wee need not spend above our two pence in points of faith and works of supererrogation we must not spend above our allowance perhaps we may spend somewhat more to advance the honour of the good Samaritan and if we spend the overplus in his honour for the furtherance and advancement of his service I make no doubt when he comes againe to take the account of all our expences he will not stick to allow the overplus with an ego reddam I will pay it But they may chance to say Ob. Con. Tridér decret 1. Seâ—â— 4. Paripietatis affectu traditiones una cum libris veteris novi Testamenti suscipimus this faire allowance given to the Church may make too much for the Church of Rome that makes the voice of the Church the voice of God and equalls the power of her owne traditions with the peerelesse authority of the written word And what if some offend in excesse and lavishnesse must we therefore offend in defect and want what if they give the Church too much must we give too little or nothing at all what if they straine the power of the Church even to points of doctrine and articles of faith shall wee abridge and scant her power that shee may not reach to points of discipline Nay rather let the Scripture enjoy her right in matter of faith and the Church her interest in matter of custome that 's a priviledge given to the Scripture this a permission left unto the Church He that is Lord of all may doe what he will with his owne goods whether hee give more or lesse to the sacred Scripture what is it to thee Sume quod tuum est vade O Church take thine owne and go thy way thou hast power enough to use a ceremony thou hast power enough to make a ceremony let us now proceed a little further and see what power thou hast to presse a ceremony The making of a ceremony is not much How the Church may urge her cust and the use of a ceremony least of all all the matter is about the urging of a ceremony that may chance to urge a many of us But if you give us leave to make a custome and give us no power to presse the custome you doe as much in effect as if you gave us a gift with one hand and sought with the other to snatch it from us Saint Ierome gives counsell to Lucinius Epist ad Lucin. that all the customes of the Church that were no prejudice to the faith should be strictly observed and S. Paul is so stiffe for the custome here that he will not suffer it to bee overborne by the stubborne humour of contentious men Now if the customes had such a stroke in the first beginning and infancy of the Gospell when they could not be of many yeeres standing what power may belong unto them in these latter times being now confirmed by long use whereby they are become the more a custome There is no company nor society of men but stand upon the right of their owne customes All men stand upon their owne customes nay every parish and private house is ready to lay claime to one or other and when the Church her selfe hath taken up a custome that tends to the furtherance of Gods service may not she have power to stand upon it and to binde her children to conformity Could you but shew for your Civill customes what we can alledge for our Church-customs good leave may you have to stand upon them but I doubt by your favour it will be long enough ere you can shew the Apostles seale for the warrant and justification of your customes Some customes you have I must needs grant which you may safely hold by the same right as being not determined by the written laws of that nature are your Wayes and Mounds and fines and quitrents and suits and services and commons and releefes and heriots and 1000. more of the like kinde that must be judged by the custome because the Law therein hath prescribed no certainty but when you set up customes of your owne devising which former ages never heard of to stint the Church to a kinde of pension and to justle out the lawes in that case provided well may you force us to suffer such customes but you shall never perswade us to allow them The Lord foresaw in his owne wisdome that such injurious customes were like to grow upon his owne law Lev. 27.28 31. and therefore he makes provision aforehand that if any had a minde to buy out their tithes for ready mony they should yeeld a fifth part over and above the reall value of the thing redeemed to prevent ungodly compositions If any custome or composition of these times shall freely allow that fifth part over well may they hold and enjoy their customes but if they come short of that proportion as commonly they doe which are most urged that scarce allow one fifth for all the due I trow every honest and well disposed heart will first consult with his owne conscience how his plea will hold in the inner court before he stand upon such a custome Such customes as these in their owne nature as being delivered to us by word of mouth beside the warrant of the word are much alike to some Romish traditions which our adversaries seeke to obtrude upon us but if the word of God be sufficient against the one as I trow it is I hope it may be thought as sufficient against the other and so the matter is soone agreed Consider I pray how God shall blesse the labours of our hands as long as wee seeke to binde his hands how shall he vouchsafe to enlarge us as long as we seeke to straighten him how can we looke for a full increase while wee meane to allow him no increase It is not for me to cry downe these customes wherin every one preteÌ„ds some interest but if you stand so much upoÌ„ these upstart customs that tend to the hinderance