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A25225 The additional articles in Pope Pius's creed, no articles of the Christian faith being an answer to a late pamphlet intituled, Pope Pius his profession of faith vindicated from novelty in additional articles, and the prospect of popery, taken from that authentick record, with short notes thereupon, defended. Altham, Michael, 1633-1705.; Altham, Michael, 1633-1705. Creed of Pope Pius IV, or, A prospect of popery taken from that authentick record. 1688 (1688) Wing A2931; ESTC R18073 87,445 96

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the place Now if this be as undoubtedly it is the sence of the Apostle here let us see what consequence the Vindicator can draw from hence to favour his undertaking The Apostle here assures those to whom he wrote That all Prophecy of Scripture is not made of their own Explication i. e. as he explains himself Prophecy of old came not by the Will of Man. Therefore saith the Vindicator it belongs to the Church i. e. the Church of Rome and her only to judge of the true sence and interpretation of Scripture for all Christians If you can swallow this consequence I do not see what you need to stick at One would have thought the more natural consequence had been this Therefore trust not every thing that pretends to come from a Prophetical and infallible Spirit but try whether it do so or no. Thus you see what a firm foundation this Gentleman hath laid which thus failing him his Superstructure thereupon must needs be in a very tottering condition His next Scripture is Acts xx 28. Where St. Paul charges the Elders of Ephesus To take heed to themselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Ghost had made them Overseers to feed the Church of God which he had purchased with his own blood To these St. Paul saith he had declared all the Counsel of God v. 27. and then bids them to take heed to the flock c. i. e. to instruct those committed to their charge in that Doctrine which they had learned of him That by a parity of reason all Pastors and Teachers are to feed the flock committed to their care we willingly grant but how he will hence infer That all Christian People are to receive the true sence and Interpretation of Scripture from the Church of Rome I cannot imagine His next is 1 Tim. III. 15. Where St. Paul directs Timothy how to behave himself in the house of God which is the Church of the living God the pillar and ground of the Truth There is an excellent Treatise lately printed at London intituled The Pillar and Ground of Truth to which if this Gentleman be permitted to read it I would referr him for his better understanding of this Text. His next is Matth. xxviij 20. Where our Saviour having given his Apostles his last and largest Commission promiseth to be with them alway even unto the end of the World. This promise was made to the Apostles and not only to them but to the whole Church of God in all Ages but how the Church of Rome comes to claim a Title to this promise more than any other I know not or if she had it I do not see what service it would do her in this case For that Christ will be alway with his Church so to preserve it as it shall never cease to be a Church we do not doubt but to preserve it from all error as he never promised it so we have no reason to expect it His next is John xvi 13. Where our Saviour tells his Disciples When he the Spirit of truth is come he will guide you into all truth This promise was not made to the whole Church but to the Apostles whose case was so peculiar and extraordinary that the Church now hath no ground upon which to hope for the same Assistance which they then had and which indeed was then necessary for them to have That Christ will assist his Church in all Ages by his Grace we do not deny but that that Assistance implies Infallibility we cannot grant for then every private Christian who is assisted by Divine Grace would be infallible But if it did why the Church of Rome should put in a peculiar claim to this privilege more than the Church of England or any other particular Church I see no reason But it seems the Vindicator found great reason for it for thus he argues Christ promised his Apostles when he the Spirit of truth came he should guide them into all truth Therefore it belongs to the Church of Rome to judge of the true sence and interpretation of Scripture Just as if one should argue Christ promised that these signs should follow them that believe In his name they should cast out Devils They should speak with new Tongues They should take up Serpents and if they drank any deadly thing it should not hurt them They should lay hands on the sick and they should recover Mark c. xvi v. 17 18. Therefore all that believe in Christ at this day shall do the same things His last Scripture proof is Matth. xviij 17. Where our Saviour saith If he neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as an Heathen man and a Publican To this I answer I. That our Saviour in this place doth not speak of Controversies in Religion or points of Faith but of quarrels between neighbours as is plain from v. 15. where our Saviour saith If thy Brother