Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	faith_n	reason_n	word_n	4,530	5	4.4911	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10327	An excellent oration of that late famously learned Iohn Rainolds, D.D. and lecturer of the Greek tongue in Oxford Very usefull for all such as affect the studies of logick and philosophie, and admire profane learning. Translated out of Latine into English by I.L. schoolmaster.	Rainolds, John, 1549-1607.; Leycester, John, b. 1598.	1638 (1638)	STC 20610; ESTC S115564	25,720	164

Philosophy that say they belongs not to all Christians but onely to Divines It is written indeed unto the COLOSSIANS and Geographers say that COLOSSUS was a Citie but COLOSSAE without doubt was a Divinitie Schoole or at least-wise because it is written unto Christians it is an advice not a precept of which sort there are some things in the Gospell which are not prescribed to all but to compleate Christians as the Expositors of Aristotles Moralls do teach shall we leave off the old want of defending Aristotle whom the most learned of the Vniversities have so long time highly esteemed nay we will rather with the Augustinians maintain all Aristotles sayings even against the superstitious Stoickes according to a Philosophicall truth not according to a Divine Truth not by the light of Faith but of Reason so farre forth as wee are Philosophers not as we are Christians Thus do these men in their cups bragge and brave it out though not perhaps in these very same words yet in the same sense But I wo●ld advise these men to cōsider that since they wil live like Philosophers let them take heed that they die not Pagans A certain plain Country fellow seeing a noble man of Germany cla● in armour in the morning like a General of the field and with his Mitre like a Prelate in the Church at evening asked one of his servants why his Lord and Master did sometimes weare an Helmet somtimes a Mitre he answered because he was both a Prince and Bishop of a City A Prince and a Bishop said the Countrey man I pray you Sir tell mee if the Prince goe to Hell whither shall the BISHOP goe If I had so much authoritie as the Countryman I would aske these Philosophers and these Centaure Christians both men monsters these Hermaphrodites both men and women or rather neither who speake impiously as Philosophers in the Schooles and holily in the Church like Christians what thinke you will become of the Christian if the Philosopher bee thrust down to Hell Let no body wrest my words otherwise than I mean I know not how it may fall out that I may hereafter lay the fault upon your tongues seeing that those things which I have spoken true through your misreporting them may be accounted false I have at the last bid farewell to obscene Poets such as for th● most part are not to be taught to children I have fetched this out of Saint Augustine in his Confessions who averreth Terence expresly not worthy to be read and blame such Grammarians as expound him If this seemes absurd to them why doe they finde fault with mee let them finde fault with S●int Augustine But let no man so mistake my meaning as though I condemned the reading of all Poets as though I should say because children must be fed with milke not with flesh some Butcher or other should inferre that I spake against eating of flesh absolutely Now if it bee reported againe to Butchers that my demand was what will become of the Christian when the Philosopher is thrust downe to Hell My answer is this to Butchers that I speake of Philosophers in the same sense that Tertullian did What likenesse is there between a Philosopher and a Chri●●ian What hath Athens to do with Ierusalem an Vniversitie with the Church or what have Heretiques to doe with Christians He calls Philosophers Heretiques He was never acquainted with this absurde distinction of a P●ilosophicall truth and a divine truth but he calls Philosophers Hereticks He complains that Philosophy hath bin many sundry ways distributed into Heresies by the industry and labour of Philosophizing Fellows which have corrupted the truth in the Church What hath Athens to doe with Ierusalem an Vniversity with the Church or Hereticks with Christians And yet shall any man marvell why I am of opinion that it is dangerous to speake like Philosophers Men speaking as Philosophers have long agoe infected the Greeke Church and almost all Europe with divers errours Men speaking as Philosophers have in our dayes polluted all Italy would to God it were but Italy only with most noysome opinions Those two most vild and gracelesse men if they may be called men Cornelius Agrippa and Nicholas Machiavell speak as Philosophers of whom the one in his naturall the other in his Morall Philosophy have disgorged such Lessons Qualia cred●●●●le est rictu ru●●●sse 〈◊〉 ●●●be●on Stygii m●n stratremenda lacus As if the Stygian Lake or three chopt Cerberus Had spued their monstrous ugly fil●h on us Pomponatius and Cardanus spake as Philosophers whereof the one wrote that cursed Treat●se of the Souls mortality the other broached many impious errours in his subtilties I deny not but they are both confuted Pomponatius sleightly by Contarenus Cardane soundly and thoroughly by Scaliger But how many in the meane