of religion I trow there is no man can thinke ill of us if we plead hard for the ancient customes that serve to the honour of religion and to the furtherance of Gods service You must needs know that Mos populi dei is a great deale more then Mos populi The Church may städ upon hers much more Inst l 4. ca. 10. sect 30. they are but only humane customs that proceed from man tend to man but the customes of the Church that serve for the furtherance of devotion if you please to beleeve Mr. Calvin himselfe are not only humane but also divine and so may the better be stood upon You say well may some reply so they bee good and wholesome customes Objections against customes Ob. 1. but if they breed offence to the people of God and may not bee kept with a safe conscience were they not better be taken away then maintained to breed more
so much as your obedience to the custome and if you be so stiffe and cruell to your mother that she may not enjoy her ancient customes why should she allow your ancient discipline as you call it which you can never demand upon better warrant You say the Apostles had the Discipline but we are sure of this they had the customes and if you seeke to rob us of those rites which we know the Apostles once delivered why should we give way to your new pretended forme of Geneva discipline which I doubt the Apostles never heard of Shew us that warrant for your discipline as wee have shewed you for our customes and wee shall have cause to hearken to you In the meane while wee have right enough to enjoy our ceremonies by the Apostles leave if not by yours and though you thinke it a ragge of Rome and a relique of Popery and superstition yet we shall rejoyce and triumph at all your taunts as long as we can say with the blessed Apostle habemus consuetudinem wee have a custome c. To have a custome is not much Right of the Chu in holding the customes but all the matter is by what pretended right wee hold the customes No man heares of the customes of the Church for the ordering and disposing of Gods service but presently he begins to examine our Patent and to renew the question of those Priests and Elders Qua potestate Mat. 21.23 By what authoritie doe you these things and who gave you that authority The Church I trow will doe nothing without a warrant and if shee have that warrant from her husband bequeathed unto her in his Testament reade us the Will and it sufficeth But if shee take her power from the will of man or from the favour of Princes or from the authoritie of her governours then you must give us leave to put in a caveat untill it be tryed by the Law Loe this is the plea of all the sectaries in the world Nulla specie illustriore sâ—duci pos sunt miseri Christians c. Calv. adver Anabapt Shew us your ceremonies in the word of God and we shall be willing to obey and it prevailes the more with many a man because it seemes to give to the written word but if it appeare upon just tryall that the word of God with honour and reverence be it spoken was never constituted as the judge for the speciall designation of particular ceremonies then wee come upon them Luk. 11.22 like the strong man armed in the Gospell that take away their weapons wherein they trust and liave them nothing to object Whilest I take upon me to make this good Particular customes depend not upon the immediate and expresse warrant of the word let no man thinke I dishonour the Scriptures let shame and confusion fall to my portion if I cast any blurre upon that sacred volume I know well that it is the priviledge of the Scripture to bee the onely rule of faith and manners and it was the only scope of the holy Apostles * Ioh. 20.30 to leave a perfect record of all those things that might essentially conduce to our salvation For other accidentall adventitious circumstances that were no part of the service of God but onely an ornament to the service it seemed not good to the Spirit of God that they should passe by the same Patent Well may they passe in generall tearmes as many things are conveyed in every deed under the name of the appurtenances but they are never expressed in that gracious Patent by any speciall intimation Well may they belong to those traditions which the Apostle delivered by word of mouth 2 Thes 2.15 but they can be no part of that holy tradition which he delivered to the Church by his written Epistle Well may you referre them to those rituall orders which our Apostle promised to compose when he came to Corinth ver ult but you cannot referre them to that heavenly doctrine of which the Apostle sayes a little before Accepi à Domina ver 23. I have received from the Lord. The truth is all that I can finde in the new Testament concerning ceremonies is nothing else but a generall warrant that you have in expresse tearmes 1 Car. 14.40 1 Cor. 14.40 That all things bee done decently and According to order but for the speciall practisie and application of this order whether this or that be more agreeable to the rule there the word is so mute and â—â—lent that you 〈◊〉 finde the least title No doubt the Apostles composed some speciall orders Calvin Theophil aâ—â— in 〈◊〉 S. Paul 〈…〉 composed the Churches observed what he delivered and if 〈◊〉 of those can bee found in 〈◊〉 Scriptures why should we look for a speciall warrant for the ordering and disposition of things indifferent If the Churches were bound to those strait conditions The Church is not tiâ—d to any 〈◊〉 such warrant in matter of custome there is none of them all for ought I can see but have forfeited their recognisance long agoe in asmuch as they have used some speciall customes which were not expressed in the sacred Scriptures Cartwright himselfe Pag. 22. sect 1. 