shall trespass against thee go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone c. II. By Church here we cannot understand either the Catholick or that which they call the Roman Catholick Church Not the former for that would make the thing not only impracticable but altogether impossible for when a quarrel happens to arise between two Neighbours if they must stay for the Decision of it till the Vniversal Church is assembled for that purpose their quarrel may last long enough Nor the latter for that would be as impracticable as the former for if two Christians have a quarrel in Syria or in Aethiopia must they go to the Roman Church to end their difference III. By the word Church therefore in this place we must understand any particular Church or Society of Christians of which the the two quarrelling Neighbours are Members Now it is confessed on all hands that any such Society in giving Admonitions and using of Censures may err being subject to be mislead either by passion or prejudice or ignorance 'T is plain therefore that this Scripture is not at all to his purpose or if it were it would do him no service Thus have I considered his Scripture proofs and now let us see what the Fathers will say for him He produceth two passages both out of one and the same Father viz. St. Aug. His first Authority is taken out of his first Book contra Crescon Gram. c. 33. Then says he we follow the truth of the Scriptures when we do that which hath seemed good to the whole Church which Church is commended to us by the Authority of the Scripture To the end that because Holy Writ cannot deceive whosoever is afraid of being deceived by the difficulty of this question may consult the Church concerning it which without leaving room to doubt the holy Scripture demonstrates I cannot imagine what was in this Gentlemans mind when he pickt up this passage of St. Aug. for a proof of this Article St. Austin indeed says Then we follow the truth of
through laying on of the Apostles hands the Holy Ghost was given he offered them money Here we have a narrative of matter of Fact but nothing that looks like a Sacrament in it for here is neither any word of Institution nor any outward Element which are things agreed to be absolutely necessary to the making or constituting of a Sacrament Here is no mention of Chrism or Unction or of the blow on the Ear or of the Head-band which are look'd upon as things necessary and of the Essence of the pretended Popish Sacrament of Confirmation Besides the Imposition of hands by the Apostles in this place was not to celebrate a Sacrament to perfect or strengthen Baptism but to conferr miraculous and extraordinary gifts i. e. to give the Holy Ghost This Simon Magus saw and therefore offered money for that gift which he would never have done for Popish Confirmation To this I may add the testimony of their own Alexander de Hales Alex. Hales part 4. qu. 24. memb 1. who saith The Sacrament of Confirmation as it is a Sacrament was neither instituted by our Lord himself nor by his Apostles but was afterwards instituted in the Council of Melda So that though this may be an ancient Rite it can be but a new Sacrament i. e. no Sacrament Of the pretended Sacrament of Penance TO prove this he produceth John xx 22. Where it is said He breathed on them and saith unto them Receive ye the Holy Ghost and v. 23. Whosesoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them and whosesoever sins ye retain they are retained Before I give a direct answer hereunto let me premise That the difference between us and the Church of Rome in this point is not Whether Penance be necessary to Salvation or whether men ought to confess their sins amend their lives and turn unto God by true Repentance but whether this Penance be a Sacrament wherein a contrite sinner ought punctually to confess his sins to a Priest and from him to receive judicial Absolution upon condition to make satisfaction unto God by Corporal or Pecuniary Penance which whosoever doth not accomplish in this life shall suffer for it in Purgatory The former of these we willingly assent to as being founded on the Word of God but the latter we reject as having no foundation either in this or any other Text of Scripture That our Saviour here doth commit to his Church the power of the Keyes i. e. of publick Discipline by virtue whereof she hath Authority to admit into or cast out of the Church such as she shall judge worthy of it we readily grant and do heartily bewail the want of it But that it is of such absolute necessity that the truly penitent sinner cannot receive Pardon of sins without it we cannot subscribe to Lyra in loc And this is all that their own Lyra can find in these words But the Vindicator in compliance with the Council of Trent Concil Trid. Sess 14. cap. 1. Can. 1. which teacheth That those who fall from Grace after Baptism have need of another Sacrament to restore them and therefore our Saviour instituted this of Penance and Anathematizeth all those who deny this Doctrine hath found out a Sacrament in these words But if our Saviour did by these words Institute a Sacrament I would fain know which is the Element or Visible Sign