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A64788
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A letter to the Honourable Robert Boyle, Esq., defending the divine authority of the Holy Scripture and that it alone is the rule of faith in answer to Father Simon's Critical history of the Old Testament / written by C.M. Du Veil.
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Veil, Charles-Marie de, 1630-1685.
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1683
(1683)
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Wing V176; ESTC R6969
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10,928
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20
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the witnesses transmitteth his Will from his dying breath into Deeds of long continuance And if any contention shall arise amongst the Brethren let them not go to the Tomb but seek out the Testament In short even as the Gospel does assure us that those who having Moses and the Prophets do not live conformably to their Doctrine would not be Converted by the exhortations of the Dead though they should return so those who are not instructed and perswaded of the saving truths by the Holy Scripture will never be perswaded by tradition Father Simon cannot dispute this in the least since he says himself in the 10. Chap. of the 1. Book of his Critical Hist That it often happens that men being the Keepers of Tradition do blend therein what they have invented and then it is a hard matter to distinguish the true Traditions from those which are false The third proof which I find in the Critical Hist of Father Simon to show the insufficiency of the Scripture to decide Controversies in matter of Religion is That there has been in all times in the Churches an abridgment of Religion independantly of Scripture Nay he pretends that it is upon the account of that abridgment that the Fathers have explained the Scriptures and that the Councils have decided the Controversies of their time I do not doubt but that in all ages there have Catechisms been made for the instruction of Children and the shallowest Capacities or abridgments of Religion But I deny that those abridgments were made independantly of Scripture I maintain against Father Simon that those who govern'd the Church took care to collect into an abridgment the clearest sentences of Scripture and the most necessary to instruct the faithful in the saving Truths and the Fathers and Councils had reason afterwards to decide the Controversies according to those abridgments since their taking that Course was to explain obscure passages by those which are clearer as good sence doth require All the passages which I have already Cited do manifestly prove what I urge nay and if we may believe those Authors who have treated of Ecclesiastical Offices the lessons of the Scripture which the Church of Rome still reads at this day on Easter and Whitson-eve are onely the Catechisms and instructions which were given to the Catechumenes or Novice Proselytes who were baptized on those days The most ancient abridgment of Religion which we have left of antiquity is the Symbol which is said to have been composed by the Apostles But this Abridgment is not independant of the Scripture as St Aug. says book the first of the Symbol to the Catechumenes Chap. 1. Ista verba quae audist is per divin as Scriptur as sparsa sunt sed inde collecta ad unum redacta ne tardorum hominum memoria laboraret ut omnis homo possit dicere possit tenere quod credit Those words you have heard are scattered thro the Holy Scriptures but Collected from thence and reduced in a Body that they might not be burdensome to the Memories of shallow Capacities and that every man might say and remember what he believes And Rabanus Maurus speaking of the same Symbole in the 56th Chapter of his second Book de Institutione Clericorum says In quo quidem pauca sunt Verba sed omnia continentur Sacramenta de totis enim Scripturis haec breviatim Collecta sunt ab Apostolis ut quoniam plures Credentium Litter as nesciunt vel qui sciunt prae occupatione seculi legere non possunt haec corde retinentes habeant sufficientem sibi scientiam salutarem In which indeed are contained but few Words but all the Mysteries being thus briefly collected from all the Scriptures by the Apostles that several of the Believers who know not how to read or those who do being hindred from reading by the business of the world getting these by heart might have a Knowledge sufficient to work out their Salvation The Church of England speaking of this Abridgment as well as of those which are called the Symboles of Nice and of St. Athanasius says in the Synods of London in 1552. 1562. The three Creeds Nicene Creed Athanasius's Creed that which is commouly cal'd Apostles Creed ought thro'ly to be receibed for they may be proved by most certain Warrants of Holy Scripture St. Cyprian did certainly never own any Abridgement of Religion independently of Scripture since in his Epistle to Pompeius he demands that they should show him in Scripture that Hereticks were not to be baptized again to perswade him that it is an Apostolical Tradition Si aut in Evangelio Praecipitur aut in Apostolorum epistolis aut Actibus continetur ut a quacumque haeresi venientes non baptizentur sed tantum manus illis imponantur in Poenitentiam observetur divina haec sancta Traditio If there can be shown any Precept of the Gospel or in the Epistles or Acts of the Apostles that those who are converted from what Heresy soever ought not to be baptized but only to be reconcil'd to the Church by Repentance let that Divine and Holy Tradition be observed This Abridgement was unknown to Tertullian who says in his dispute against Hermogenes Chap. 22. Adoro Scripturae plenitudinem Scriptum esse doceat Hermogenis officina si non est Scriptum timeat illud Vae adjicientibus aut detrahentibus destinatum I adore the fulness of Scripture let Hermogenes demonstrate that it is Written If it be not writen