2. apud Dr. Whitgift answer to the defence c. the great scourge of all our customes while hee seekes to binde us to the speciall warrant of the word for all particulars is forced to confesse for the Iewish Church that shee had many and sundry customes at least twenty for our one about sacrificing and preaching and burying and marrying and fasting c. which were no where expressed in the law of Moses Vid. S. Bas ep 63. Cypr l. 10. ep 12. l. 4 ep 6. Epist ad Vict. Rom apud Eâ— seb l. 5. cap. 25. 26. Whether the Christian Church had the same liberty no man can doubt that hath read any thing for beside the records of the ancient Fathers who give us some hints of sundry customes about prayer and baptisme and singing of Psalmes and celebration of Easter which I could never finde in the word of God * Adver Praxeam lib. de corona militis Tertullian for his part is resolute and peremptory upon his own knowledge that for matter of rite and outward order Si legem expostâ—â—es scriptuâ—â—r 〈◊〉 iâ—venies nuâ—â—am If you looke for the Law of the word of God you shall be sure to finde none But to shew this liberty of the Church in some particulars Vid. Hila. praefat in Ps Ieâ—oâ—â— advers Lucifer Just Mart. lib. quaest idem confirmat Synod Niâ— can 20. Where can you finde in the holy Scriptures that we ought to pray standing on the Lords day yet that was the custome of the ancients for a certaine season to preserve the memory of the resurrection Where can you shew in the word of God that we ought to communicate every day yet that was
the use in the ancient Church Hieron ep ad Luâ—n Aug. ep ad Casulanum to keep the memory of the passion Where doe you reade in the word of God that you ought to receive the Communion fasting yet that was the universal custom of all the Church in Saint Augustines time Epist 118. ad Ianuar. to preserve the honour of the blessed Sacrament To be short if you think the letter of the word be so requisite to every custome you were best to survey the writings of the Apostles and see what order you can find for standing holydayes what speciall warrant for set fasts upon certaine dayes what expresse charge to keep the first day of the week for the Christian Sabbath Vid Dr. Field li. â— ca. 20. Episc Elienâ—â—â— tract de Sab. pap 98. what expresse immediate warrant to christen or baptize a young Infant I doubt you will find no more but a generall warrant for any of these though they have been constantly observed in all ages and if every of these have been held by custome being onely grounded upon the generall warrant of the Scriptures and deduced from thence by good consequence without any speciall intimation why should we be tyed to a speciall order for the ruling and disposing of every ceremony If the speciall warrant of the Word be so necessary you were best to blame the Apostles of Christ The Apostles never composed any set forme of outward rite Instit li. 4. â—a 10. sect 30. because they forgot to entreat of particular rites and if a generall warrant be not sufficient you were best to blame the Churches of God because they took too much upon them For the Apostles first you cannot blame them for Calvin himselfe can tell you that they had no commission from the Lord to set downe a forme of outward discipline inasmuch as he foresaw how that depended upon the state of the times neither could he judge any one forme to be agreeable to all people He knew well enough that the Church was subject to waxes and wanes to fulls and changes and vicissitudes and therefore as a rare and cunning workman can hardly make a garment for the moone as Plutarch notes that should equally fit her at all seasons as well in the new as in the full no more could the Apostles judge any one form of unchangeable custome to be agreeable to all times and the various conditions of all people All particulars in this kind depend upon the authority of the Church But then perhaps you will blame the Church because she presumes to run of her selfe without a speciall commission for every custome No surely but where the Word of God is dumbe and silent there the voice of the Church must be attended In this case the very silence of the word gives consent that the cause belongs to another court and seeing the word is silent concerning ceremonies and speaks nothing of them in explicite termes where may we looke for a certaine direction and resolution in that case but from the power of the Church and from the authority of her pastors Ep. ad Casulanum In quibu◠〈◊〉 certi statuit script mâ—s populi Dei instituta majorum pro lege temenda sunt Saint Augustine being asked his opinion concerning a custome used in his time takes occasion to answer in briefe not onely for that but for all others of the same stamp that where the Word of God determines no certainty there the custome of the Church and the constitutions of her Pastors are to be taken for a law That this was the generall judgement of all the Churches in all ages if any man doubt let him reade the Canons of the Councels Beza lib. conf fidei Chri. ca. 5. for why should the Councels be called together to order the government of the Church and to settle the forme of outward discipline but that they held it a maxime in all ages that the Church had power of things indifferent There is no Divine of our owne side of any note that stick at this