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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
work_n	grace_n	merit_n	merit_v	4,519	5	10.8011	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A14028	The policy of the Turkish empire. The first booke	Fletcher, Giles, 1549?-1611, attributed name.	1597 (1597)	STC 24335; ESTC S118698	98,012	170

a thousand peeces so that euen in a moment there is not any thing left either of the Camell or of his furniture For euery man getteth vnto himselfe some little portion thereof as a most holy and sacred Relike of great price and estimation supposing themselues by the possession therof to be most blessed and happy This done they doe immediately seperate themselues and eache man prepareth himselfe with all speede to returne home into his owne countrey Of the Temples and Hospitalles of the Turkes and other workes and edifices builded and made for their soules health Cap. 21. BEsides this pilgrimage vsed by the Turkes to Mecha and else-where for the remissiō of their sins there be many other thinges wherein they do repute no small religion and holines supposing that by them likewise they shal merit great fauor at Gods hands that the same are special ready means for the furtherance of their saluation Of this kind are their temples religious houses builded for the celebrating of their Mahometisme and superstitious ceremonies and their hospitals founded for the relief both of poore impotent persons of trauellers and pilgrims with manie other like workes done to that intent and purpose for the manner and vsage of the Turkes is when any of them falleth sicke and thinketh that they shall die to send for their friendes neighbours and kinsfolkes to the intent they may in their presence make their last will and Testament The most parte of the Legacies which they doe giue and appoynt in their willes and Testaments are to such holie religious and publike vses as they do think wil be very meritorious and beneficial to their soules for some of them giue largely towardes the making or repayring of high-wayes Bridges and Cawseyes for the ease of Passengers others for the making of Conduicts Cesternes and Water-pipes for the conueyance of water from places farre distant to such of their Hospitalls or Temples as being scituated in drie and barren Places are ordinarily frequented vppon Deuotion and Pietie Some also doo giue large Legacies for the redemption of Prisoners and Slaues from bondage and imprisonment And there be manie of their Women which kinde exceedeth all others in Superstition who doo bequeathe great store of money to bee distributed amongst such Souldiours as haue slayne anie certayne number of Christians for that they hold this to be a Deede verie pleasing and acceptable vnto God Vpon these and such like Workes and publique Deedes doo the most part of the inferiour sort of People bestowe great summes of money by their last Wills and Testaments but the Emperours of the Turkes and some of their Bassaes and chiefe Nobles when they make their Wills and doo appoint anie Legacies to such vses they doo it commonly for the building of Temples or Hospitalls or some other such like great and sumptuous Workes supposing that by the largenes of their bountie and liberalitie and by the greatnes of this their deuotion and deedes of pietie they shall merite the more grace and fauour at Gods handes and that it wilbe the more for the safetie benefit of their soules Wherefore seeing they haue both their Temples and their Hospitalls in so great regard and doo attribute so much holines and merit vnto those Works it shall not bee amisse in a word or two briefly to describe the forme and order both of their Temples and of their Hospitalls Their Temples or Meschits are for the most part quadrant and foure square not much vnlike to our Churches yet greater and larger in length and then in bredth and some of them are more large and ample more sumptuous than others The Temple of Saint Sophy at Constantinople is of all their other Temples the most beautifull excellent The forme and fashion therof is round like vnto the Temple of Santa Maria in Rome which being builded by the auncient Romans was by them called Pantheon But that this at Constantinople dooth greatly excell the other both in largenesse height and beautie The Roofe therof being made arch-wise is couered al ouer with lead hauing one only Light or Window in the toppe thereof made round like a Loouer Within it is beautefied on all parts with curious worke of Porphiry fine Alablaster hauing two rowes of goodly Marble Pillers each ouer other of the which those of the first rowe are so big in compasse as two men hand in hand can scarce clip and embrace them their length also beeing proportionable to their breadth Aboue them stand the others somewhat of a lesser size supporting the Loouer in the toppe of the Temple The Gates thereof are faire and stately aunswerable to the beautie of the Building and are couered all ouer with plates of brasse One of those Gates as they imagine and giue out was made of the wood of Noah hys Arke for which cause there are in it three seuerall places or partitions left vncouered without any bras to the intent such as repaire thether may come to kisse the wood of that Gate by which ceremonie they do assure themselues to haue their sinnes pardoned This Temple was first builded by Iustinian the Emperour but after that Constantinople came to bee conquered by the Turkes they threw downe all the Altars within it and tooke away all the Images and Pictures For that they say God onely is to be adored and worshipped and that there is not anie reuerence at all to bee giuen to Stockes and Stones neither to Brasse Golde n●r Siluer nor to anie Images of anie kinde whatsoeuer All the Belles of that Temple they made into Great Ordenaunce because they haue no vse of Belles amongest them but the Temple it selfe they haue conuerted to their owne superstitious vse making it a Mosche or Meschit for theyr prophane Prayers and Ceremonies they haue it in that accompt and reuerence notwithstanding it was buylded by Christians as it is verye much frequented and that with great Religion by infinite multitudes of Mahometists who in regard thereof as also for the beautie and greatnesse thereof doo now esteeme it as the principall of all theyr Meschits In the Reigne of Baiazeth the second there were numbered at one time sixe and thirtie thousand People that resorted thether at one of theyr Easter Feastes vppon Deuotion to visite it and to praye wythin it Mahomet the second after hee had conquered that Cittie and had made choyce of it to bee the chiefe Seate of his Empyre did erect there another Temple in all poynts lyke to that of Saynt Sophy which is also without anie Images or Pictures within it but it is set out and adorned with golden Letters after the Morisco fashion And there is another Temple likewise which was builded by his Sonne Baiazeth and is adorned in the same manner The rest of all their Meschits are of diuers sorts some high and some low of seuerall fashions The Turrets of their Temples vpon which their Priests vse

