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truth_n	church_n	know_v	spirit_n	3,951	5	5.4085	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A77848	Romes cruelty & apostacie: declared in a sermon preached on the fifth of November, 1644. Before the Honourable House of Commons. By Anthony Burgess, pastour of Sutton Coldfield; a Member of the Assembly.	Burgess, Anthony, d. 1664.	1645 (1645)	Wing B5655; Thomason E19_16; ESTC R12627	13,497	28

men and are these the men that cry up Charity that hold it justifieth Are these the men that admire St Francis his pity because he would not kill a Flea when they can destroy an whole Kingdome What and to be Saints for all this Shall we with Paul and Peter and the other Saints see Catesby and Faux and that company also Use of Exhortation to loath that Religion take heed of connivence at those snakes which when they are warm will sting and poison Oh this connivence at Popery how hath God avenged himselfe upon Ireland and England for it we have complyed with their waies and now God hath made them wofull scourges to us may we not say that the Lord hath made them as the Iebusites and Canaanites to us In quo quis peccat in eo punitur Thinke not that your estates and goods will content them it must be your God and your lives when yee are willing your soules should be damned and your bodies killed then thinke of reconciliation with the Church of Rome Puniantur à te ne tu pro illis puniaris let them be punished by you lest you be punished for them Execute you the judgement of the Lord upon them as 't is in your power and never be quiet till this and the other Kingdomes be free from it Make no friendship with angry men much lesse with bloudy men rather dye by them then ever be reconciled with them and know God hath promised to be avenged on that Church of Rome and that they shall not alwayes boast in that marke of temporall felicity It is the greatest honour that ever can be put upon you to be instruments in destroying of her Use 2. of Instruction concerning the great difference between the popish and Protestant Religion in this matter of bloud for howsoever some Papists heretofore have endeavoured to shew the bloudinesse of Calvinisticall Doctrine making it the cause of all the warres in France Germany and Scotland yet Bilson doth fully and clearely vindicate them in their defensive warres And it is nothing but calumny in some who have laboured to make odious your present warre as arising from the principles of Poperie whereas there is indeed a vast difference both in the authority in the end in the nature in the manner and in the extent as might at large be shewed if it were pertinent For true and righteous are his judgements c. The second Doctrine is That the Church of Rome hath greatly apostatized from all her former faith The Apostle Paul saith of the Romanes their faith was knowne to all the world but now their Apostacy is as famous Even as the Angels by their fall are become divels It is true to give the exact punctuall time when this great change was as Bellarmine demands is impossible for it was a change by degrees as consumptions are in a body and therefore it was the more dangerous and certainly mortall Ille morbus vix est sanabilis qui sanitatem imitatur and besides as Cameron doth well observe changes to the worse doe for the most part please all and therefore little opposition being made the Apostacy in the beginning of it can hardly be discovered And the handling of this point will justifie that Reformation which is now on the wheele The Causes of this Apostacy were 1. Pride and ambition Chrysostome well called pride the mother of hell for that made the divell a divell and so hell an hell It is knowne to all what arrogancy that Church did take unto her selfe and how Tertullian in his time complained of the insolentiam cleri Romani now how ill would the poore contemptible way of Christ and his truth agree with their spirits therefore all the glory of the Church they interpreted it of outward and carnall glory In that assertion how doe they extoll the Priesthood Creatura paruit Iosuae at Presbyteris Creator fol illi at his Deus quotiescunque verba sacra pronuntiant The Creature obeyed Ioshua but the Creator doth the Priests The Sunne yeelded to him but to these God doth as often as they pronunce their words of Consecration 2. Fraud and perfidiousnesse They had fully learned that Regnandi causa all oathes were to be violated How grossely were the Pope and his adherents taken in forging some Canons of the Councell of Nice for their preeminent dignity therefore their way is called a lye and deceiveablenesse 3. Covetousnesse and if you look on all their opinions about indulgences private Masses auricular confession c. you will find love to mony the cause of them so well was it said in the Canon Law Roma fundata à praedonibus adhuc habet de primordiis 4. Nourishing of sinne This was usuall with the Church of Rome when any had been censured in the Easterne Churches for foule miscarriages then would she incourage them to appeale to her whereupon she would release them by which meanes she exalted her selfe into this great dominion she