power Beza conf fidei Gualt praefat in 2. Cor. Zuin. li. de bapt Chem. loc com tit tradit Mar. in 1 Cor. 1. Calv. com in loc so it goe no further for besides the judgement of Beza Bucer Zuinglius Chemnitius Peter Martyr and generally all the Worthies of these latter times that freely allow it with one consent you shall take the opinion of Calvin one for all who sets it down for a certaine rule upon the light he drew from this present Cap. that every Church of what place soever may safely compose such a forme of discipline as may be most agreeable to it selfe because the Lord therein hath prescribed no certainty The truth is the Apostle himselfe is so cleare in this that no man can make any further doubt for when he seeks to suppresse an upstart custome by a non habemus talem and grounds himselfe upon this reason because they nor the Churches had none such what doth he but inferre by way of consequence that the practice of the Church and determination of her Pastors is warrant enough for any ceremony It makes me wonder the more and who doth not wonder at the froward humour of some peevish Novelists that think all the practice of the Church in things indifferent to be nothing else but usurpation and all her decent and reverend customes that serve for the furtherance of GODs service to bee nothing else but a meere wil-worship Their spight is so great against the present government because it crosses their selfe-will'd humours that they will scarce allow that power to the Church in the meanest things that every Church-warden and meane Artificer would soon challenge if they might be left to their owne liberty Belike the Seers of the Lord are become blind that they cannot discerne the meanest things or else the stewards of the Lord are become unfaithfull that they may not be trusted with the poorest ceremony But well fare the good and courteous Samaritan he was not halfe so strait to the good Inkeeper when he gave him the care of the wounded traveller in the Gospell so willing was he to enlarge his favour that beside the two pence hee left to discharge the reckoning hee gave him leave to spend more and to runne upon the score till his next returne Vid. Aug. de quaest Euang. li. 2. quaest 59. Ambro. Origen in Luc. Maca. Cyrill alios in Cat. Gâ—aeâ— patrum in Luc. No doubt a large allowance given to a stranger but if we be the wounded travellers as indeed we are that unhappily miscarried in Adams sinne and if the two pence he left us to discharge the reckoning may seeme to allude as most expound it to the two Tables of the Testament I wonder what course we may take to spend the overplus that he may allow it at his comming In necessary expences for food or physick
to come to bring upon us a new custome either in praying or preaching or baptizing or communicating or marying or burying whatsoever it bee or by whomsoever it bee allowed wee will say no more then S. Paul does Non habemus talem wee have none such You may not set up a new custome On the other side if any shall seek to put down the old whether in standing or kneeling or crossing or bowing or uncovering or whatsoever else of the same alloy that hath beene either prescribed in our booke of Canons or religiously continued in the reverend practice of our mother Churches we shall need to say no more then S. Paul implies habemus talem we have such a custome allowed amongst us and you have no power to put it downe Indeed custome is a good plea for outward rite Custome no good plea for matter of doctrine but for the doctrine of Gods worship that concernes the essence of religion we must not plead a bare custome When any part of that gracious charter shall be called in question by stubborne hereticks we must not follow the customes of men Cypr ep 63. ad Pomp 78. ad Quint. 74. but the truth of God nor must we regard what men have done but what Christ hath said for our direction Ad legem testimonia to the law and the testimonies must we goe for tryall there must wee seeke for our direction but for matter of rites and outward discipline which are things in themselves meerely arbitrary and no where expressed in the word of God we can never use a more strong demonstrative argument then S. Paul hath used in the words of my text We have or we have not such a custome The very name of custome hath some weight because the allowance of the Church is added to it yet it is not the allowance of every Church that takes up a rite of her owne head contrary to the order of other Churches but the unanimous consent of sundry Churches agreeing in one that gives the name and force of a custome S. Paul doth not stand upon the custome of one Church much lesse doth he urge it against all the rest but loe he stands upon the generall use of the Apostolique Churches and urges the harmony of the most against the private use of the Church of Corinth to teach us that if any question should arise in time to come about the different orders of sundry Churches that wee could hardly know which to follow we should ever preferre the customes of the most and specially those which are most Apostolique before the private orders of some few that have degenerated from the rule You see the nature of S. Pauls customes 1 Cor. 14.40 26. and what power you have to stand upon them a better custome you cannot have nor better authority to beare you out I will but onely adde this one word more that your customes bee decent and reverend customes surnished with all those speciall properties which S. Paul requires in every custome and then