time have they spoiled with their philosophicall sentences Poison hurteth moe then the Medicine helpeth neither are all cured that are poysoned And is any man so foolish to seeke to bee wounded that he may be cured What then will some say doe you forbid the reading of prophane matters l●st men be corrupted therby Shall we not reade Aristotle Plato Cicero De●●osthenes shall wee not attaine to the knowledge of Historie Philosophy Eloquence And hereupon Philosophers w●ll ampli●ie that a thing is not to be rejected for the abuse of it F●e●ds are drowned with waters Houses are consumed with fire the earth is scorched with the Sun men are spoiled by buildings and yet for all this water fire the Sun houses and buildings are necessary I would not have the thing it selfe but the abuse thereof abolished and the proper use therof restored again I doe not say that hee offendeth that reades profane Authors so that he doe but lightly passe them over but this I take to be sin●ull when profane things are believed for then art thou foyled when thou givest credit to them And in that case I hold it dangerous to defend them for therby perhaps thou hurtest others or else art hurt thy self Thou must also take heed not onely what thou defendest but also what and in what manner thou readest For although thou doest but touch those things that thou readest yet be not so carelesse for many things but touched doe hurt and sometimes kil Saint Augustine makes mention of a little Fly called a Cynips which is of so small a substance that unlesse you be very sharp-sighted you cannot discern her yet when shee fastens on you shee will sting soundly so that shee that you could not perceive cōming to sting you shall too late repent her stinging But if your judgements bee not so sharp-sighted to discern those which I call the stings of philosophy yet know that Philosophy is ● Cynips which uses to sting heedlesse men feele it not after it is too late The veriest foole that is learnes wit after a shrewd turn The byting of an Aspe procureth a most sweet sleep insomuch that

but that which is obscene what kinde of Philosophers are they which account nothing spoken Orator-like but that which is prophane But wee would heare Philosophicall points If they be true and good they dissent not from holy things If they bee naught and untrue what are they to be esteemed The Persiās thought it a great fault in a childe either to lie or speak corruptly Do yee make our Christian Youth worse then the Heathen would you not have us speak as Philosophers I would have you speak like wisemen not like the ignorant and unlearned I call them wise men who propound true matters ●nd them ignorant who teach untruths For Philosophy is the study of Wisdome Wisdome comprehends the knowledge of Divine and Human things moreover knowledge is of true things therupon those things onely which are said to be true deserve the name of Philosophy For Philosophers are not Philosophers when they digresse from the truth But because the name of Philosophy is commonly ascribed to the opinions of Philosophers whether true or false and not to true wisdome yee ought to remember what the Apostle warnes you to take heed of Lest any m●n spoile you through Philosophy Coloss. 2. 8. For there are some amongst us now adayes who maintaining most pernicious errours contrary both to reason and religion call it Philosophy Nesci● furtivo Dido meditatur am●res C●njug●um vocat h●c prae texit nomi●e culpam On amorous th●●●s runs Dido's b●●nded minde To hide her fault shee W●dlocks c●oak doth finde She called it marriage but she comm tred adultery They call it Philosophy but they do defend impiety You must not imitate Caracalla Caesar who was so in love with the very name of Alexander that he was much offended that a base Ruffian whose name was Alexander was arraigned before him Doest thou accuse Alexander said he hold thy peace or else wo be to thee Take yee heed lest by loving the name of Philosophy yee entertain Philosophers errors He accused Alexander but yet a Ruffian I reject Philosophy yet that which is erroneous But some like Caracalla will say to mee What doest thou condemne Philosophy ho●d thy tongue of Philosophy or e●●e thou shalt heare ill news I care not for bad dealing from b●● men I accou●t not 〈…〉 to be Summ●m 〈◊〉 I doe admonish you againe and aga●ne to t●ke 〈◊〉 of Philosoph● What admonitions the Ap●st●e and ancient Fathers have given what the learned of la●●● times have continually admonished you of both by precepts and examples that doe I likewise Thus doth Lactantsus often presse and repeate that Philosophy is false and frivolous The Philosophers could speak wel like learned men but they could not speake truely because they were not instructed by him who was Puiss●nt in Truth So said Eusebius that Philosophers erred from the truth that Philosophy was stuffed full of vaine conjectures divers errors and trifling toyes Thus Tertullian said that Heresies were suborned and supported by the Philosophy of Plato the Stoicks Epicurus Heracl●tus Zeno and Aristotle that Heresies did spring and spread from Secular Learning What shall I recite Iustine Martyr Saint Ambrose Saint Augustine and the rest who doe frequently and vehemently urge