hath And then when she would inflict Ecclesiasticall censures they were in a great part pecuniary and meerly to the macerating of the body no wayes to the saving of the soule so that though the sinnes of men by their penance were like Sampsons haire cut off yet because the root was there they did grow into their full strength again 5. Neglect of Scripture And this set open the flood-gate whereby all the world was immediately drowned in errours for take the eyes out of the body the Sunne out of the firmament the Compasse from the Ship what can follow but confusion Therefore they have wished that there had never been Scripture That the Church could have done well enough with traditions only They have called the Bible the Booke that hath made all the contentions in the world and all the faith a man can have by it to be only humane O the great patience of God that beareth these blasphemies and therefore worthy Patriots in your way of Reformation doe you walke contrary as they pull'd it downe doe you set it up regard the Scripture more then all State respects This is the fountaine and so the streames that runne hence will be pure It is impossible saith Chrysostome that ever any good should come from that man who is not diligent in Scripture 6. The suteablenesse of it to flesh and bloud and therefore it 's called the wine of fornications Even as they say Leopards are taken not by arrowes and bowes or open fire but by leaving wine for them to drinke whereby they are so intoxicated that they are easily surprised of this kind are all popish errours He brings you milke as Iael did to Sisera and afterwards strikes a naile into your temples As Satan beguiled Eve so are we coozened into errours the devill did not appeare himselfe but used a subtile instrument nor did he directly deny Gods Word but made Quaeries and Vtrums upon it and then he presented that which was pleasing to sense striking out

ROMES Cruelty Apostacie DECLARED IN A SERMON Preached on the fifth of November 1644. Before the Honourable House of COMMONS BY Anthony Burgess Pastour of Sutton Coldfield A Member of the Assembly LONDON Printed by George Miller for Tho. Vnderhill at the Signe of the Bible in Woodstreet 1645. TO THE HONOVRABLE House of COMMONS Assembled in Parliament Worthy Patriots THe Church of God under her troubles is neither to become with the Poets Niobe a senseless stone despising the affliction of God nor yet with their Hecuba a mad dog raging through impatiencie at Gods Providence towards her For whether God exerciseth her with outward persecutions it is as Austin said to try her patience or with heresies and errours it is to prove her sapience and wisdome And this may satisfie us that Gods love and care for his Church and truth is greater then ours can be and the losse of his glory is dearer to him then the losse of our temporall comforts can be to us It is true as God to demonstrate the divine authority of the Scriptures useth not such arguments that agree with a proud and carnall wit but such as are agreeable to the holinesse and majesty of the things contained therein so also God in his Providence towards his Church goeth not in such a way which our hearts would expect but in that which is most beseeming his love wisdom power this hath made those who have much appeared for God to say as Tully when Pompey had the worse by Caesar whose cause he judged the better In divinis magna est caligo Gods Presence is sometimes in a great cloud Be not therefore dismayed honourable Senators notwithstanding the many oppositions in the way of this your begun Reformation and think not to be quiet as long as the popish adversary can work For as Austin observed of the Romans while Pagans among the many Temples they built to severall Goddesses there was one also built to Quies to whom notwithstanding they never sacrificed because of their delight in war The same may be applyed to Rome now Antichristian who delights to make her selfe drunke in the bloud of the Saints But God hath frustrated her many plots and expectations of which this Fifth day of November is a famous memoriall The Lord so prosper you in your work that neither fraud or force may destroy it Your humble Servant in Christ Jesus Anthony Burgess A SERMON preached before the Honourable House of Commons the 5. of November 1644. REVEL 19.2 For true and righteous are his judgements for he hath judged the great whore which did corrupt the earth with her fornication and hath avenged the bloud of his servants at her hand I Am not ignorant how much revelation is necessary to understand this Booke of Revelation and that Interpreters themselves need interpretatiō insomuch that the learned Arias Montanus relateth that though he had thirty yeares studied the Scripture with the helpe of Expositors he understood onely one or two Chapters and therefore was wont to say That the Expositors were as hard to be understood as the Text. There are some Comments that may be called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 obscurities upon the Revelation yet for all this none may bring an ill report upon this Booke that floweth with Milke and Honey though there may be Anakims