you come fully up to the Apostles talis you have a custome I warrant you against all exception and if any man seeme to be contentious you may safely plead it in open Court habemus talem we have such a custome But I feare I shall exceed the time and so break the custome while I stand so long upon the Churches custome but if I have tyred the patience of any in tracing this strange unusuall argument I desire the blame may rest upon them whose wilfull and stubborne oppositions have forced mee to breake my usuall custome For most of you this labour might be spared for I have seene your order and approved it but others there are of that crosse and peevish spirit that I thinke if S. Paul himselfe would supply this place he could hardly win them to conformity Let the Church stand upon her customes while she will the rulers of the Church observe the custome and all the Doctors of the Church both old and new allow the custome yet they resolve to hold their custome their custome of wilfull contradiction If any custome at all goe downe with them it must be the custome of some forraigne Church Great is Diana of the Ephesians and they are apt enough to admire her customes but for the customes of our owne Church Sr. George Paul in the life of Archb Whitgift Apoc. 3.17 18 19. which all our neighbours so much renowne and our very adversaries themselves account an honour to our reformation they must not be allowed upon any tearmes Alas poore Mother thou sayest thou art rich and wantest nothing and knowest not that thou art poore and naked and miserable and blinde that thou canst not judge of the least custome Thou must buy thy gold of them if thou wilt be rich and thy raiment of them if thou wilt be cloathed and thy eye-salve of them if thou wilt be cured of thy blindnesse and yet the most of them will freely confesse if they are not too ingratefull that they themselves have been debtors unto thee not onely for the light of heavenly truth but for the helpe of outward supportation Did the fame of thy children never spread beyond the Alps or their glory beyoÌ„d the Lemanian lake Why then should thy children despise thy customes and dote upon the love of forraign Churches unlesse they meane to play the parts of ungracious children to discredit the wombe that brought them forth and the pappes that brought them up For our parts wee are loath to discredit our neighbour Churches such as have joyned with us in the reformation whatsoever customes they have we envy them not good leave may they have to stand upon them and if any of us should converse among them we would not stick to use their customes The rule that S. a Apud Aug. ep ad CasulanuÌ„ Quando Rome sum c. ad quamcunque aliam ecclesiam veneritis ejus mâ—â—em servate si pari scandaâ—um nec vultis aec facere ibid. Ambrose gave to his friend S. Augustine when he asked his opinion concerning fasting on the Saturday which was the custom at Rome but not at Millaine that when hee was at Rome he used to fast and when he was at Millaine hee used to eate the same must we alwayes observe in matter of Rite as S. Augustine teaches If wee will neither offer nor suffer scandall Let mee give the counsell that b Ier. ep ad Lucin. Ego illud te breviter admonendum puto c. NecalieruÌ„ consuetudi nem aliâ—ruÌ„ contrario modo subverti Ierome gave to his friend Lucinius that thou keepe the customes of the Church inviolable and suffer not the customes of one Church to be undermined to bring in the customes of another Thou maist easily offend either way but chiefly in opposing thine owne Church for if it be matter of scandall as you heard before to refuse the customes of forraigne Churches whensoever we chance to communicate with them how can we free our selves from cause of scandall when we spurne at the rites of our owne Church and refuse to conforme to her authorised customes I must say no more of these kinde of men for I doubt my doome is passed already I must goe for a formalist a time-server and I know not what if I plead so hard for the Churches custome but if I suffer in this cause S. Paul may best answer for me he hath deceived me if I be deceived and if he have a share in this hard censure I shall bee well content to suffer with him although they should make me yet more vile Howsoever it be I shall yet intreat for all that and I will not intreat in mine owne name but in the words of the blessed Apostle 1 Cor. 1.10 Now I beseech you brethren by the name of the Lord Iesus Christ that you all speake one thing and that there may be no schismes and dissentions among you Let no man strive against the customes of the Church for that will turne to his owne confusion these warres are like the warres of Saul and David 1 Sam 3.1 where the house of Saul grew still weaker and the house of David gathered strength It is hard to kick against these pricks for you may sooner gall your owne feete by a foolish opposition then you can blunt or spurne down the Churches custome There is neither comfort nor gaine in this rash adventure but onely the shame of your own mother but if you will yeeld your selves like dutifull children to observe the custome or like stout champions to plead the custome you have the warrant of the Apostle to defend you and the countenance of your Mother to encourage you and the promise of your Father to reward you even the Father of peace and the Father of all comfort who shall sanctifie you all throughout and keepe you both in soule and body and spirit blamelesse untill the day of Iesus Christ Amen FINIS