hope of saluation consisteth chiefely in the pietie and merite of their vertuous life and good deedes And that they doe not much differ in that point from the opinion of some Christians who do attribute their saluation vnto their merites But of this we shall haue occasion to speake hereafter in the particular discouerie of their opinions For being now to shewe what those precepts are which bee commaunded in their law we will here set them downe in such order as they are reported out of their Alcoran THe commaundements of the Turkes law are eight in number The first of which in their language is thus written La Illa Eillala Mehemmet Resullala That is to say There is but one God alone and Mahomet is his Prophet Their second Commandement is Honour thy Father and thy mother with all possible loue reuerence and fidelitie And attempt not any thing against the good will and liking of thy parents Their third Commandement is That which thou wouldest not should bee done vnto thee doe not thou to any other Their fourth Commandement willeth That euery man at the time limitted and appointed therevnto doe repaire vnto their Mosche or Temple to publique prayers Their fift Commandement is That each man doe within the compasse of euerie yeare orderly consecrate and spend one Moneth in abstinence and fasting The sixt Commandement exacteth That euerie man according to his estate and calling doe giue Almes liberally out of his goods and substaunce The seuenth Commandement requireth That each man doe embrace and frame himselfe to marriage And that he doe diligently obserue all such solemnities rites and ceremonies as are ordained and required in the solemnizing therof which are hereafter expressed in the exposition of this Commaundement The Eight Commandement chargeth That no man kill another in any case by no meanes what so euer but vpon violent compulsion or by order of lawe and publique iustice The Exposition of the first Commaundement of the Turkes law containing the summe of their beliefe Cap. 5. THese Eight Commaundementes in the Turkes law do containe as it seemeth two especiall matters In fower of them namely in the first fourth fift and sixt precepts is set downe their faith and dutie towards God And in the other foure is contained their dutie towards man Their first precept consisteth of two partes For it comprehendeth their faith and beliefe which they haue of the Godhead and their opinion or beliefe which they haue of their Prophet MAHOMET Touching the Godhead they acknowledge both with the Iewes and Christians that there is one onely God Wherein they differ from the Gentiles who had their multiplicitie of Gods And they hold that God alone is to bee worshipped And all adoration to Saints Idols Images they abhorre and condemne as being an honour proper and peculiar to God alone contrary to the traditions of some Christians Howbeit this their knowledge of the Godhead is but in a generall confused and grosse manner and only as it were by conceite and imagination For what God shoulde bee and what is the nature and Essence of the Deitie they knowe not Neither doe they acknowledge any distinction of persons in the Godheade either of Trinitie in Vnitie or of Vnitie in Trinitye as doe the Christians Albeit they doe acknowledge that there is a holy Ghost and they do confesse that the Spirite of God doth inspire good motions into the heart of man incite vs to good and holy deedes And yet do they not acknowledge it to be a distinct person in the Godhead but they doe by a grosse conceit imagine it to be onely a bare power and vertue in God working by a secret kind of inspiration Likewise touching Christ although they doe hold him for a great and holy Prophet as shalbe elsewhere declared yet with the Iewes they deny him to bee the Sonne of God and the Messiah and Sauiour of the world For they say that God hath no sonnes and with the Arrians they deny his diuinity and the coniunction of his diuine nature with his humanity Notwithstanding they do in a sort acknowledge the power wisedome and iustice of God as also his goodnes his mercy and his prouidence For they belieue that he made the heauens and the earth That hee created all things and that by his prouidence he ruleth gouerneth all things That he hath ordayned a heauen or Paradise for the rewarde of those that liue well and godly and a hell for the wicked and vngodly All this they doe constantly confesse and belieue yet so as they seeme to conceyue of them by a grosse carnall outward consideration and by contemplating of the Godhead onely in the externall workmanshippe of his creatures and measuring the diuine bounty goodnes onely by the multitude of his corporall blessinges and benefites bestowed vpon mankind and not by his spirituall graces they doe honour serue and prayse him onely for his prouidence in prouiding for their earthly bodies And therefore as they doe hold it notable impiety any way to doubt of the grace fauour of God So doth their faith altogether rest and depend vpon this confidence and opinion That God hath appointed vnto euery man the manner meanes and certainty of his liuing and sustentation forty yeares before his birth And because man is made after the image similitude of God that therefore God hath made certaine and sure prouision for him For this cause they do teach that God is to be honoured and worshipped in a decent and comely manner with praise and thanksgiuing To which effect these words of their Alcoran are accounted of great reuerence and solemnity Acta Alla Bisigus Verdi Colarc Verdi Diuerdi Agfluerdi The meaning of which wordes is thus There is no other cause why God did endue and adorne mankind with reason and vnderstanding aboue other of his creatures but onely to the ende we should diligently and effectually consider in our mindes the infinite largenes of the diuine grace and bounty and the omnipotencie of the eternall Deity And for this cause onely did he place the eyes in mans body that hee shoulde behold and acknowledge his admirable works and creatures which he hath made in great aboundance by his diuine power and omnipotencie And therefore also did he fasten eares to the head of man that hee shoulde attend and hearken to the wordes of the heauenly law and that hauing heard and well vnderstoode them hee shoulde diligently keepe and obserue them Moreouer God hath distributed diuerse and sundry tongues and languages amongst men to th' intent one should instruct and teach another in the knowledge of the diuine law Besides they do obserue also these words of their Alcoran with great solemnitie Acta Alla Bisi Sagluc Chuerdi That is God hath giuen vnto men health of body as one not the least of his gifts and graces to the intent we should not suffer slouth and sluggishnes so to take roote and to bee