great objections in the way for the Scripture calleth them blessed and wise that understand these mysteries and the difficulties are to shake of our negligence and to quicken our desire to know as Basil said Nature had guarded the Rose with prickes that so the danger to get it might the more irritate to have it Besides the book being full of Prophecies it 's congruous they should be cloathed with some obscurities Therefore we wonder at the boldnesse of the ancient Monks who were neither skilfull in the tongues or Scripture that yet would adventure to open this sealed Book which how happily they have done appeareth in their expounding the very first word Apocalypsis which they say commeth of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and clipsor clipsaris i.e. velo velas The subject that I have pitched upon is not clogg'd with any of these Objections for they are part of that song which a Company in Heaven praised God with for his judgements upon Rome and the summe of their thanksgiving is generall All his judgements are right 2. Particularly upon the Church of Rome who is called Babylon because of her oppression and captivating the people of God and whore because of her corrupt falsehoods and idolatries and great whore because of her universall corrupting the whole earth she is also described by her cruelty she had shed the bloud of Gods Servants yea Chap. 18. the bloud of all the Saints those that were murdered elsewhere are yet said to be found in her Before I come to the Doctrines I must cleare one doubt and that is Whether this City be Rome or no For as the Jewes look'd for another kind of Christ then the true Messias so the Papists for another kind of Antichrist then the Scripture holds forth And as Christ is proved to be the Messias not by one property onely for that may agree to another but all the Characters together so is Antichrist to be found out by the accumulation of all markes together Now that Rome is this City appeareth Rev. 17.18 The woman which is the same with Babylon and the whore in my Text is said to have power over all the kings of the earth and this was only the Romane Monarchy at that time 2. She is called emphatically 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 now Rome was onely the famous City being called urbs 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 3. This City is said to be set on seven hils Chap. 17.9 which doth only agree to Rome called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and howsoever Mountacutius would prove this true of Constantinople yet if it were so it is so obscure in story that it is not to be regarded and this is so cleare that Bellarmine confesseth it but then he addeth this was true of Rome while it was Ethnicall and not now Papall That this is false appeareth in that Antichrist is to be in the Temple of God which was not true of the Heathen Emperours 2. 'T is such a Babylon that for a while they were lawfully in her but when her corruptions did increase then they were commanded to depart which could not be affirmed of Rome paganish This being premised I observe two Doctrines 1. That the Church of Rome is greatly apostatized from her former true faith She that was a Matron is become an whore She succeedes her predecessours as Vespae succedant apibus as waspes come into the nests of Bees Nor is it any matter that they have the Creed and many externals of Religion habent enim vespae suos favos the Waspes have their combes also though no honey in them as Tertullian said The time was when such a point as

the feare of death by all which meanes he at last deceived her 1. Their Doctrine is pleasing to flesh It is good for the world to know why all sorts of men are so apt for Popery Not long since when there were altars and images brought into our Churches what a generall willingnesse was there in people but now to have such things removed what madnesse doth it worke in men and how doe they cry as children for their babies again Doe but consider their doctrines extenuating Originall sinne making motions to sinne unconsented to no sinne That a man hath power to keep the Commandements That the Commandement to love God binds only at sometimes Scotus as I take it only on holy-dayes That actuall inadvenrtency in holy duties doth not hinder the fruit of them That if a man drinke till he be giddy and the roome runne round it is no drunkennesse That Prayers said in Latine though we doe not understand them are accepted That the devout man who in his prayer said Miserere tui Domine for mei yet had good devotion and was acceptable to God 2. Their worship is outwardly sensible Thus when they had taken away the Scripture they set pictures up in their roome now this pleaseth the common people Homo est magis sensus quam intellectus it was Aristotles speech Herein the popish religion doth much gratifie the ignorant people The people of Israel cryed out for gods that might goe before them To worship in spirit and truth can be no more understood by them then the eye can see a spirit 3. Their piety extends to externall acts for if we observe all their Theologie its like that of the Pharisees to look to the externall