Instituted by Christ for this on both sides is acknowledged to be a necessary part of a Sacrament According to the Church of Rome this Sacrament consists of Four Parts viz. Contrition Confession Absolution and Satisfaction Contrition of the Heart can be no sensible nor visible Sign Nor can Confession pretend to it for 1. Confession is so far from being a Sign of the Grace of God that it is a declaration that we are unworthy of his Grace 2. It is designed not to signify the Grace of God but to ask it 3. The sacred Signs ought to be administred by the Priest but Confession is made by the Penitent Nor can Absolution lay any claim to it for 1. Absolution if it be good and available is the Grace of God and therefore cannot be a Sign of it 2. If it could be a Sign yet can it not be a Visible Sign for the words are not Visible Nor can Satisfaction pretend to it for that is accomplished by the Sinner and not administred by the Priest So that in all these we can find no outward Element or Visible Sign of Invisible Grace Instituted by Christ and without that it cannot be a Sacrament There is one thing yet which may make some colourable pretence to it and that is The Imposition of the Priest's Hands This we confess is a Visible Sign But 1. It is no Element but an Action as the distribution of the Bread in the Lord's Supper is not the Element but the Bread sanctified 2. This Imposition of Hands is not of Christ's Ordination or Institution and therefore cannot be a Sacramental Sign He did never command That the Priest should lay his Hands on any one to conferr Sacramental Absolution If he did let them produce the command But if we review these words we shall find that they were spoken to the Apostles after that Christ was risen again from the Dead And if so then Repentance preached before whether by the Prophets Matth. iij. Mark i. 15. Acts ij 38. Concil Trid. Sess 14. c. 1. or by St. John Baptist or by Christ himself was no Sacrament nor that preached by St. Peter after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ because the persons to whom he preached were not then Baptized For thus the Council of Trent hath determined the point Repentance was not a Sacrament before the coming of Christ nor after his coming is so to any one before Baptism And yet all good Christians in the Primitive and purest Times of the Church for many hundred Years after Christ never knew nor dream'd of any other Penance than what had been preached either by the Prophets or by St. John Baptist or by Christ himself or by his Apostles nor ever doubted of obtaining Pardon thereby The truth is Anno. 1215. till the Council of Lateran we do not find that ever Penance as it is now used in the Church of Rome was determin'd to be of necessary Observance Anno. 1546. Nor till the Council of Trent that it was required to be received as a Sacrament of divine Institution and absolutely necessary to Salvation All which considered notwithstanding this Gentleman's Vindication I think we may safely conclude That though Repentance be an old Duty yet it is but a new Sacrament and that Penance as it is now used in the Church of Rome is neither a Duty nor a Sacrament Of the pretended Sacrament of Extream Unction TO prove this he produceth James v. 14 15. where it is said Is any sick among you let him call for the Elders of the Church and let them pray over
his Creed are neither agreeable to Scripture nor the Sence of the Primitive Fathers And for that reason we cannot subscribe to this last Article THE CLOSE TO close up his Vindication he undertakes to answer some Objections of ours against these New Articles which how well he hath done I shall now examine The Apostles knew best what was to be believed Object since therefore none of these Articles are in their Creed they ought not to be imposed on us as Matters of Faith. To this he answers Answ That the Apostles Creed is a Summary of the principal Mysteries of the Christian Religion but doth not contain all that is of Faith. To this I reply That a thing may be said to be of Faith two ways Reply either absolutely or occasionally 1. Absolutely i. e. in and for its self when by its own nature and God's primary intention it is an essential part of the Gospel such an one as Teachers in the Church cannot without mortal Sin omit to teach the Learners such an one as is intrinsecal to the Covenant between God and Man and not only plainly revealed by God and so a certain Truth but also commanded to be preached to all Men and to be distinctly believed by all and so a necessary Truth Of this kind there are two sorts viz. Such as are necessary to be believed or such as are necessary to be done and of the former of these it is that we speak when we say That the Apostles Creed contains all necessary Matters of Faith. 