both of 'em to be deep-mouth'd and so well vers'd in the Art already that they understand all the Hunters Notes from Tone to Tontontontontavon We come next to hear him open upon full scent for Page 11 and 12. with a Medley of a Charge he falls foul upon some of the Dissenters saying They are above Ordinances and all manner of Rule guided by Fancy and a Frantick Zeal I am afraid he has in those very words describ'd himself and the rest of his Kidney who will force their own Impositions into the most Solemn Ordinances of the Gospel and exclude those from the Church that won't comply with them for if this be not to set themselves above all manner of Ordinances and Rule when the Scripture expresly forbids any adding or diminishing to its self as the Rule of our Faith and Manners I cannot tell what is However I know that by this he means the Quakers and some others but then in common Ingenuity he ought to have made a distinction and not have added all Dissenters together to inflame the Reckoning and in the mean time let me tell him that such as he set them a very bad Example in going so far astray from the Rule and making things they own to be indifferent necessary terms of Communion He falls next upon those that make use of his Text against all manner of Ceremonies But who these are I know not nor never heard of nor I believe no body else had he said significant Ceremonies or a kind of Party-per-pale Sacraments that must be outward and visible Signs of inward and Spiritual Graces such as the Sign of the ✚ is made to be our fighting under Christ's Banner c. he had said somewhat and then I should have made bold to tell him tho' I incur the danger of an ipso facto Excommunication for it by the Canons of his Church that such Ceremonies are ipso facto condemn'd by this Text that teaches us we must worship God according to Truth which is his Revealed will and if he can find any thing there enjoyning those Ceremonies I will yield him the Cause and for his further Comfort I will also tell him that what the Scripture doth not Command in matters of Worship it forbids and without the Law and against the Law as in Policy so in Divinity are both one according to Tertullian in his Corona Militis and I am of the mind he made a greater Figure in the Church than ever our Author will do so long as his Name is Oliver So little does this Zealous Ceremony-monger understand the Controversie in which he is so fierce a Disputant that he tells us we our selves make use of Ceremonies and what are they Why truly they are set Looks a formal Voice and forc'd Gestures a wonderful Discovery worthy of the Genius of that Noble Author call'd The Mystery of Phanaticism But does not this little Sprig or Sucker of Divinity know that these Things if they must be Ceremonies are