Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A62858
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Le Tombeau des controverses a grave for controversies, between the Romanist & Protestant, lately presented to the King of France / Englished by M.M.
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M. M.
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1673
(1673)
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Wing T1793; ESTC R15915
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30,396
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50
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resemblance of being the Principles of good Morality and Piety they know that Divine Will ought to Govern and Rule these Vertues and then they may believe and conclude that all practices established by Humour or by the Interest of Men are Ambiguous Incertain Indifferent or Criminal And that Prince who bears a good Mind as well as a good Sword may as well judg of Religion as of War St. Paul himself tells us that the Spiritual man discerns all things But without going to spiritual exactness I have seen Peasants brought up in the labour of the fields who being born with good Wit despise many Grotesque Devotions and could distinguish with a solid judgment There is much reason to believe that if his Majesty would imploy his excellent Wit about the two Religions exercised in his Kingdom he would discern with an exact clearness the Good from the Evil the Necessary from the Superfluous Divine from Humane the True from the Dubious the Hypocritical from the Sincere the Dangerous from the Useful the Material from the Spiritual and the Rational from the Brutal A regular mind easily seeth that which raiseth him to Heaven or that which amuseth him upon the Earth 24. It is certain that his Majesty may discern without any great difficulty the form of that Religion which falls under the knowledg of a good natural judgment but to satisfie himself more fully he may command experienced men who are capable of greater labours to represent to him chat which is Old and New Christian and Roman Apostolical and Pontifical to the end his Majesty may be able to discern what is established by the Antiquity of the Apostles and all that which is added by a Modern Antiquity This Representation cannot be done but by minds very laborious and knowing in both Religions and whose Souls are sincere and generous They ought also to consider the respect they owe to their Prince and repay his kindness with a solid sincerity by this means one shall find that nothing is more ancient than that which is most true and that which doth appear most true will be best maintained and defended 25. I consider in the Oeconomy of this Peace both Royal and Heavenly that the difficulty must be but mean upon the Propositions disputed in the Schools by Divines on either side as the mysteries of Justification the grace of Praedestination this Controversie may raise divers Opinions and yet leave men Friends But the worst Obstacle is of Practices Customs and outward Devotions which appear of great moment to the Vulgar when as they are looked upon but as low things and indeed but tricks by Wise men The Roman-Catholick doth not believe that there can be either Piety or Christianity where he finds not Images Ornaments Ceremonies Processions and Pompous Appearances He accounts nothing worthy enough for his Adoration nor real for his Salvation if one does not perswade him that Christ in the flesh is kept in a box in the Church He is much a slave to Custom and believes that the Sacraments and Service administred privately and in an unknown Language where they hear the voice only without understanding the words begets more Reverence His mind is so ill-dispos'd by this Custom that he imagines that all will be in a disorder if the King should declare himself next under God as well Protector of Religion as of Justice and because of the loud and continual bawlings of the Emissaries of Rome He imagins that God will not remain in France if the Pope should not be Mediator between Christ and the King to keep them Friends without thinking that St. Peter who writ plainly saith that he that honoureth the King sheweth his fear to God whereby he declareth the near Relation between God and the King for he writes Fear God and Honour the King Such is the disposition of the Roman-Catholick from whence follow such Practices Devotions and Customs which cannot be taken from it without its destruction and one feels as much pain when one plucks away an unprofitable and idle excrescence from the flesh as in cutting off a Member which is very serviceable to the body The Protestant hath a Soul inclined quite another way He seeks God with a Worship of Spirit and Truth He believes not his Faith divinely Established but by the Word of God nor the equity of his Conscience well regulated but only by the Law of God He seeks not the flesh of Jesus Christ upon the Earth but his Spirit and his Grace He Worships him as he is in Heaven not by the Image of his body but in respect of his Divinity he can easily pass by Images and Statues looking upon them as false Representations and very unprofitable to solid Pâ—etâ— If he esteems the Right of the Church and the Decency of it in the external practice of Religion he despises the multitude of Proud Ceremonies and the glittering of so many affected Ornaments He believes not that the Popes Authority is necessary for the French Church He saith confidently that the Gallique Church may stand without the Roman and that she can never render her self more just and happy than by banishing strange Power He looks upon the King as the Head of Justice which is principally established by the Divine Laws that Sovereigns who are according to Gods own heart ought to know and cause to be observed the Law of God without turning either to the right or to the left hand with this disposition of mind so different between the Roman-Catholiques and French Protestants if divers Opinions remained in the mind only without breaking forth they would not produce dreadful Enmities and those Obstacles which are so hard to be overcome but when one endeavours to draw a Roman-Catholick from his painted Devotions and oblige a Protestant to conform to them they suffer frightful Vexations if they be constrained and can hardly take any Resolutions except they are brought to them by Reasonings and Perswasions 26. I have known the thoughts of many rational minds even of the Roman-Catholiques who believe that the King would do an act of Wise Bounty if he would permit without any reserve the satisfaction of Consciences without shewing any aversion either to Protestants or Papists provided that all would dwell in a mutual Peace without malediction or quarelling This State of Cessation would be a principle of Peace and all the World would be contented if his Majesty would not permit that any one of his Subjects should be debarred from bearing Offices and Honours that those of either Religion may live without trouble and disquiet in the Service due to his Majesty By this Liberty we should all have a Peaceable Conversation and a Charming Commerce the heats of disputes animated by Hatreds would cease they would become Conferences of Friendship by which every one might be Instructed Aversion which disorders the blood should have no more force against the calme lights of our minds and all would be so agreeably disposed to