the same opinion What shall I say of later Writers as Ludovicus Vives Picus Mirandula Hieronymus Savanorol● which three most learned men doe tell us with one consent that they must be very warily perused who are they I say not Philosophers but Aristotle and Plato the Princes of Philosophers Why so because Aristotle makes men ungodly and Plato superstitious Doe ye desire examples Pomponatius became a wretched man by listning too much to Aristotle and Ficinus became superstitious from the Platonicall dreames of Spirits Many pestilent errours first entred into the Churches of Christians continued there a long fime yea and at this day doe spoile them from the errours of Plato's and Aristotles Philosophy And is the world bewitched still with the delusions of Satan that Christians will defend Philosophers errours in publike Assemblies with idle and rotten distinctions They little thinke that by this abominable custome it is come to passe that the Christian Faith hath not residence in the hearts but in the Temples of Christians and not there sometimes O what a difference is betwixt even the Heathens and us Christians Aristotle forsooke his Master Plato to uphold his owne errors and wee will not forsake Aristotle that we may defend Gods Truth Virgill gathered gold out of the dunghil of E●●ius and shall we scrape together stinking filth out of the Philosophers Store-house Isocrates calleth speech the image of the minde Democritus calls it the shadow of workmanship shall we imagine that our thoughts and actions are agreeable to Christianity if we speake as Heathens Wickedly and falsly spake those filthy Poets Vita verecunda est Mus● jocosa mea est Lasciva est nobis pagina vita proba Demure my life though merry be my Muse An honest life lascivious lines may use C●stum esse decet pium P●ctam ipsum Versu●●os nihil necesse est A Poet himselfe devout and chast must be That his Verse bee so there 's no necessity Well said Socrates such as the minde is such is thy speech Speech is the badge of the minde Is thy speech corrupt thy thoughts are impure A prophane tongue and a true Christian will never agree What pains Christians bestow in the Church Philosophers destroy in the Hall Beate downe the affections as much as you can and lop off the sprouts yet they will spring again quench the firebrands yet they will kindle againe Yee should inure your selves from tender age to the best things Children ought to be instructed in sound and true opinions even from their infancie There is no time place or occasion allotted for naughtinesse There is no doubt but Iulian the Apostate who had his education from the Emperour Constantine heard many Sermons in the CHURCH but those private Conferences at home with ●hat declayming Li●an●us instilled into his minde more naughtinesse than all the Sermons hee heard could expell Nero heard many notable precepts of his Master Seneca but those flattering wordes All things are lawfull for a Prince marred all those Precepts Deceive not your selves One sparke of fire is able to kindle more Gunpowder than all the Ocean can quench Concupiscence is so deeply rooted in us that as it is easily kindled like Gunpowder so it more contagiously rageth Take heed of the flame yea the sparks of this fire What doe our Philosophers answer to this Surely they laugh at my simplicitie who require Godlinesse and Christianitie in their Studies What have wee to doe say they with this over-busie godlinesse and Holinesse Wee leave that to Divines let them preach CHRIST devoutly What have wee Philosophers to doe with Divinitie It is not our profession Let us speake like Aristotle like Philosophers For whereas the Apostle commands the COLOSSIANS to beware lest they be deceived through

the points of Philosophy which are contrary to the true faith as of the soules mortality the worlds eternity or such like opinions that to their uttermost power they vindicate the truth of Christian Religion from such errours and explain it to their hearers and as much as they can both by doctrine and exhortation ●root out and confute these arguments of Philosophers seeing they may be easily confuted Thus ye have the Decree the curse is denounced against all t●e violaters therof And this Decree was not ratified by a few but by the whole Councell in generall saving onely worshipfull Master Thomas Superintendent of the Preachers Order did not approve it He as it seems more favouring Aristotle then Piety said that the second part of the Decree did not please him wherin it was enjoyned that Philosophers should openly teach and instruct their Auditories in the true Faith Now then let it seeme doubtfull if it be possible whether the conceit of one onely Master Thomas a younger Brother of the Preachers Order or the Decree of the general L●teran Coūcel ratified with an exec●ation annexed is to be preferred Moreover if the Laterā Coūcel if the R●mish Bishop if the Cardinals themselves of the Romish Church many chief points of whose Religion rather agrees with Aristotle and the Philosophers than with Christ and his Apostles doe denounce a Curse against all such as shall affirme Aristotles opinion● dissenting from Christ to be true though in a philosophicall sense what will become of us thinke you