2. A thing may be said to be of Faith only occasionally i. e. when it is not so in and for its self but because it is joined with others which are necessary to be believed and for the sake of that Authority by which it is delivered Of this sort there are multitudes of Verities contained in the Holy Scriptures as for Instance That Zacharias was a Priest of the Course of Abia that Elizabeth was of the Daughters of Aaron that Cyrenius was Governor of Syria that Pontius Pilate was the Roman Deputy that Paul left his Cloak at Troas These are all Truths and Objects of Faith because they are found in the divine Revelation but they are not such Truths as the Pastors of the Church are bound to teach their Flock or their Flock bound to know and remember For it would be no crime to be ignorant of these or to believe the contrary if I did not know that they were delivered in Holy Scripture When therefore we speak of Matters of Faith contained in the Creed we mean all necessary points of meer Belief and of such we say it is a perfect Summary No saith the Vindicator for it doth not contain all that is in the Scripture and yet all that is there is of Divine Inspiration and of Faith. We grant it but all things that are there are not equally of Faith many of them are not absolute and necessary but only occasional and accidental Objects of Faith as I have already shown As for Baptism and the Lord's Supper we acknowledge them to be great Mysteries of our Religion but they are not points of meer Faith and therefore not within the question That the Scripture is the word of God and that such and such Books are Canonical depends upon another Evidence by which we must be convinc'd that they are so before we can give a rational assent to the Articles of the Creed because they are all taken out of these Books and our belief of them built upon that Authority The Belief therefore of this being necessarily antecedent to the belief of the other it would have been a very absurd and preposterous thing to have made that an Article of our Creed As for the 39 Articles of the Church of England they are propounded only as Articles of Communion not as Articles of Faith and therefore the Objection doth not reach them And as for the Nicene and Athanasian Creed they are only explications of the Apostles Creed and contain the same and no other Faith but what is contained in that This I think may suffice to show That he hath not yet answered that Objection But if the Vindicator desire yet further satisfaction in this point I would recommend to him if he be allowed to read such Books the fourth Chapter of Mr. Chillingworth's Book intituled The Religion of Protestants a safe way to Salvation and another little Treatise printed at London the last year intituled The Pillar and Ground of Truth All the particulars in this profession were not undoubtedly believed by all Object before the Decrees were made at Trent To this he answers Suppose they were not Answ Neither was the Canon of Scripture which the Church of England receives undoubtedly believed by all in the primitive times This may be allow'd to be a good answer to that Objection Reply but that Objection is his own it is none of ours Our Objection is this That not one of all these twelve new Articles in Pope Pius 's Creed was ever received as an Article of Faith by the Primitive Church And to this he answers nothing There 's no Authority upon Earth can make a new Article of Faith. Object Answ To this he answers That there is an Authority which can declare a thing to be of Faith which was not before expresly so believed by all This we willingly grant but this doth not answer the Objection Reply for we do not question the Church's power to declare a thing to be of Faith which before was dubious or not expresly believed by all But we say That there is no such Authority in the Church as to make that to be of Faith which really was not so before i. e. to make a new Article of Faith. And to this he returns not one word of Answer This Authority can declare only such points Object as may be warranted by Holy Scripture and such as these are the subject of the XXXIX Articles but as for Pope Pius's Creed it is but the Invention of Men. For Answer hereunto he referrs us to what he hath said in his Book Answ wherein he saith he hath shewed That all the Articles of this Creed are founded upon Scripture and the Authority of the most eminent Men in the Primitive Church And farther faith That the XXXIX Articles are not so express in Scripture as these of Pope Pius Whether there be any Truth in the first part of his Answer Reply as he referrs us to his Book so I shall referr you to the Answer given to it in these Papers And to the latter part of his Answer it may be a sufficient Reply to remind him of what he hath been often told That the XXXIX Articles of the Church of England are not propounded as Articles of Faith but as Articles of Communion nor is the Belief of them required of all upon pain of Damnation as these of Pope Pius are and therefore there is not so much danger in our complyance or non-complyance with the one as with the other Whether these Articles of Pope Pius be founded upon Scripture hath been one part of the question between us and therefore for satisfaction in this point I shall refers you to what hath been said upon that Subject on both sides Thus have I considered the Vindicator's Answers to some Objections which he thought fit to encounter with and how well he hath acquitted himself therein I shall now leave it to the ingenuous Reader to judge between us The End.