let him fear that Woe which is pronounced against those who add or lessen it The same in his Book of the Flesh of Christ Chap. 7. disputing against Apelles he has not recourse to the Pretended Abridgements of Father Simon but he tells that Heresiarque Non Recipio quod extra Scripturam de tuo infers I do not allow of what thou urgest that is not in Scripture This Abridgement was unknown to St. Augustin who in his Book of the Vnity of the Church against the Epistle of Petitian Chap. 11. says Quis quis aliud Evangelizaverit Anathema sit Whosoever preaches ought else for Gospel let him be accursed and Chap. 12. Aut legat mihi hoc in Scripturis non sit Anathema Or let him produce me this in Scriptures and he shall not be accursed And in the same Chapter Si autem non ea de sacris Scripturis legunt sed suis contentionibus persuadere conantur Credo illa quae in Scripturis sanctis leguntur non Credo ista quae ab Haereticis vanis dicuntur But if they do not read those things in the Holy Scriptures but endeavour to perswade by their Wranglings I believe those things which are read in Scriptures I do not believe those which are asserted by vain Hereticks The same Doctor in the 2d Book de Nup. Concup Chap. 33. says Ista Controversia judicem quaerit judicet ergo Christus cui rei mors ejus profuerit ipse dicat judicet cum illo
Apostolus quia in Apostolo ipse loquitur Christus This Controversy requires a Judge therefore let Christ judge and say of what Advantage his Death hath been and let the Apostle judge with him because Christ himself speaks in the Apostle In his Book of Grace and free will Chap. 13. Sedeat inter nos judex Apostolus Joannes Let the Apostle John judge between us And in the 2d Book against Cresconius Chap. 32. Litter as Cypriani non ut Canonicas habeo sed eas ex Canonicis considero quod in eis divinarum Scripturarum autoritati congruit cum laude ejus accipio quod autem non congruit cum pace ejus respuo I do not allow of the Letters of Cyprian as Canonical but I judge of them by the canonical Scriptures and what in them is congruous to the Authority of the Holy Scriptures I receive with due praise to him but what is incongruous I Reject with his leave In short this Abridgement was unknown to the Councils seeing they placed the Scriptures in the midst of them to serve for a Rule to their Decisions which would have been to no purpose if there had been in all times in the Church an Abridgement of Religion independant of the Scriptures Father Simons saying That the Apostles preached the Gospel before they wrote it and that in the time of St. Irenaeus there were still several Churches who believed in the Gospel by Tradition without having seen it in Writing serves little to Authorize his pretended Abridgement for certain it is that when we say that the Scriptures contain clearly all that is necessary to Salvation we do not oppose the Truths couched upon Paper in the Scripture against the same truths uttered by the tongue of the Preachers we know that the Prophets and Apostles ought to have been believed when they preached the Truths which the Holy Ghost inspired into them as well as when they reduced 'em into Writing But we only say that the Apostles and Prophets have reduced the same truths which they Preached into Writing after such a manner that for the Regulating of our Faith we only need to have recourse to their Writing This is what St. Irenaeus says in his third Book against Heresies Chap. 1. Non enim per alios dispositionem salutis nostrae cognovimus quam per eos per quos evangelium pervenit ad nos quod quidem tunc praeconiaverunt postea vero per Dei voluntatem in Scripturis nobis tradiderunt fundamentum columnam fidei nostrae futurum We know not by others the Disposition of our Salvation than by those from whom the Gospel came to us which indeed they then Preached But afterwards by the will of God they delivered to us in Scriptures to be the Foundation and Pillar of our Faith If Father Simon asks us what assurance we can have that the saving truths were not altered in the Holy Writ we can answer him that the Tradition or Preaching of the Gospel in all Ages was the instrument which God made use of to make known to us that the Scripture is the Word of God and that it was never altered after such a manner but that it still contains very clearly what we ought to believe and what we ought to do to be saved Fides ex audi tu Rom. 10.17 But that it is God who hath perswaded us inwardly of the Truth of this Preaching and this answer is very true since that the Faith is a gift from God and very conformable to what St. Augustine sayes speaking to God in the 5. chap. of his 6th Book of his Confessions Persuasisti mihi non qui crederent libris tuis sed qui non crederent esse culpandos Nec audiendos esse si qui forte dicerent Vnde scis illos unius veri veracissimi Dei Spiritu esse humano generi ministratos Thou hast perswaded me that those who do not believe in thy Books not those who do believe are guilty nor are they to be given Ear to if they should by chance say Whence knowest thou that they were administred to Humane Kind in the Spirit of the most true and upright God I have nothing more Sir then to make an end with beseeching you to thank God for me that he has given me by his mercy that precious gift of the faith and perswaded me to renounce the Idolatry Heterodox Traditions Superstitious Noveities of the Church of Rome to embrace an Orthodox Communion which professes to love the Brotherhood fear God and honour the King and to Rule her Morels as well as her worship and Faith onely by the Scripture divinely inspired non taliter fecit omni Nationi and to desire the same God to continue to me his Grace and Protection whom I heartily pray that he would more and more shed abroad his Blessings over your worthy Person and over the Lady Katherine Viscountess Ranelaugh Your most Accomplished Godly Charitable and Bountiful Sister and over all your Noble Family I am Sir Your Honours most Humble and most Obedient Servant C. M. Du Veil