who have taken upon us the profession of pure Religiō purged from Superstition freed from the rotten devices of men and clensed from the drosse and dregs of all errours I omit the pressing of this point in the Nycene Assembly of Cardinals appointed for that purpose They held it a great abuse and a matter of dangerous cōsequence for Philosophers to broach impieties in publique Schools and not to discover how weake the light of nature is to discourse of God the world and such like arguments and in all their disputations not to make piety their chiefest ayme I presse no● the opinion of sworne Witnesses those Cardinals Sadole● Contare●●● Poole I stick to the Laterane Councels Decree Whosoever therefore affirmeth it to bee true but in a philosophicall sense that the soule i● mortall or that the world is eternall if he feare God let him know that hee grievously prophanes Gods Name when the authority of his Word is disabled either in jest or in earnest If hee be a Papist let him know that he is pronounced an execrable Heretick and Infidell lyable to a Curse and delivered up to Satan by the Romish Bishop and the Lateran Councell if hee be an Atheist let him take his liberty of philosophizing defend his distinctions and what hee list I forbid him not To all others whether they are godly or seeme to be so what I say of the Worlds Eternity or the Souls Mortalitie I say the same of all other questions which dissent from Christian godlinesse amongst which is Aristotles opinion of Blessednes condemned by the judgment of Eusebius Lactantius Augustine Ambrose Gregory Nyssen naz●anzene and many other most learned men Let them look to it which de●fend it Let Philosophers distinguish the Sorbonists barke Epicureans rage Machiavili●ns scoffe the Truth is conquerer They themselves totter and shake fall and rot but the Truth will triumph Truth like the Palme-tree the more it is kept downe the more it flourisheth and by how much the more forcibly it is bended down-wards by so much the more vigoriously it reflecteth upwards The Sun ofttimes is darkned but that darknesse is discussed Proserpines golden branches are broke off but they spring again Truth may be pressed but it cannot be oppressed But if any Novice in Philosophy be offended at these things which are truly uttered neither can it bee expected but some will take offence at them let him not like a Momu● backbite in a corner or maliciously traduce this or that thing which I have spoken but let him refute mine Oration He shall not need to goe to the Augustinian Monkes let him writewithin his owne walls Words are but winde writings will stick by it let the learned judge I will most willingly give him a copy of mine Oration And so I doe heartily againe and againe intreat the Aristotelians if they have any confidēce in their cause if they beare any true affection either to Aristotle or Philosophy or the Truth that they will confute mine opinions If they cannot doe it for I doubt not of their good will to do it let them leave their wonted obstinacie and yield to the truth Let them not object they are not suffered to speak their minds openly they have place enough to write their mindes and that they may do more freely and upon better deliberation I acknowledge mine own weaknesse no man more but strong is the Truth I doe not so much distrust my selfe as I trust to my Cause A very child may mayntain a good cause but Cicero himsefe is not a sufficient Patron for a bad cause But I would wish them to provide new distinctions for these which I have handled have been oftner boyled than the Colewo●t in the Proverbe not twice but a thousand times which the stomack of Polyphemus himself is not able to disgest so that it is no mervaile our Schollers are sicke so often when they are crammed with such distinctions If any more sober minded hath either not understood or not approoved what according to mine abilitie I rather pointed at than explained by reason of the shortnesse of the time I intreat him to come to mee hee shall finde mee most ready to teach what I know or to learn what I know not We do not all know all things I may erre I am willing to be instructed This onely I crave that no man doe rashly carpe at what is done I neither contemne nor condemne the studie of Philosophy But I see a deeper wound concealed There are some in whose hearts impious profanenes is so fast rooted that they make piety not onely to seeme harsh and unsavoury to others but to be rejected and vilified by themselves Truly as Saint Augustine wrote long agoe that the enemies of grace lay con●chedunder the name of nature so it may be as truly said in our times that the enemies of the Faith lie couched under the name of Philosophy I know indeed there are many that erre through lack of knowledge but I mean the obstinate and pertinacious Patrons of Philosophy of whom would to God that were untruly spoken which I here speak againe with griefe The enemies of the faith lie couched under the name of Philosophy I shall be thought of some to be their enemy now I have rub'd their soares So mad Orestes in Euripides called his sister Electra a Fury of Hell because she tied him fast in his bed lest hee should run mad But her brothers outragious words nothing daunted