acts not regarding the inward grace but as he that would have set up his picture and it would not stand cryed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 There wants something within the same may be said of all their prayers and religious performances There wants something within 4. They make the Ordinances of God to conferre grace ex opere operato whereby they take men off from being heart and soul-Christians Hence they speake of Sacraments as we would of some Physick or potion that hath an inward naturall force and efficacy to produce such an effect 5. They have custome and antiquity for them many of their foolish and superstitious customes are some hundred yeares old and what fathers and grandfathers have done it is hard not to admire and certainly had not the Scripture foretold what an Eclipse would be upon the whole Church we would thinke it impossible that such ridiculous things should be taken up Because Christ is the Light therefore they have light at noone-dayes Because Christ said we must be like children therefore the Monkes weare Cowles like childrens swadling-clouts and one Pope as Bishop Abbot relateth it made a serious motion in the Conclave that he and the Cardinals might ride on a solemne day on Asses to imitate Christs humility but the Conclave thought the Asse rode the Pope too much already 6. They have the greater part of the world And he must needs have a peremptory spirit that doth not follow a multitude to doe evill It is a signe he hath life in him that will swimme against the streame A man is a sociable creature even in errours as well as any thing else 7. They commend ignorance By this meanes whereas God can make stones the children of Abraham these make the children of Abraham stones and the people they love to have it so for this freeth them from Catechismes and Bibles Therefore the way to keepe out Popery is to incourage Learning The heathens in their sacrifice to Apollo offered Ivie to him to shew that Learning could not grow unlesse the Magistrates would beare it up God forbid therefore that ever you should discourage it for at the same time when God brought truth into the world humane literature flourished and was a great help thereunto 8. They pretend to Miracles and by this meanes they have deluded a world of people It is said he should bring downe fire from Heaven though that which he would have done to day was a contrary wonder Ignis de terra fire from under the earth And although Austin said that he who would look now for Miracles he himselfe was a great Miracle yet they make them as the essentiall notes of the Church Use of Instruction how necessary it is to reforme from Popery leave off your contentions one with another and set upon this common adversary Learne of the very Romanes who though sometimes at deadly enmity one with another yet would deponere inimicitias till they had done the publike service How can you ever indure that these trumperies and idolatries should be brought in againe Humble your selves that Parliaments heretofore have not done them Let not Parliament sinnes in ages heretofore come upon your score How often doe the people of Israel bewaile their owne sinnes and the sinnes of their fathers doe you confesse your own sinnes of unwillingnesse of coldnesse in this worke and the sinnes of your Ancestors It is to be feared that many of you have not got that zeale for the purity of Gods Ordinances and Worship as ought to be And in the carrying on of this take heed of two fatall rockes 1. A sinfull moderation 2. A popish Tyranny A popish Tyranny is when any doe appropriate and inclose to themselves such a power which Christ hath not at all given or if he have given it he hath communicated it to more then one This hath been the cause of much schisme and contention in the Church of God Christ hath invested the Officers of his Church with sufficient spirituall power for the attaining of that spirituall benefit which they are to look for and therefore doe you being Magistrates confirme them in it The second is moderation and there are these sorts 1. A Cassandrean moderation and that is when men make an hodge-potch in Religion and plow with an Oxe and Asse Howsoever Grotius doth much extoll Cassander and Erasmus whom Bellarmine called semichristianum yet we ought not to loose a letter or syllable of truth to gaine all the world and so Wicelius did tertiam religionem and mediam meditari and therefore did bitterly at the same time write against Papists and Luther too and howsoever Melancthon was thought to be rather medius then moderate yet he is wronged for he vehemently opposed the Emperors Interim It is better to have dissention for truths sake then a sinfull accord Agreement can never be made of the mixture of errour and Truth we have a famous instance for this of the Orthodox and the Arrians Syrmiensis Synodus in humane wisedome to quench the fire raised by the Arrians did conclude an ambiguous forme that so both parties might have their senses and therefore whereas it was used to be read in the Creed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they would have it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