in Conscience to have the care of Religion since he may desire most Lawfully that there be but one Religion in his Government I believe that the first Idea which can open the way to effect it is to resolve that no stranger shall govern it and according to my thoughts all the French of either Religion wish or ought passionately to wish for it both in Reason and Conscience for when the King gives or permits to a Stranger the Government of Religion in his Kingdome he keeps to himself the least part of his Riches and puts into the hands of another power which it may be will War against him the Government of those affections which tye most effectually Subjects to Princes What should one say if the King should suffer himself to be perswaded to take a Polonian to Command all his Army in chief or a Spaniard for his Lord-Chancellour by what Reason can one oblige him to have a Patriarch of Greece Alexandria or Italy Must the King commit that which is most considerable for his quiet and safety to such an Authority as doth not care for his welfare or it may be are Enemies to it All France sighs at the remembrance of these Devotions rather promoted by Devils themselves than by Diabolical men which made Clement Jacobin John Chastel Ravillas and generally all the League act by a hellish zeal All this mystery of Iniquity took its birth progress and execution from a false principle of Conscience which the Out-landish Beast caused to be proposed to the people and which had at the bottom nothing but a fatal machin of Interest and Ambition I have read in Avila an Italian Author that Jacobin the Murderer of Hen. 3. was a false devote and a furious Zealot for the Orders of the Pope We read in lib. 95. of the History written by Mouns the President of Thou that Pope Sixtus the Fifth commended in a full Consistory this horrible action with large praises admiring the Vertue of this man the strength of his Courage and his ardent Love towards God Cum virtutem hominis animi robur ferventem erga Deum amorem suprà Eliazarem Juditham multis verbis extollit John Chastel was another devote and the decree of Parliament given against his wicked act is Excommunicated in Rome of whom the wise Cardinal of Ossat spake in this sort to the Cardinal Aldobrandin as he himself reported If the King had any cause to fear to be Murdered he should rather fear the Hugonots whom he had forsaken and who had cause to complain of him but they have attempted nothing like this neither against him nor against the five Kings his Predecessors whatever Butchery they have made of them Ravillac another devoto began his day by the Confession Mass or Communion and imploy'd the rest of it to follow the Kings Coach to find the occasion which he met with to the great dammage of the Kingdome after 6 months spent in his Devotions and his Indefatigable cares The Zeal of a desperate man which he witnessed in his torments and at the point of his death sheweth us what a dangerous thing it is for a Stranger to govern the Consciences when the Natural King hath nothing but the Political to govern 13. Can a State be happily Govern'd when two Monarchs are equally considered in it their Interests do undoubtedly divide and part their minds hearts and hands this division produceth Confusions without Remedy the wisest men commit the greatest errors in this Mist which permits not the right discerning of Justice or Injustice between these two parties But if one be perswaded that one of these two Monarchs is infallible and that one is obliged by Conscience to take his part all the people will take his Interest and look upon all that which opposeth his design as a Horror and a Curse If a Stranger or the Pope Establisheth his power in France by the principles of Conscience his Authority must infallibly triumph over that of the King who is the lawful Prince of it and this cannot be avoided for the Superstitious will fear to be Condemned and the Perfidious Interested ones make the weak capacities of others serve for their more bold designs and the besotted Worshippers will believe to gain as many Crowns in Heaven as they kill Protestants What Prince can be safe reading and believing the discourse of the Crowning of the Pope attributed to Innocent the 3d. and saying these great words I bear the Mitre because of my Priesthood the Crown because I am King Establishing my self next under him who writ upon his Thing the King of Kings and Lord of Lords What wonder is there that so many people did rise against Hen. 3d. and afterwards against the generous and good King Hen. 4th Few persons could resist those barking Hypocrites who being ingaged in the Popes party did publish through all the Kingdom That whosoever should serve the Prince could never escape Damnation that Kings lose their Power in losing the Friendship of the Pope and being in that condition they merit neither Respect nor Love Judg Sir if the King hath not a just Interest and a lawful Right to cause his Nation to love a Religion which hath but one God one Heaven and one Monarch upon Earth 14. If the King designs this Unity of which you tell me the true fear of God ought to possess his Soul he ought to think that he is a Soveraign over his People but yet that he is neither Master of nor Companion with God and then he will account it his greatest glory to appear a faithful Servant in the house of the Almighty this title was given to Moses when he governed the Hebrews David and Solomon were honoured with that quality Certainly to serve God is truly to Reign his Majesty ought to take this Resolution not to consider the Interests Flatteries the Threatnings Opinions or the Wills of Men but only the Truth of God which conducts to true Justice Princes are obliged to know that God alone is the Monarch of Consciences and his Law only ought to instruct and his Authority to engage When they say that the King permits Liberty of Consciences they understand the liberty of exercising it or the liberty of appearing what one is since the freedome of thoughts answers but to God only It is certain then that the King desiring to draw his Subjects into one Religion cannot succeed more nobly nor more usefully then in establishing the way and orders of God the common Father of all no body can exclaim against his Powers censure his Word nor condemn his Ordinances Excellent Kings are marked with the quality of Princes according to Gods own heart because they have care to order to be done not what mens hearts desire but what God loves Sovereigns who render themselves subject to the Wills of men whither to their own Subjects or Strangers divide Opinions and give birth to War but if they appear faithful Servants to